Foster kitties

[bunn]

We are fostering two cats for a few weeks for a local cat rescue. They are very thin, but very friendly. They haven't met our cats or Theo, they are living in the bottom floor in the big Shop store-room-cum-guest-bedroom at the moment, since they are both very thin and a bit sneezy. We are supposed to be feeding them up. They are eating a lot, which has to be good.

You can really see how thin Tabby is in the pic below - she's 8 months old. Her Mum is called Rosa, and she's slightly less skeletal, but still you can really feel her ribs.

 

Apparently they came from a home where the owners had 'lost control of the cat situation' - they had 17 of them, and weren't feeding them anywhere near enough, so we are hoping that they will fill out now they have plenty to eat, but it's possible that they do have some illness, so we don't want to risk Nenya or Fankil picking it up (though they are both vaccinated). No harm in careful handwashing after visits though.

I thought our two were quite small, compared with other cats of long ago, but Rosa and Tabby make them look huge.

We were hoping that their snottiness was just the aftermath of cat flu vaccination, but it doesn't seem to be clearing up , and it's been almost a week: Tabby still has the runs, too. I may have to see if the rescue are up for them having another vet trip.

Comments

[chainmailmaiden]

Oooh poor kitties, they're so thin! They remind me of Freyja when we first got her.

I'm so glad they have a good Foster home with you both now. I'm sure their condition will improve a lot now they're not competing for food and are properly looked after.

We've been using a pre and probiotic powder from Pets Purest for the boys who have a tendency towards runny poos. That has worked a treat for firming them up, might be worth a try provided the vet doesn't think there's anything specific causing the runny poos. They also do a digestion support supplement which might be suitable for settling things.

Linds had the squits for about 18 months after we got her, the vet put it down to the aftereffects of cat flu as a very young kitten since she had gum lesions which indicated she'd had it. But also said sometimes it was just one of those things. It's such a relief when you finally get a normal poo :D

Will you still have them when Bacchus visits? You know he will love them, especially having been starved of kitty company for a month.

[bunn]

Ah yes, we have the nutraflora probiotic powder for Fankil when he gets the runs. They've been having that regularly, and Rosa seems to be sorted out - just today, Tabby finally managed a more-or-less solid one too, so I'm hoping that means both of them are better.

Yes, they are here for three weeks, so will still be here at the end of Oct, I think. I'm hoping that I may be able to convince them to start playing: so far, they have been very cuddly and purry, but seem to have no idea how to play at all. But they did seem very tired.

[seascribble]

Oh tiny little babies! I hope their sniffles clear up, they're precious.

[bunn]

I'm cautiously optimistic about the sniffles - they seem better today, and I hope the trend will continue!

[adaeze]

I thought Nala was thin when she came to us, but not *that* thin. Glad they've got somewhere safe to stay now.

[bunn]

They have been with the rescue for a week or so before they came to us, so they were even thinner when they first arrived, poor beasties. At least they are eating enthusiastically!

[zdenka]

Kitties!!! Yes, those poor babies definitely need more feeding. I hope they become healthy soon!