How to nursing a sick cat
If your cat is ill, consult your vet and follow any instructions on care and home treatment. There are also some simple things that you can do to make your cat comfortable during recuperation.
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| How to nursing a sick cat |
Creating a sick room
* You will need to keep a sick or injured cat indoors so that you can easily monitor him.
* Keep your cat confined in a warm, quiet room or even in a wire crate.
* Provide food and water, and a litter tray in an area away from the food.
* Make up a warm bed on the floor for easy access you could use a cardboard box, which can easily be replaced if soiled.
* Cut one side away, line the base with newspaper, and add cosy blankets and perhaps a hot-water bottle.
Handling your cat
A sick or injured cat may want to hide himself away and try to avoid the extra stress of having medicine or other treatment. Handle your cat gently and in a calm, unhurried, Your cat's health confident way any anxiety on your part could make him stressed and uncooperative. Your cat may feel comforted if you spend time just talking quietly to him and petting him (if he will accept this), so that he does not associate you solely with treatment.
Home care when ill
A cat may lose interest in food when ill or if his sense of smell is impaired. Call a vet if your cat has gone for more than a day without eating, especially if he is overweight lack of food can harm the liver. Let food come to room temperature, or warm it slightly in the oven, to increase its smell and make it more appetizing. In addition, offer small pieces of strong-smelling, tasty foods. If your cat is struggling to eat properly, you may need to feed him by hand.
If your cat is vomiting or has diarrhea, offer a teaspoon every hour of bland food such as poached skinned chicken or an appropriate prescription diet. Once the gastric upset ceases, gradually increase portion size and keep your cat on this diet for three or four days, before weaning back to normal meals. Provide cooled, boiled drinking water at all times. Call a vet if a gastric disorder persists.
Your cat may need help with grooming. In particular, clean away discharge from the eyes, keep the nose and mouth clean to help the cat breathe and smell food, and clean under the tail if the cat has
diarrhea. Use cotton moistened in clean, warm water. For itchy skin or minor wounds, bathe the area with saline solution a teaspoon of salt dissolved in 1 pint (500 ml) of warm water. If the cat resists, wrap him in a towel, leaving the sore part exposed.
After an operation
A cat that has had a general anesthetic may be groggy for a while. Stay with him until he is fully alert. Keep him indoors until any surgical wound has healed and dressings or stitches have been
removed. Your vet may fit a soft, cone-shaped collar to prevent your cat worrying at a wound, and you may have to remove this to let the cat eat. For small wounds on the limbs, the vet may cover the area with “antilick” strips impregnated with a taste that cats dislike. You should check a dressing or a cast several times a day to ensure it is clean and dry. If the cat seems in pain (hiding, resisting examination, or unwilling to eat), or if the wound looks sore or has a discharge, contact your vet.
Giving medication
It is essential to follow your vet’s directions on giving medication and complete the full course, especially with antibiotics. Ask your vet to demonstrate how to give eye or ear drops or dose the cat with a syringe. Medications should be given by an adult. Give tablets by hand to make sure the cat swallows them and that other pets do not take them. It may help to crush tablets into a small amount of tasty food, or wrap a small amount of food around them.