Please help us save Little Grungy, a 10 week old kitten. She is very ill and needs testing to determine what is wrong. This is the quote we received for her care. We need to raise most of this in order to proceed with testing and treatment!
9/2/12 Update: Grungy is still with us. I honestly thought she was going to die last night. She was so limp and lifeless, so weak she couldn't even hold her head up to look at me. I spent the entire night holding her, giving fluids and trying to get her to eat. Force fed some A/D and gave her the Clavamox prescribed by the vet. Today she actually ate a little bit on her own (with me holding her head up) and then the craziest thing happened. I was massaging her legs and trying to get her to stand and she actually did, all on her own and took a few steps! I am so happy for her, it's progress however small. Now it's off to work and tend to the other cats, then back to the emergency vet later because our generous supporters helped us raise an amazing $800 which is enough for more IV fluids and blood work so we can find out what we are dealing with here! Thank you all for your support and generosity. I will keep you all posted on her progress.
9/2 The generosity of our friends is overwhelming! Thank you to Lauraine Griffin, Joanna March, Adrienne Trzcinski, Rosann Trzcinski, Sara Etten, Zoe Rolt, and Lucy Bradford for donating to help save Little Grungy's life! We now have almost $1100 which should cover most of what she will need and may even help pay for her 2 sisters' bloodwork. We need to make sure that whatever this is isn't going to affect all of them. Little Lottie and Cinderella are doing well so far, no signs of this illness so we are very happy about that. Fingers, toes and paws crossed that they remain healthy and Little Grungy fully recovers!
9/3 Update: Little Grungy Update: So I am pleased to announce that Little Grungy is eating dry food all on her own!!! She is holding her head up right now and remains alert and responsive. She has been sleeping a lot, stil can't get in the litter box, and is having trouble standing/walking. I have noticed that when I rub her belly she flails her rear legs but her front legs don't move at all. I'm wondering if she is going to be paralyzed in her front legs, if perhaps that is why she can't stand. I will be calling our vet first thing tomorrow to get her and her sisters in for testing. We will still be accepting donations because I know it's going to be a long, expensive road to recovery for this little girl. You can make donations via paypal to havenhousecats@aol.com or call our vet directly to donate over the phone: All Creatures Animal Hospital at 716-636-3600. Make sure you tell them you are donating to Haven House Cats.
9/4 Update: As of an hour ago, Little Grungy is walking better and actually used the litter box, but she has some bleeding around her one eye. And now her sister, Cinderella, has a fever of 104.2 and is acting very lethargic like Grungy was the first day of illness. So I am currently on my way to the vet with all 3 kittens. This is probably going to cost more now since Cinderella is having symptoms, im afraid little lottie will too. Donations can still be made directly to our vet by calling All Creatures at 716 636 3600. Be sure to tell them its for Haven House Cats. Thank you so much!
Later...
Just got back from the vet. Still not sure what illness we are dealing with, bloodwork will hopefully confirm but results won't come back for a few days. Our vet said it could be any number of things including toxoplasmosis, a severe URI that affects the inner ear, or FIP, but we aren't sure yet. Cinderella was given sub-q fluids and is now on Clavamox and Metacam, along with Grungy. They both curled up in the kitty bed together, exhausted from the vet visit.
Cinderella (left) and Grungy
9/5/12 Update: Little Grungy is walking, eating, drinking and using the litter box all on her own! She is still very wobbly when she walks so perhaps some of the neurological symptoms are going to be permanent. She's still under the weather with cold-like symptoms, sleeping a lot, uninterested in playing. Cinderella's temperature is gone, she has been sleeping quite a bit too but tonight she actually started playing with her healthy sister, Little Lottie. Little Lottie has not shown any signs of this virus, thankfully. We did not hear back from the vet today regarding the bloodwork so we still do not know what disease we are dealing with. These kittens have been kept very isolated from the other kitties in the house so hopefully it's nothing that can travel through walls, doors or floors. =/ Fingers crossed for some good news from the vet this week!
9/9/12 Update: We are still unsure what caused the kittens to get so sick. Every single test has either been negative or inconclusive! All kittens are FIV/FeLV negative, fecals were negative, bloodwork inconclusive. The vet has ruled out the scary things, and none of the other kitties in the house have experienced any symptoms so hopefully we will get Cinderella and Grungy better and be done with it! Little Grungy is doing a lot better. She has been walking around and playing with her siblings, eating well, drinking and using the litter box with very little trouble, although she is still a bit wobbly on her feet. But for the most part the neurological symptoms are subsiding quite amazingly and I truly believe she will completely recover without any permanent damage.
9/20/12 Update: Grungy and her sisters made a complete recovery. Little Grungy is walking perfectly on her own, playing, eating and drinking independently. She's back to being the energetic ball of fur that she was before she fell ill. She has no permanent damage and there is no indication that she was ever sick! We are so happy for her. We never found out exactly what the virus was that caused such a dramatic, scary experience but the vet is confident that it was not FIP, distemper, FIV, FeLV, or toxoplasma. We are pretty sure it is gone and none of the other cats in foster care have come down with any symptoms. Thank you to everyone who generously donated to help save these babies. We are working on finding them forever homes now!
1/11/13 Update: As of today, all three kittens have found their forever homes! We are so happy for them. Little Grungy (whose name is now Talleigh in her forever home) was the last to go as came down with a mild cold early in December and then again after her spay. She will always be susceptible to colds as she has a weakened immune system. But lucky for her she has an INCREDIBLY understanding new mom who will do anything to keep her healthy! I love a happy ending!
