Swollen rectum???

Hi. First I admit I've been a lurker for sometime and have learned quite a lot from posters here. I'm new to the world of foster parenting of kitties and thought I'd come there for some advise.

We have 2 litters of fareal kittens and one mother that we rescued from some neighborhood kids who we believe caused 2 to die. They are about 2 months old and have been doing well for the 3 weeks we've had them as far as we can tell considering the trauma they've been through. However, in the last day or so we've noticed a raw, swollen rectum on Frankie. All the babies seem to have loose stool but don't have the raw looking butt. We changed the food, even for the mother, thinking that was causing the problem. The mother had mucous full stool, and at first the vet thought she had a ruptured uterus, but turned out it was a bad case of diarrhea. She was spayed and brought home and with in a day was back to nursing the babies again. Has anyone here experienced this and if so, can you help? Thanks

Well, it sounds maybe like worms or something.. and I would just take them into the vet :).

Also - did the vet treat the momcat for her mucousy bowels?

Could be worms or a parasite - take in a sample of the kittens' stool, a less expensive way to start.

Kittens can get dehydrated easily as they are small.

sounds like possible parasites to me too. I am thinking either gardia or coccidea. If this is the case they most definately need to be treated. I would take a stool sample to the vet for testing. 9 chances out of 10 if one has it they all do.

Thank you for your replies. I did take a sample to the vet today when I went to pick up 2 young fareals that were spayed. It turned out to be coccidea. The vet said he didn't see a lot, only a few. He gave me some medicine to give them and the kids took the first dose extremely well. I tell ya, this fostering/rescuing is a job in itself! Hats off to those of you who have been doing it a long time! God Bless ya!

Fostering is a lot of work but is so rewarding. Just be careful, I keep my last five fosters :D Enjoy them, it is a lot of fun watching your babies grow up. It is hysterical when then run sideways!! :D

Yes it is indeed rewarding. And I understand about keeping them. That's what happened with the last 3, well 4.

It started out w/my room mate’s 3, Juvey, Nikki & Buffy. Then I moved in w/ my Tweety. In less than a year Munchie comes to the door, small, scared & starving. Then came Freckles who we feared would be taken by animal control.

Then there was Buddy who we thought was a male until the belly kept getting bigger and bigger. She blessed us w/ Junior, Groucho, & Buggsy, Little Missy & Muggsy. We kept trying to find homes for them all but were only able to place Little Missy & Muggsy. Junior, Groucho, & Buggsy aren't going anywhere, and that’s by choice! Buddy had a roaming nature and would make a wild dash for the outside when the door was open. We lost her last month by a car, but she lives in her babies: Junior, Groucho, & Buggsy.

Then just about 2 months ago Silly and Ziggy who’d been hanging out in front of our apt turned up and great with child. While my room mate has been dubbed the Cat Whisperer by our Vet, these 2 young ladies were tough to catch for spaying. Ziggy had 4 babies, 2 didn't make it. We think it was partly because Ziggy was so young. (Maybe 8 months if that). At one point she took them from the shelter we had made for them and of course we worried.

In the mean time, Silly had her babies, but we're not sure how many. We were told, some kids in the neighborhood 'messed' w/some kitties. When we 'talked' to these kids and told them that people are arrested for hurting animals, less than 30 min later we heard a chorus of kittens outside our front door along with Silly. With Silly and six babies, that was SEVEN more we added to our house!

2 went to a neighbor so now we have 14 in the apt, and there are 17 outside! About half of those kids we’ve been able to get spayed/neutered with the help of a local lady and her husband who care for feral cats.

I hope to post pictures of our brood!

Oh goodness! Welcome to cat rescue! I started fostering stray and homeless cats 2 years ago. That lasted all of 29 minutes; I HAD to keep my first foster, and I knew I just wasn't cut out for it. :rolleyes:

I started feral cat rescue in April of this year. I've only kept one, who could not be released. It sounds like you are more involved with rescuing strays? The cats seem to be friendly and / or trusting of humans? Whole different set of "problems," and keeping them is the biggy; as you have discovered! :D

Is there a non profit group you can get involved to help you with some of the work?

Good luck with all the inside and outside kitties!