Thank you SO MUCH everyone for writing to me with advice and concern about
Felicia.  Since the day I first posted about her, I haven't seen her back
into corners without "results", and to my great relief, I found about 2
days worth of "presents" in my bedroom closet.  She evidently had been
sneaking out of her sweatpants- daybed and found a nice private spot behind
boxes and suitcases to do her business.  But now I am keeping her in her
cage, where I can monitor her better, and I see that she's pooping just
fine, on a regular basis, and it looks normal.
 
My vet's standing opinion is still that she has a bad virus.  Last night
and this morning, I ecstatically watched her eat some of her kibble on her
own, and I was very hopeful.  But all day, she'd been breathing heavy and I
could tell that she was still feverish.  By this evening, she was so weak
that when she tried to stand, she'd fall over.  I took her back to the vet
this evening.  Her temp still read 105, which means she's had this fever
since Friday.  She got bloodwork done, and the good news is that especially
her glucose and hydration levels are very good.  Every 3 hours around the
clock, I've been hand feeding her a mixture consisting of her food
(Eukanuba kitten), Pedialyte, Ensure Plus, chicken baby food, and
ferretone, and also making her drink water and Pedialyte.  The vet thinks
that this regimen has been good, and just to be on the safe side, she gave
her some subcutaneous injections of fluid.
 
The bad news is that her white blood cell count is almost non-existent,
which means she has very little immune defense to fight this virus that's
raging through her little body.  The antibiotics I'm giving her won't
affect the virus, but will help prevent secondary bacterial infections that
may otherwise take advantage of her system.  The vet said that there is
basically nothing we can directly do about the virus except for me to keep
giving her tender loving care and to pray that the fever breaks soon.
 
So Please, Please, could you and your fuzzies help me pray for her fever to
break?  Please God, Please Fuzzie Angels, help me watch over this precious
one.  We are sending our prayers to all of the other sick fuzzies out there
in return.
 
Helen
[Posted in FML issue 2718]