Hello Ann,

Thanks for the question, and for caring for the kitten.

Seizures and inability to defecate are not normal and likely signify a serious health problem.

I would advise that you seek professional assistance from a veterinarian or a cat rescue, or animal rescue group who are experienced in caring for newborns.

In general kittens need to be kept warm, be fed about every 3-4 hours, and be stimulated to urinate and defecate.

But seizures are indicative of a sugar imbalance (you need to be using a high quality kitten formula and not a grocery store product), or a central nervous system disorder, infectious disease, and unfortunately even rabies, (which is fatal to everyone it touches, you are at risk also).

I’m sorry that your kitten is sick, but it is time to seek some professional and in person help.

I wish you the best of luck,
Krista

Krista Magnifico, DVM
Owner Jarrettsville Veterinary Center
Jarrettsville, MD
http://www.jarrettsvillevet.com

Hello Steve,

Thank-You for the very important question!!

And for reminding us all, once again, that our kitties (which still far outnumber dogs), always have to play second fiddle to their bigger, slower, domestic partners, dogs.

The good news is that cats are incredibly smart, instinctive creatures. They intuitively know to sleep during the hottest part of the day and to stay low and hide in a dark moist spot..outdoor cats will hide under a shelter on the cool moist soil, or deep in heavily shaded foliage. They are calm, quiet, and slow their metabolism by sleeping or relaxing as a bear does in winter.

Inside cats will often find a cool floor spot, like tile (think tub, shower, sink, or bathroom floor), or wood, in the shade, and sleep.

A fan provides cooling but many cats are initially scared of the noise and the movement, so only a seasoned learned cat will use one, (but try anyway).

Running water, like a fountain, or hose also provides a source of cooling, or cool ground to relax on.

In general cats have a very high tolerance to heat IF they can get access to a cool shaded spot.

Here’s where my concerns come from:

Indoor cats; Have less places to hide, or can’t find soil, or water, or moving air. And they tend to be bigger (fatter) which significantly reduces their ability to dissipate heat (same holds true for bulldogs and thick, heavily muscled dogs). Or they are otherwise immuno-compromised so they do not thermoregulate as efficiently, or have trouble breathing making panting significantly harder to do.

Outdoor cats; these guys are smart, they just need to not be contained. Outdoor cats die if they get stuck in a trap, a box, a something, or if they are otherwise injured or compromised. In essence the sick, the young, the old.

As a last note, I would guess that just about everything written for dogs holds true for dogs. Except I would not try to immerse them in water (will cause stress and exacerbate heat problems) and I don’t know many cats who like fans, at least initially.

I hope this helps..

Please let me know if you have any other questions or things to add.

Stay cool! And if you ever need a cool place to visit, or keep the kitties come say hello!!

Or you can board your cats in an air conditioned facility while the A/C is waiting to be fixed.

Take Care,
Krista

Krista Magnifico, DVM
Owner Jarrettsville Veterinary Center
Jarrettsville, MD
http://www.jarrettsvillevet.com

Hello Steve,

Veterinarians have malpractice insurance to use if a suit is filed against our license. But even with insurance there is a very high burden placed upon us because we are expected and treated as experts. So, if we know, or believe a pet will bite we are required to notify the owners and document it in the patient file.

This posses a terrible dilemma. Do we tell people and worry that they may give up on their pet? Or do we just cover our butts and place the burden on the owner to deal with.

I am sure that in reality there is a bit of each going on.

For me, I try very hard to notify and address each potential behavior issue with optimism in each pet. Every puppy that I meet gets unknowingly run through a list of behavioral challenges to elicit responses that help me advise owners on what to start doing now to prevent future issues. Because ALL behavioral issues magnify with time if not addressed early and correctly.

From my personal experience files I will add that I have participated in euthanizing two vicious dogs. Both were brought to me by their very devoted and loving parents. Both dogs had caused serious injury and could have killed someone is there had not been outside intervention.

It was incredibly difficult to put down a healthy young dog, but I had seen the damage they inflicted and like any other person or animal that could cause harm to the point of death, I take the responsibility to protect each other as paramount. If I had seen these pets trying to kill my family I would have also insisted that they humanely put them down. We have an obligation to protect each other, but long before that we have an obligation to train, educate, and take every single measure to avoid these behaviors from ever developing or being elicited.

A pet is a responsibility. A responsibility to them and the public.

Thank you for your question,

Take care,
Krista

Krista Magnifico, DVM
Owner Jarrettsville Veterinary Center
Jarrettsville, MD
http://www.jarrettsvillevet.com

Hello,

I think it is best to have it removed and biopsied.

It is almost impossible to know what a mass is without a biopsy. An impression smear can help but a biopsy is more definitive.

There is unlikely anything that will remove it without knowing what it is, especially if it has not responded to prednisone ( a steroid).

If you need any help from us at the clinic if you are close enough we would be happy to help.

Sincerely.
Krista.

Krista Magnifico, DVM
Owner Jarrettsville Veterinary Center
Jarrettsville, MD
http://www.jarrettsvillevet.com

Hello Dee,

Thanks for your question.

This is a common complaint from clients, and I have to admit a common activity of my beagle in my own home. He prefers the ‘sit-and-spin’ versus the scoot, but the underlying causes to scoot are universal.

They are three primary reasons that pets scoot.

They include, in order;
1. Anal sacs are full.
2. The butt itches, (specifically the rectal tissue).
3. Worms, although honestly, I have never seen this.

I have a few blogs written on anal sacs, you can find them at KMDVM.blogspot.com.

<a href="http://kmdvm.blogspot.com/2012/12/anal-glands-scoot-story.html&quot; target="_blank">Scooting, Anal Sacs</a>

The best way to check for why your pup is scooting is to have a veterinarian or veterinary technician check.
You can call the clinic and make an appointment anytime.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Take care,

Sincerely,
Krista

Krista Magnifico, DVM
Owner Jarrettsville Veterinary Center
Jarrettsville, MD
http://www.jarrettsvillevet.com

Hello Ed!

Thank you for your question but THANK YOU even more for being a foster parent to Shelby. Without people like you countless pets would never get a second chance at finding someone to love.

I hope that you can understand how grateful I am for your kindness, care, compassion, and generosity. Please don’t ever underestimate how special a person you are for giving your time, attention and home to a pet in need. You are not a failure!! You are just being challenged..and what’s worth achieving is only gained through challenges. So don’t give up and don’t beat yourself up..I will help, and I know of an army of people who have insights, experience, and ability to help you and your puppy. Best yet, Pawbly has a world of people to jump on board and be your support staff, your cheering squad, and even your safety net..

OK, here’s where I would start. It sounds like you have done some medical work-up, but if you haven’t done a complete physical exam, especially with a veterinarian who either focuses on behavior and/or neurology this is a very good place to start.

Secondly, I think it is very important to talk about this breed. Border Collies are very very (like THE MOST very) active dogs. They need constant exercise and a serious job.

I agree that the licking might very well be anxiety (if the mouth is clean, the physical exam,blood work, and all other diagnostics are normal), a veterinarian or behaviorist can help diagnose this. The squatting, humping, and maybe even the herding are all examples of exerting or claiming dominance. They all could be anxiety, or magnified by anxiety also.

I think that you are providing a loving, caring, and compassionate home to Shelby, but I do think that you and Shelby might need some help in figuring out what needs Shelby has that you might be able to resolve and also help her deal with her anxiety.

As a last note I want to add that ten years ago very few of us vets ever thought about prescribing anti-depressants to dogs. I have changed my tune over the last five years. I now urge my clients to consider using this when we have a pet who seems to be struggling to be calm and happy. They are relatively inexpensive and I promise you I have seen miraculous results in some dogs. All of the clients I spoke to about trying this drug were very very skeptical, but ALL of them have come back to me saying that their pet is so much happier. I am not suggesting that this be the answer for Shelby but it might be a discussion to have with your vet along with a behavior plan.

Try to find a behaviorist that is local, reliable, and works with a veterinarian. They are incredible resources and can help immensely.

I hope this helps, and I thank you again for your question and your helping Shelby.

Please don’t hesitate to ask me for any additional information, or to find me at the clinic.

Have a wonderful weekend..go out and play some fetch, and see if Shelby is calmer afterward.

Best of Luck and warmest of wishes,

Sincerely,
Krista

Krista Magnifico, DVM
Owner Jarrettsville Veterinary Center
Jarrettsville, MD
http://www.jarrettsvillevet.com

Hello Gary,

Thank you for your question, and thank you for being so proactive and compassionate to these kitties.

I think that in general you have a very good plan and it sounds like you are doing everything just as I would recommend. I think that 9 kittens is too much for one mom if they are all nursing (it sounds like they are not though). A mom that has too many kittens nursing can get hypocalcemia (we call it eclampsia). This can be life threatening.

By 4 weeks old the kittens should be able to be transitioned to kitten food. I would recommend leaving dry kitten food, wet kitten food, or softened dry food with kitten formula out every 4 hours. If the kittens continue to nurse I would start to rotate them so they have more individual time with you and a better ability to be encouraged to eat.

We estimate the age of kittens by one pound per month of age up to about 7 months old. A one pound kitten is about 4 weeks old.

If a kitten is not socialized and tamed by about 6 to 8 weeks old it gets increasingly more difficult. Spend as much time and attention that you can with them before this age.

Please be warned that unvaccinated cats and kittens can carry rabies. It can be deadly to them and to you.

I would also recommend that you contact your veterinarian and any local rescue groups for help in humanely trapping, spaying, vaccinating, de-worming, feline leukemia and feline immuno-deficiency testing, and microchipping. Many of the non-profits or rescues have low cost options for these.

I have included information about some local groups below.

Of course, if you would like to talk to me, or anyone else at Jarrettsville Vet about any of this you can find me at the link below.

For help on affordable pet care;
http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/resources/tips/trouble_affording_veterinary_care.html

Alley Cat Allies;
http://www.alleycat.org/

Animal Rescue in New Freedom Pa;
http://www.animalrescueinc.org/

Krista Magnifico, DVM
Owner Jarrettsville Veterinary Center
Jarrettsville, MD
http://www.jarrettsvillevet.com

Hello Anna,

Thanks for your question.

This is very hard for me to answer because I don’t know how long ago the surgery was, and I don’t know why the tail was amputated.

Here is the advice I give all of my clients,

"If you ever have a question or a concern you should come in so I can take a look at it."

For any surgery that I, or any of my other doctors do, we do not charge for a re-check. We want you to feel completely at ease with coming to us with any question post-operatively, and we never want you to hesitate to come in. We also know that any problem is easier, safer, quicker, and cheaper to fix sooner versus later.

With that said, and without knowing all of the information, and most importantly, without being able to see the tail (which I think a veterinarian needs to do ASAP), dark, almost black skin is a sign of necrosis. When tissue dies it turns a dark red and then a black color. So anything other than nice fleshy-colored pink skin is a reason for a quick re-check with the veterinarian who did the surgery.

Normal helaing tissue stays a nice healthy color and does not get dry.

If your pup is acting normally then you are probably safe to wait until your vet is back in the office (like Monday morning), and I don’t think that you need a trip to the ER for this.

If the tissue is dying and not viable then the tail may need to be re-done. This sometimes happens (especially with the dogs who have amputations because of "happy tail").

If I can be of any help you can find me at Jarrettsville Vet on Monday, but we are also open tomorrow for walk-in appointments from 1-3…

Best of luck with your dog.

Sincerely,
Krista

Krista Magnifico, DVM
Owner Jarrettsville Veterinary Center
Jarrettsville, MD
http://www.jarrettsvillevet.com