feral kitten -- shots immediately or wait
 

Hi -- I've just taken in a feral kitten. A friend had been feeding her
outdoors for a few weeks so she's reasonably tame, but was traumatized
for the first 24 hours indoors. The cat's about 2 and a half months
old. Obviously needs to go to the vet soon, but she seems in good
health and am wondering if i should put it off for a week or two. I'm
afraid if I take her right away she'll think I'm a monster. Also, what
are the standard shots and vaccinations for cats?

Dan
cairo

Hi Dan,

When we take in a rescued cat, we take it to the vet immediately. We
have other cats in the house and want it tested right away for Felv, etc.

Most kitties have worms, so it's a good idea to get her wormed right
away at least.

I don't remember the exact timing for shots, but our cats had the
distemper pack (includes a few other things for respiratory viruses,)
and rabies. We decided against Felv because they are indoor cats and
that vaccination can cause some other problems. The distemper shots need
a booster in about 3-4 weeks. After that, ours will get another about
every 3-4 years. Many vets believe now that yearly shots are not needed,
the vaccines last longer than that.


Good luck,

Rhonda


Scoop wrote:

Hi -- I've just taken in a feral kitten. A friend had been feeding her
outdoors for a few weeks so she's reasonably tame, but was traumatized
for the first 24 hours indoors. The cat's about 2 and a half months
old. Obviously needs to go to the vet soon, but she seems in good
health and am wondering if i should put it off for a week or two. I'm
afraid if I take her right away she'll think I'm a monster. Also, what
are the standard shots and vaccinations for cats?

Dan
cairo

Thanks for the advice. I'll take her in on Monday.

I delayed once with a rescued feral kitten and then watched him die
horribly and unnecessarily. I will spare you the details.

A little trauma will pass. Delaying life-saving vaccination and tests for
parasites (which is what killed my kitten) and lethal virus is NOT a good
idea.

Get the kitten to your vet for its first shots (which are already
over-due). Be sure to take some fresh poop along for a fecal. And test
for FeLV (be prepared to test a second time if the results are positive).

Good luck with your baby.

Sharon Talbert
Friends of Campus Cats



On Sat, 13 Nov 2004, Scoop wrote:

Hi -- I've just taken in a feral kitten. A friend had been feeding her
outdoors for a few weeks so she's reasonably tame, but was traumatized
for the first 24 hours indoors. The cat's about 2 and a half months
old. Obviously needs to go to the vet soon, but she seems in good
health and am wondering if i should put it off for a week or two. I'm
afraid if I take her right away she'll think I'm a monster. Also, what
are the standard shots and vaccinations for cats?

Dan
cairo