# How to feed kitten with Elizabethan Collar?



## pjrose (Jul 28, 2011)

My Foster Kitten (9 wks old) Just Had Entropion (Entropic?) Surgery.  Little Charlie had been getting drops and then ointment for a month for what was supposedly an eye infection.  Today the veterinarian operated on his upper eyelid which had been rolled under, almost doubled, irritating the little kid's eye    I just can't imagine how uncomfortable that must have been. 

He has a follow-up appointment in a few days, then gets the stitches out in two weeks. 

Now he's wearing an Elizabethan collar and we're having a heck of a time figuring out food and water arrangements that he can get to with the collar on.  We tried some tall-ish custard cups; he could reach the food and water at the very top, but knocked both cups over. 

Any suggestions on how to rig up something so he can eat and drink at will?  Otherwise I guess we'll just take off the collar a few times a day so he can eat and drink.


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## heathpack (Jul 28, 2011)

He should be able to eat with the ecollar on, otherwise it is too big.  It should just go to the tip of his nose.  If it extends past the tip of his nose, then it can be trimmed down.  Swing him by the vets office and let them help you out.

If he is just having trouble figuring out what to do with the collar on, he will need to be hand fed & watered.  Offer food and water to his face frequently throughout the day.  If he won't drink water with you standing there you can feed him a gruel of water mixed with canned cat food. Your vet can let you know how much he will need each day, based on his body weight.

It's very important that he does not scratch or rub the eye, or else the surgery will fail.  You cannot switch to the donut type collar, those are designed to keep him from the back half of his body, not ok for eye surgery.  Also, you cannot switch to the floppy type collar, he could still rub his face.  The only option is the hard plastic type cone, which I'm sure is what they sent you home with.

Good luck!

H


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## IngridN (Jul 28, 2011)

deleted...I suggested the donut type collar at the same time as H's post, not realizing it wouldn't work for eye issues. 

Ingrid


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## pjrose (Jul 28, 2011)

Thanks.  It may not be too big given your description.  Getting it around the bowl rather than knocking over the bowl seems to be the issue.  I'd like to figure out a way to stabilize the bowls.  

A little while ago I took off the collar so he could get some food and water, holding him right next to me so he wouldn't run off or scratch, then I put it back on. He was happy to eat and drink and purred the whole time   I have to apply ointment every 4-6 hours, so can give him a break from the collar and some food and water then too.  I don't mind doing it - I'm just so happy that the problem was correctable and he didn't have to lose the eye!

The collar has three hard plastic loop/tabs at the bottom, and what appears to be part of a nylon stocking through the loops to tie it on.  The whole thing looks pretty uncomfortable, but obviously not as bad as scratching open the stitches or injuring the eye would be.  I tied it with a bow, tight enough to allow a few fingers but not super tight.  

Will he probably have to wear it for the whole two weeks till the stitches come out? Is there another kind of Elizabethan Collar that might be less uncomfortable than this loop/tab kind, maybe with a softer or smoother closure around the neck?


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## heathpack (Jul 28, 2011)

He will need to wear it the whole time, there is nothing really more comfortable.  But the last thing you want is for him to undo the surgery and then need a 2nd surgery and 2 more weeks of being a cone head.  It's ok tom take the cone off while he's eating if you are watching him like a hawk.

Maybe he would do a little better with a very wide, heavy, shallow dish- something like a ceramic pie or quiche pan.  Then you could put the food right in the middle and he could just shove his whole cone head in?  You'd probably need to clean the cone when he is done eating, but maybe that would be easier for him.

When you put the collar on him, you want to tie it snugly enough that you can get two fingers easily between the tie and his neck.  Too loose he could slip the whole thing over his head.  Too tight, well- I don't have to tell you what the problem would be there.

H


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## BevL (Jul 28, 2011)

We are so lucky to have so many experts willing to share their knowledge with us here!!

I hope your kitten does okay.  Poor little thing.


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## pjrose (Jul 28, 2011)

Thanks again.  I think we can work it out.  I like the wide dish idea.

Two weeks with the conehead will be a nuisance, but it could be a lot worse.  

He and his brother are sweetie pies, and I'm just glad they were rescued and that I have the privilege of caring for them and loving them  

Giving up the fosters for adoption is always hard, but then we get more


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## Rose Pink (Jul 29, 2011)

"I do not like the cone of shame." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R58kSuIhURI


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## hefleycatz (Jul 29, 2011)

We just went thru this with an older cat that had inverted eyelids all his life, the one was always irritated.  We finally had to have the eye removed.  Maybe because the kitten is little it is hard for him to lift the collar around the bowl to eat.  We have low bowls anyway to feed with, so luckily the collar just fit completely around the bowl.  This was a great way for no other cat to stick their nose in his food bowl.  He had to wear his 4 weeks, but hopefully your baby can be healed up in a couple. When you take it off for feedings, you might try to sit with him and see if he would like to wash himself a little, just watch the paw to the face.   That was the worst for Patches.  He would try to wash himself, but only could lick the plastic cone. 

Bless you for being a foster mommy and good luck.

lee


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## stmartinfan (Jul 29, 2011)

We've had these on dogs several times, and they seem to quickly get comfortable with them.  Small, stable dishes seemed to work best for them - ones that the collar would fit around completely.  When the collar was flat on the floor, they were able to easily reach into the dishes, so that's why the length of the collar is important.  Of course, dogs let little stand between them and food!

Our current dog seems to have a bit of a depth perception problem, because he catches the cone on door edges and when going up stairs.  It makes my neck hurt to watch his head jerk at each step!  But despite that, he actual tolerates it well and it's been helpful when he starts to have an issue with skin spots.


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## pjrose (Jul 29, 2011)

Oh Hefleycatz, I'm sorry to hear about your kitty's inverted eyelids and eye removal.  He must have been so uncomfortable all that time.  

Stmartinfan, yes, the smaller bowls are working for us too.  We tried Heathpack's suggestion of a wide flat pan, but it didn't work as well (not sure why).  

Charlie is (sort of) getting used to it; he's doing the usual kittenish running around and pouncing.  

He and his brother Buster would like to wrestle.  Charlie can't reach his own eye, but Buster sure can reach into that cone and bat at Charlie's face and eye.  Buster also flings kitty litter out of the box; some already got in Charlie's cone and on his eyelid.  

I guess they have to be under VERY close supervision or separated.  Sigh.


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## DeniseM (Jul 29, 2011)

PJ - When our cat had the collar, we bought an extra heavy ceramic dish about the size of a standard cereal bowl.  It was heavy enough that he couldn't tip it over with the collar, and the collar kind of fit around it.  It was actually a cat food dish - but really heavy and thick.


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