Hi

We have two female cats who had kittens about three weeks ago. Only one of them seems to be sick, but I was wondering if any of you can advise. I've read up on Feline Distemper and I don't think this is it. This little on has a runny nose (thick green mucus) and his eyes are closed - seem to be gummed up (they were open a few days ago). Is this just a cold? Are chances good that he'll recover? Is it likely to spread - there are 8 kittens in all - three in his litter.

I know diagnosis over the internet is iffy - just wondering if there are educated guessed better than mine available.

Thanks Sombra Wilson, Sask, Canada

-- Sombra Wilson (Sombra.wilson@sk.sympatico.ca), April 11, 2001

Answers

Is it possibly conjuntivitis? What I would do it use baby shampoo and warm water and a clean rag and wipe the eyes until they no longer are stuck shut-turning the rag to a new clean spot each stroke. And then use a bulb syringe to gently squirt warm water with the baby shampoo solution into the eyes to clean it out. And then repeat as necessary.

Does the kitten nurse? If this is just a cold then I would guess he will get over it, but make sure he nurses frequently. And if this is pinkey (which it could be) it is contagious to the other kittens and to you and anyone else handling the kitten. So make sure you wash hands really well and keep your hands away from your face. If you have any ointment that is antibiotis ointment suitable for eyes you could use it, but I would be careful. usually even pinkeye will run its course in a few days, and if you keep it clean he should do fine.

Just a suggestion that I hope might help. Watch for fever and of course make sure he is nursing and not being excluded!

Sarah

-- Sarah (heartsongacres@juno.com), April 11, 2001.

No need for shampoo .Warm water on a cloth on each eye until you can clean them off .Fotr the nose you can asperate {sp} like you would for a baby and even use baby saline nose spray to help clean it out .

-- Patty {NY State} (fodfarms@slic.com), April 11, 2001.

You can wash their eyes using chamomile tea bags - we've had this problem often and the chamomile bags do the trick- put the bags in boiling water and then let them cool down to room temp. wash the eyes gently with the bags.

-- kelly (kellytree@hotmail.com), April 11, 2001.

Sombra,

while you can take care of the gummy eyes the "thick green mucus" is nothing to mess with. Discolored mucus, green or yellow, indicates a baterial infection. If you don't want to contact a vet for antibiotics then use herbs (safe for cats) that will boost the immune system....possibly Eicinacia (can never spell that right). Herbologists....any other suggestions?

-- Deborah (bearwaoman@Yahoo.com), April 11, 2001.

I think you'll find all the kittens will get the disease and possibly the adults as well. Kittens don't have much reserve or defenses. My suggestion is to get them all to the vet as soon as possible. Most vets will do a litter for hardly more than a single kitten, but you could ask first.

-- Joy F (So.Central Wisconsin) (CatFlunky@excite.com), April 11, 2001.

You can make an antimicrobal eye wash using Goldenseal root and Marshmallow root (prepare a tea). For an kitten, I'd dilute a strong tea with plenty of cooled boiled water because you don't want it too strong for such a young animal. I'd wipe the eyes with this using sterile cotton 3x a day. Don't overdo it, as Goldenseal can dry and irritate mucous membranes with overuse.

-- amy (acook@in4web.com), April 11, 2001.

i've had cats all my life. this is a respertory infection that some kittens are born with. gets passed from the mother even though she doesn't get it. if you don't get to a vet all the cats will get it as it is contagious.eventually the kitten will die from pnemonia(sp?) had this happen to two babes years ago. lost one and the other recovered very well once she was put on amoxicillian. don't wait. laura

-- laura cavallari (ladygoat13 @aol.com), April 11, 2001.

I buy a triple-antibiotic ointment from my vet for my kittens eyes. Alternatively, I have had great success curing "sore eyes" with garlic. I very briefly boil finely diced garlic in water. Stir in peanut butter until you have a concoction with the looks and texture of pudding. Feed this to the kittens. Make sure they get lots of garlic. My kittens loved it and lapped up so much that my friends said they smelled like litte salamis but their eyes cleared up in a couple of days! My only problem was fending off the healthy cats so the sick ones got enough. They all liked the stuff. Ellie

-- Eleanor Shulman (ekshulman@webtv.net), April 15, 2001.

Thanks everyone.

I gave him echincea and rinced his eye with the tea bag, and then I went out and bought antibiotic eye drops (impatience maybe!) and his eyes are open again. I do like the peanutbutter and garlic -I might try that on my hubby with a sore throat(wink).

None of the others seem to be getting it. I'm pretty sure it was conjunctivitis - the nose stuff was gone the next day.

Thanks again Sombra

-- Sombra (Sombra.wilson@sk.sympatico.ca), April 15, 2001.

This was a common problem with our farm cats. All it took to fix it was to bath the kittens' face in fresh milk, straight from the cow. The mother cat did the serious licking thing and the kitten recovered in no time at all.

-- john hill (john@cnd.co.nz), April 16, 2001.

We had that problem, distemper, numerous years ago at the farm and it doomed an entire generation of cats, who. were killed or blinded. The places they made their beds transferred the infection through body secretions (nasal discharge, eye drainage, feces or urine) to new litters and the chain just kept up till we lost almost all of them... Be sure what you're dealing with, because if your animals are not vaccinated against distemper, you've got real problems. Animals that survive will be poor thrivers, puny and sickly. It spreads like wildfire, and can even be transmitted through your handling of one animal to another, or tracking debris from one place to another... Even recovered animals still carry the infectious organism up to nine months. It affects tonsils, larygnx, throat, respiratory system (coughing, sneezing, pneumonia); and it affects the liver, kidneys and the eyes. Same symptoms apply to Infectious Hepatitis and animal's eyes turn a bluish-white (called Hepatitis Blue Eye") from fluid accumulation within the corneas. As kidneys and liver fail you will see seizures, increased thirst, vomiting and/or diarrhea in both these cases. Treatment is more complicated than most people would consider. Specifically since it's "just a cat", or "just a dog". Be smart. Have on hand vaccines to innoculate your animals--all of them--to protect them from these viruses. Distemper can also be found in othe animal species: horses, sheep(?), but I think they're a different type. It's one heck of a lot better than trying to figure out what the problem is and trying to fix it before it's too late! Keeping down your on site population of dogs and cats by neutering and spaying (no matter what you may think) is by far one of your best choices in farm management. The way so many viruses are mutating, the best means of control is prevention.

-- Donna M. Davis-Prusik (Seven9erkilo@knoxcomm.net), April 16, 2001.