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Unknown - possible head injury

Published on: June 06, 2024 • By: twilighter0210@aol.com · In Forum: Cats
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twilighter0210@aol.com
Participant
June 06, 2024 at 12:16pm
Had an emergency yesterday but was waiting to be approved (I understand) but would like some guidance going forward please ... I know she needs a vet but that is NOT an option (and it's not because of money either - it's access to quality vet care) so I have learned how to do most medical things myself out of necessity but never dealt with anything like this and trying to do my best for her without a vet... My Livestock guardian dog barked like nuts sounding "the alarm" and after investigation we found one of our barn cats lifeless barely breathing having a neurological episode ... we don't know if it's a head injury (but it seems so) or if she was poisoned (I don't think so) and we don't know the cuase (trampled by a goat? Hit by a 4wheeler? Kicked in the head by my jersey neighbor?) She was found in the goat pen and our LSG was standing over her nudging her licking her comforting her and when she saw us coming she gently picked her up and carried her to us (she loves her kitties and was trying to get it help-and honestly probably saved her life) About 230 yesterday afternoon she was listless Her head is tilted, eyes are erratically moving, she's meowing and twitching her tail, not moving her hindlegs, urinating.... I did supportive care an put her in a warm dark quiet place and rubbed honey on her gums to keep her blood sugar up ... About 630pm she improved and her pupils seem to be improving and she is looking around now and was curling up like a cat instead of sprawling out - she isn't meowing anymore and her breathing seems to have improved.... By 9pm she was up and seemed a wee bit outta it - she was trying to walk and was acting more like a cat but was very kiddish disoriented and would randomly freaked out and she would run into things ... so we moved her from her laundry basket that she jumped out of and into a kitty carrier so she wouldn't hurt herself and gave her honey water, then regular water, then really soupy canned pate kitty food, and then really soft but thicker kitty food and she was able to eat/ drink/ lick / lap at it all ... giving her more time to bounce back from whatever this is ... This morning she is still dazed but is much more alert. She recognized me and reached her paw thru the grate to tap me and rubbed her head against the door and asked for pets and asked for food - made her super soft easy to lick up pate and she had to sniff to find it (very dazed still) bit quickly located it and eagerly started eating .... This evening she was walking around our half-bath were she is being kept confined for her safety and she was purring, asking for pets and loves and ear rubs and boots scratches, used the litter box ... all normal kitty things except she is still wobbly and uncoordinated when walking and is slightly shaking too ... Any recommendations? I plan on keeping her confided for as long as she needs and as she can tolerate it for her safety move her from kitty carrier to dog crate to small room with a door to run of the house and if possible eventually back out to the barn ... if not we will go from there but if she can adapt she will be a house indoor kitty rest of her days ... can provide pics and videos from yesterday as we progressed ...
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Liz Buchanan BVSc MRCVS
Keymaster
June 06, 2024 at 03:14pm
Hello - I read what you said about seeing the vet.  But I am still a vet - though not your vet - and it is still my responsibility to give the best advice for the patient.  So here goes.  Head or spinal cord trauma is a strong possibility here but there may also be medical causes, for example a clot or chemicals circling in the blood for a whole host of reasons or hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar) in smaller kittens eg after fitting.   There is absolutely no substitute for seeking sophisticated medical advice for this animal.  Iv Fluids and blood pressure control, for example, has been shown to be helpful after brain trauma and the potential for the impact of this may lessen over time.  Nerological signs have a variety of causes and if the vet could examine / assess your kitten, they could probably reccommend the appropriate treatment and this could, in my opinion, profoundly influence the recovery.  I wonder if you or someone you know could be vulnerable to speculation about the cause of the injury, which is partially preventing this case from being presented.  However, I would be far more interested in getting the correct urgent treatment right for your cat at this stage. I am concerned about her eyesight, for example.  In the uk, I would go so far as to say that you may have a legal responsibity to seek veterinary advice - if you dont get on with your own vet, perhaps you could seek out another.  I understand that there are places where veterinary treatment is less accountable or reliable.  More to follow
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Liz Buchanan BVSc MRCVS
Keymaster
June 06, 2024 at 03:23pm
Otherwise, in the absence of prescribable meds, examination or tests then you sound to be doing a fair job of nursing in difficult circumstances.  It is simply that sone causative factors or opportunities to help may be being missed.  Remember to keep an eye out for effective toiletting as failure to urinate can be a bad secondary problem in these situations.
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twilighter0210@aol.com
Participant
June 07, 2024 at 12:52pm
She is using the litterbox and seems to have made a very extensive improvement... and no we or someone we know didn't do this causing us to not to want to report this ... its simply we don't have the type of medical care available to us that she would need - I reached out to my large animal / farm vet and unfortunately they do not treat or have the ability to treat domestic animals to the level that she would need (24/7 monitoring etc (no clinic 100% mobile operating out of trucks) and she has helped me the best she can but she is the one that recommended that I reach out to other vets in a forum or something to see if I could get any more info/ advice ... kitty is drinking water from a syringe and now a bowl, was taking sugar from my finger, and was lapping at and now eating wet food so there's no need for iv fluids or tubing ... and vet doesn't have access (quickly) to kitty meds only large large animal meds and she isn't very aware of what cats can have outside of specifically for kitty's as that's not her specialty nor what she has on hand and she remembers from school that cats are very sensitive to certain classes of meds so she isn't comfortable using something offlabel without confirmation from a more familiar vet and she is reaching out as well on her end ... My area doesn't have "domestic" pet vets ... its a rural farming stock animal area so that's what we have and then once a year RAM (REMOTE AREA MEDICAL) comes in and does a spay neuter shots clinic but outside of that there is no emergency treatment for kitty's or puppers ... us farmers just treat the best we can and our vets assist the best they can but there isn't really a big need in our area for a domestic pet vet that warrants the expensive of opening a clinic so that's why there isn't one ... I would get her to a vet if I could but it's literally not a possibility and so I'm doing the best I can by her and seeking help in others ways that I do have access too   She is up and walking around now... she more and more alert. Using the litterbox and eating drinking asking for pets and recognizing us ... still a bit disoriented and wobbly but alot better than the day before and the day before that ... besides giving her time in a quiet safe place ... is there anything else I can do for her?
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