Asking for reassurance/advice as this is so sudden!
DSH Kitten, 17 weeks old, 4lb (1.8kg) neutered
Just adopted an adorable rescue cat around 4 weeks ago who has been a bundle of glorious kitten energy.
2 days ago seemed lethargic, ? in pain, and off her food so took her to the vet as a precaution as she is still a baby. Afebrile. Normal vitals. Normal renal function, mild elevated neutrophils 12.7 and mild anaemia (which they said isn’t unusual for a kitten). Abdomen benign. Given it was non specific presentation, they gave a dose of antibiotics (amoxiclav) and meloxicam, and then later did a beside ultrasound out of caution, which showed one massive kidney.
Fast forward to today, she is back to eating and drinking and playing and looks much better. But formal ultrasound under sedation today shows 1 normal kidney, and one severely obstructed kidney / hydronephrosis. The ureter appears dilated proximally, then absent mid way, and then present again distally. No stone. No mass. She was spayed 5 weeks ago.
The vet said they “can’t be sure” of the cause but iatrogenic injury from spaying is high on the list (DDx infection, sludge, or congenital - but those don’t fit as well with clinical and radio findings). And they feel that she should have a nephrectomy next week to avoid pain and future infection. They do not recommend SUB as feel she’s too small, and the risk of long term complications outweigh any potential (questionable) benefit. Think this kidney is probably not contributing anything anyway.
My questions are
- Do kittens (in general) do ok after a nephrectomy? Long term prognosis and quality of life?
- Should I try and get in touch with the vet that did the original spay when she was at the shelter to let them know what’s happening? Or is it unlikely to be helpful?
Her pet insurance hasn’t kicked in yet cause she is still so new to our family 🤦🏻♀️ but we will pay for what’s necessary if she will have a good quality of life as she’s a much loved family member already.
Thanks for reading! From a worried cat mum.