Monday, March 8, 2010

Xiao Li IS sick

Xiao Li and Bandit's condition got me really worried, so I took them to the vet this evening.  Earlier on, I had heard from another vet that he had encountered kittens dying after deworming.  It seems the cause is unknown.  They can be well and healthy, then after deworming, they become weaker over a period of a few days and....they die.  Just like that.

This news really, really got me worried.  Xiao Li and Bandit have indeed got weaker after the deworming and have even lost weight.

So, off we went to the vet's after I brought PBJ home and settled them in.

Xiao Li had a temperature - she has fever.  The vet thinks it is a blood parasite so she will be put on Doxycycline.  Since Bandit has the same symptoms, but no fever, he too is put on the same antibiotic.

I told the vet that Bandit had totally lost his appetite after the deworming and I had been force-feeding him AD every 2-3 hours.  The vet said to continue doing this. 

Xiao Li also stopped eating but started eating her kibbles again this afternoon.

Xiao Li eating, and Bandit at the back.

The vet could only hypothesise what had happened:

1.  There could be an underlying problem festering in them, and the deworming caused it to surface.

2.  The stress of having to go to the clinic could have caused a drop in their immunity and resulted in them getting sick.

3.  It could even be FIP which could result in death.

Sigh....it could be anything.

But the vet strongly suspects a blood parasite, and if so, both of them should perk up in 2-3 days.  But the antibiotics would have to continue for 2-3 weeks after that.

I hope they will recover soon. 

Here's the paradox:  Do you deworm or not?  Deworming can save their lives, and yet, it can also kill them.

If we go back to nature, there is no such thing as deworming.  But in nature, it's the survival of the fittest. 

I guess with so much human intervention, ultimately, it also boils down to the survival of the fittest, doesn't it? 

Meanwhile, Teddybear is (so far) the problem-free one in this room. 

Me?  I am dead tired....!


1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Deworm or not? Well, according the the Cat Owner's Veterinary Handbook (3rd Edition) which is a very, very good book specially written by vets to educate cat owners and a must-have, the authors actually write that cats and kittens must not be given deworming medication if they are sick because the medication is actually poison but not harmful in the prescribed dosage.

The way interpreted is that when a cat/kitten is sick, its body system and the vital organs are already being challenged and the deworming agent will add to it.

But I guess that if you strongly suspect that a cat/kitten is made sick because of the worms in their body, you have no choice but to address the worm infestation.

Xiao Li and Bandit might have already caught something just before entering your household and the infection was incubating in them. That is probably the reason why some kittens die or get sicker right after deworming.

However, we are so glad the kids are getting better now.