The grass isn't always greener on the other side of the fence. Sometimes it is just scary. At least that is what my kittens are feeling right now. For over a month, Frankie, Twyla and Hyde have been in my house. They have gotten used to the room they are in and to me. Twyla was progressing well with her socialization. Frankie and Hyde were not.
But then, as I mentioned in a previous post, they got sick. Twyla actually had already been sick, but this week she got much sicker. And Frankie and Hyde started showing odd symptoms too. So on Friday it was off to the shelter to see the vet to try and figure out what it going on.
The news is mixed. Twyla is definitely getting worse. Her congestion is concerning and it is time to get more aggressive with her treatment. She will now be on an oral antibiotic, SQ fluids, force feeding as needed and an injectible medication. I am happy that she is social enough to tolerate this sort of treatment. But I am sad to say that I had to send her to another foster home for her treatment. While I have no problem with the level of care she needs, one of the medications (the injectible medication called Penject) is something that I am dangerously allergic to. Even just getting it on my skin can cause my throat to swell. As much as I love Twyla, it is not safe for me to give her the treatment she needs. So she has gone to the home of an awesome foster mom who is amazing with feral kittens but just does not have the time to socialize on a regular basis anymore. She is also a vet tech so Twyla is in very good hands until she is off the Penject and can return to me.
Frankie and Hyde are also on medication. Their vet exam was inconclusive, mostly because they are still so feral it was difficult for the vet staff to handle them. But given the symptoms I was reporting seeing in my house and the fact that Frankie's lungs sounded a little harsh, they are now on meds.
Because of a lack of an available car, Frankie and Hyde had to spend the night at the shelter Friday night. I was not able to pick them up until almost 1pm the next day. They were well taken care of by the wonderful staff at the shelter but for them, this was definitely NOT fun. They were in a strange place, being poked and prodded by strangers, and just where did they think they were putting that thermometer?! They were in a strange cage, the smells were different, they could hear dogs barking and there were just SO many strangers.
When feral kittens experience a stress like this they can go two ways. They can either regress and act more feral or do what Frankie and Hyde have done. They have decided the grass was not greener on the other side of the fence and are very happy to be home!
Hyde has suddenly started purring very quietly at me, is enjoying and occasionally even soliciting attention with a head butt. This is a huge step forward for him. He is in the odd stage where he wants this attention, but at the same time, it makes him nervous. So the trick right now is to keep the interactions short. The old saying applies here: Always leave them wanting more.
As for Frankie, she has not has such a dramatic leap in her socialization, but she has improved. She still hisses if startled while in her crate. But she is now allowing me to pet her without the distraction of food. And for the first time ever, I was able to pick her up and move her a few feet without having to scruff her. Frankie actually would probably make faster progress if she was not crated but since I need to be able to get my hands on her to medicate them, both remain crated for the time being.
I have actually consulted with some other wonderful feral foster people regarding Frankie and Hyde and everyone pretty much has the same thought that I did. They need to be uncrated and learn to want to come near me, but first I need to get them healthy. Right now, I am avoiding the stress of giving them medication by mixing it into their baby food. I am hopeful that I will continue to be able to trick them into taking the medication this way.
In the mean time. They have decided that I am not so bad in comparison to the world out there. And I am enjoying the extra one of a kind affection type of affection that comes from a feral kitten who is starting to really enjoy being with me.
No comments:
Post a Comment