Nadya's Vet Bills

Nadya is racking up a lot of vet bills (although she'd certainly prefer not to stay several nights away from home). She's had multiple rounds of blood work, X-Rays, medications, and of course, overnight hospitalization fees. If you'd like to help Feline Rescue pay for her bills by making a donation, Nadya (and her foster caregiver and Feline Rescue) would love it.

Click on the "Network for Good" banner below. Please make sure to enter "Nadya's vet bills" in the Designation field on the form.

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Thank you all for your support of Nadya. Any donation you give is absolutely appreciated.

Nadya Status Update 4/29

When I visited Nadya this morning (4/29), her temperature had risen overnight and she still hadn't eaten. Her temp was back at 105.8.  As soon as she saw me, she kneaded the air with happiness but it was very short lived. She liked seeing me; she just wasn't feeling well to really enjoy it. She did not look good. She did use her litter box (and Shortbread and Biscoff showed great interest in the procedure) but that was the most amount of movement she would endure.

Today is the orphans four week birthday. To celebrate that, Zotz ate some canned food! This is typically the age where they get weaned from momma - they get a bit of canned food but momma continues to nurse. At week five, nursing is considerably less and canned food consumption is higher. The good news about this is that the more canned food Zotz eats, the less she needs from Nadya - which lessens the burden on Nadya a bit.

As I drove to work, I cried. I didn't think Nadya would get better.

This evening (still 4/29), I visited Nadya again. This time when she saw me, she jumped right up. She wanted to go home. Her fever had dropped to 103, which, although not ideal, was better than 105.8! She was feeling better. The vet tech offered her some canned food and she ate it. Zotz joined her momma at the dinner bowl. Zagnut, the big giant, also decided to try to eat... But he's a little confused about what food is. He hopped in the litter box and ate some litter (which is normal - and the litter is safe for kittens to eat). He then found a food dish... And gnawed on the bowl. I scooped up some canned food and put it in front of Zagnut. He figured it out and ate that.

The kittens are getting more wiggly. Double Stuff is trying very hard to get his siblings to play.

Shortbread, although only three weeks old, discovered the joys of canned food! With face firmly planted in the dish, Shortbread ate very well.

Nadya may be released tomorrow (4/30) or perhaps Thursday (5/1). She seems to be on the mend. The kittens are all doing very well. They're growing and learning just like they should be.

Shortbread gets into this eating thing! 

Nadya and Zotz wolf down some food together. 

Nadya and kittens in their luxurious kennel at the vet.  

The Reason Behind Nadya's Absences

If you've been watching the the Ustream webcam, you may have noticed that Nadya and her kittens have been absent a couple of times. Nadya has been fighting fevers off and on for about two weeks now. Nadya had blood work, X-Rays (to make sure there weren't any kittens stuck inside her), and three FeLV/FIV tests. Her blood work showed that she had chronic anemia. The first FeLV/FIV test was performed when she was about seven weeks pregnant (two weeks before the kittens were due). The next test was performed a week after the kittens were born, the first time Nadya had a fever. Both came back as negative. The third FeLV/FIV test was performed the second time Nadya had a fever. This one came back positive. Nadya has FIV.

One of the reasons that the first two FeLV/FIV tests came back negative is because Nadya may have been recently infected with FIV. It takes the antibodies 8-12 weeks to appear after infection. If we work along that assumption, Nadya was most likely infected at the time of her pregnancy. Unaltered tom cats have a higher percentage of being infected with FIV. FIV is transmitted through bites; unaltered tom cats tend to fight more. When cats mate, the tom cat bites the scruff of the female's neck. Usually, the bite does not break the skin. In Nadya's case, she may not have been so lucky.

There are three stages of FIV. The first stage occurs when the infection is new to the system. The body fights off the virus and any new foreign bodies act as triggers. Bacteria that won't harm a healthy cat will cause infection - and fevers - in a new FIV cat. The infected cat usually has frequent bouts of fever, anemia, swollen lymph nodes, and a variety of other ailments.

Once they pass the hump of stage one, it's on to stage two. Stage two can last for many, many, many years. Stage two is the "recovery" stage, the "normal" stage. The infected cat lives a perfectly happy, healthy life during this stage. The virus is still there, however, the cat does not show any signs of illness.

Stage three is the end of life phase. FIV cats are always more susceptible to any illness and this is the stage that will eventually claim the cat's life. Fevers, sores, dental issues, eye issues, and all sorts of infections can occur. FIV affects the immune system, leaving the cat vulnerable to all sorts of diseases - including cancer.

The optimist in me wants to believe that Nadya is indeed in the first stage of FIV. Several pieces of  "evidence" point to a recent infection (like the fact that the first two tests came back negative; the antibodies may not have formed yet). If that is the case, hopefully Nadya will jump to stage two very quickly and will live a long, healthy life. However, it is certainly a possibility that Nadya is in the final stage of FIV. There is evidence to support that theory, too (her frequent bouts of high fevers, her anemia, and her swollen lymph nodes).

We're still in the discovery phase for Nadya. We're working to keep her stable and comfortable.

For more reading on FIV, click on these links:

Don't Fear FIV Cats
All About FIV

Meet the Kittens

Zotz - the leader of the gang. One of the orphans. 

Shortbread - one of Nadya's kittens. One of the smallest kittens. Always screaming/crying when away from momma. 

Stroopy - one of Nadya's kittens.

Fudge Stripe - one of Nadya's kittens, the smallest of the bunch. 

Biscoff - the biggest of Nadya's kittens.

Double Stuff - one of Nadya's kittens. 

Zagnut - one of the orphans. He's the LARGEST kitten of them all - more than double Fudge Stripe's weight. 

Nadya & the Cookie Crew (and the Candy Crew, too)!

Nadya the cat is in foster care with Feline Rescue. She had SIX babies on 4/9/14 and many people got to witness the birth of two of them (four of them were born in the wee hours of the morning). 

Unfortunately, a little more than a day later, one of Nadya's kittens died. He was named Nutter Butter. He didn't have the ability to suck/latch on and attempts to tube feed him were unsuccessful. Nutter Butter most likely was not fully developed internally. 

A day later, Nadya and her five babies were introduced to TWO one week old orphans. Nadya accepted these new arrivals without hesitation. 

Watch as Nadya's babies grow! Their development rate is quick - from having closed eyes and barely crawling, to open eyes and hearing, to learning to walk, to tearing apart their room. Nadya has her paws full! 

Nadya's kittens include one black and white, one white with giant black spots, one solid grey, one grey and white tabby, and one brown and white tabby. The two orphans are both brown tabbies. 

Once her babies are three months old, they will be ready for adoption. Contact Joan (651-705-6264) at Feline Rescue if you want to adopt them! 

Learn more about Feline Rescue and other cats up for adoption by visiting felinerescue.org.