I'd appreciate some advice on behalf of my parents.
Seven weeks ago they became the proud owners of two Ragdoll kittens. Both are boys and came from the same litter - they were quite healing for my Mum who has lost two cats in the last 12 months - both mysteriously vanished and we never knew what happened - they just didn't come home. So for my Mum having two new Fur Babies was wonderful. Both kittens quickly endeared themselves to the household and have kept us endlessly entertained with their antics and affection.
Over the past few weeks we have noticed that one kitten (Alfie) grew more rapidly than the other kitten (Paddy). The smaller kitten ate well (indeed was a screaming banshee where food was concerned) and played as hard as his bigger brother. Last night we had fish and chips and Paddy did his usual shrieking for food - I gave him some left over white fish which he ate with relish.
This morning when I got up (I am currently living with my Mum & Dad) I fed the kittens and noticed that Paddy did not eat. Instead he went into the hall and lay down. I noticed that his breathing seemed rapid and counted his resps - they were at 80 a minute and he was using his abdominal muscles to aid his breathing. I woke my Mum and Dad up and said I thought that Paddy needed to see a vet. We got an emergency appointment - it was not good - his breathing was rapid, the vet could hear a heart murmur one side but couldn't hear anything the other side and said she thought there was fluid on his lungs. She couldn't take his temperature as he got so distressed when she attempted it and she feared he might pass out if she continued. However, she thought he might have a temperature.
At this point it was apparent he would need an X-Ray which was not available at the surgery so my parents took Paddy back this afternoon to a different surgery. By this time he was really struggling and was aggressive when handled - the vet said that this was because he was using all his energy to breathe. The X Ray showed fluid on the lungs, an enlarged heart, liver and kidneys. At this point the vet said she needed to anasthetise Paddy and draw some fluid off his lungs - my parents had to sign to say they understood he may die as a result of the anasthetic - the vet said that it might be due to infection but felt it all pointed to a massive heart problem and that if this was the case the kindest thing would be not to wake Paddy up. My parents went home and 30 mins later the vet phoned - she had drawn 100mls of fluid from Paddy's lungs
and his hbeart was dilated to 6x the size it should be. She advised that the kindest action would be to euthanase Paddy while he was asleep and so this was done. My parents are obviously devastated and Alfie (the other kitten) is pacing and calling for his brother.
The vet stressed that it was important that Alfie was now checked as he was part of the same litter. From what I've read on the internet this appears to be something called HCM (Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy) and is being seen in Maine Coons and Ragdolls. My parents have obviously been unfortunate in having a kitten affected (although my Dad says he wouldn't have changed Paddy as he was a lovely kitten).
My questions are:
1. Can my parents approach the breeder for any sort of refund? I honestly don't think she knowingly sold my parents a sick kitten - the vet herself said that even if Paddy had been checked by a vet a week ago the problem (although probably present) might not have been detectable.
2. Should the breeder notify other owners of kittens from this litter? My parents have let her know about Paddy as the vet said the liklihood is that Paddy's condition was congenital.
My parents are both utterly bereft this evening and I am feeling so sad for them - and also for lovely Paddy who suffered so much in his last few hours. Only 20 weeks old - it's too young and I feel he's been robbed of the lovely life he should have had.
