Expert: Ali - 6/2/2010

Question
I found a kitten in the road about an hour ago. I have cared for many sick and injured animals before. He is about 10- 14 weeks old . He had a bloody nose and was wet(its raining) cold and shaking. I cleaned him up but he wont eat or drink. He just wants to cuddle up on me and get warm. What should I look out for?I have other cats and don't want them getting sick.What is the best way to get him to eat?Should I let him rest before I worry about him?He is shaking less now, but I know they do this when hurt.I don't know if someone threw him from the car or if he got hit by one. He docent look hurt now that he is clean except a little swollen by his nose/mouth area.He can open his mouth just fine.Started talking to me when I try to put him down.Please help. I want to get this kitten back to health!If you have any ?s please write me!!!!

Answer
Lucy,

You've gotten off to a reasonably good start in helping this little guy out. Just by getting him indoors, warm and dry as well as providing much needed cuddles to soothe his anxiety you've made him feel much more comfortable. What he needs now is some extra help through the use of a holistic approach to ensure that he's going to come through this whole situation without being too physically or emotionally scarred. There are a few things that a licensed veterinarian needs to do to help this little guy recover and be as good as new in as short a period of time as possible and you can also give him a gentle, safe homeopathic remedy that I've recommended later in this answer. It's one that I've used for well over 10 years now and I must say it's gotten me out of some difficult situations with cats who had a variety of issues.

Since the cause of your newly rescued kitten's injuries isn't known for certain it's a good idea to have him examined by a veterinarian who will be able to clean him up properly and provide treatment for any wounds. Depending on the severity of injuries found by the vet s/he may give this kitten antibiotics and supplemental fluids administered either by IV or subcutaneously (under the skin) to help him deal with the shock of being hurt. Pain management prescribed by a veterinarian (do NOT give any human analgesic to this kitten without a vet's recommendation as many human medicines are toxic to cats even in tiny doses and this little guy's got enough issues at this point), treating his pain will most likely make him more interested in eating. Since his worst injuries are around his nose and mouth it stands to reason that he's not going to want to eat (think about how you'd feel about eating a meal with a sore mouth).

You may also find a homeopathic remedy called Bach's Rescue Remedy helpful, it's a blend of 5 flower essences designed to calm and reassure as well as deal with trauma (whether physical or emotional) - this remedy should help him be calmer and a bit more relaxed about being able to function without being held closely by you all of the time. The best way to administer Rescue Remedy is to gently rub a drop or two at a time into the outside of the kitten's ear flaps being careful to avoid getting any of the remedy into the kitten's ear canal because the flower essences are preserved in a grape alcohol solution that can sting if he's got any scratches or parasites inside of his ears. You can repeat this as infrequently as a couple of times per day or as frequently as every 10-15 minutes as required. This remedy is completely safe, gentle and effective in situations like this. You can find this remedy at health food stores. According to a few questioners who have contacted me on this site there is a specially formulated version of Rescue Remedy just for pets, however I can't comment on the effectiveness of that product because I've never used it.

It is a good idea to isolate this little guy in a room of his own away from your own pets for at least 2-3 weeks in order to minimize the chances of the little one passing on any viral or bacterial infections to your other kitties. If you've got any further cat related questions, concerns or issues I'd be more than happy to help you out to the best of my ability so please feel free to contact me again at any time. Due to the fact that I have other commitments (job, family, friends, my own pets, etc) I am limited in the amount of time that I can devote to being volunteer on this site on any given day so it is possible that you may not be able to get through to me right away - if this does happen then I would suggest trying again the following day, it's not that I'm not willing to help it's just that I can only devote a certain amount of time to volunteer commitments which is why there is a limit to the number of questions that I'm able to answer on any given day.