KD seems to react to smaller quantities of medication than most cats. That was the case with her Periactin - she does better on half the prescribed dose. So at this point I don't want to give her more than a quarter pill of Pepcid a day, because that amount is helping her. If I could split the pills into eighths, I'd give it to her every 12 hours, but a pill splitter can only do so much - it's already in dusty fragments as it is. 

So far so good though. I haven't noticed any side effects either.

KD sheds like crazy at the vet's. I always think he's going to assume she has a skin problem or something, but it's just stress.

Thanks everyone!

3cat: unfortunately she's a nibbler. I've never been able to get her to eat on schedule. So I just try to give her the pill at the same time every day and hope the relief prompts her to eat.

Sending good thoughts. I'm sure it will be harder on you than her.

Update: after a few days of Pepcid, the little beast is back to normal. 

I'm keeping her on it for the time being. I expect the vet will flip his lid when he finds out I'm giving her medication without bringing her in first. But the way I see it, it's not like she can be cured, so it's my job to make her life as comfortable as possible. Hauling her in to the vet for everything that goes wrong would stress her out and defeat that purpose.

Just so happy to see her comfy and EATING!

They're truly adorable! It's great that the baby has another young cat to bond with in Spooky. Poor little guy lost his mama way too soon.

Maybe it's the hardwood floors, but I feel like calling him "Swiffer". 

Even leaving aside her possible vested interests, she's forgetting one very important thing.

In the wild, animals are continually active. They burn a lot of calories hunting prey, defending themselves, staking out territory and dealing with the elements. They need to get a lot of nutrients from a little food. Domestic animals burn less calories in a day than their wild counterparts, so they can't take in as much. But they'll still eat until their stomachs are full - so better they fill their stomachs with protein and moisture than with dried grain fragments.

I have learned to change the sheets around the cat.

1) Remove old sheets, excepting portion under cat.
2) Carefully slide old sheets out from under cat.
3) Put new sheets on the bed, stretched over cat.
4) Wait for cat to move.
5) After confirming that cat will not move despite being covered with sheets, carefully slide new sheets under cat.
6) Pull sheets tight, taking care not to pull cat off bed.
7) Wait about 2 seconds for cat to re-settle herself.

LOL, it's true!

It's also a very handy excuse when you don't want to do something and the cat is on you. "But I don't want to move the cat, she's sleeping!" 

Wow, so tiny! Amazing that they start off so helpless and yet grow up so fast.

Some good news: she ate very well over the last 24 hours with the help of Periactin. And I've seen her flopped out on her side or curled up in a ball, as opposed to gingerly settling herself into the meatloaf position. She even had a bit of a play session with my husband last night.

Hoping this continues! I'm not thrilled about having to give her more pills every day, but if it keeps her comfortable for longer, it sure beats the alternative.

Klondike: That could have been more of a Siamese thing than a male thing. Siamese are pretty jumpy and easily overstimulated.

Detente looks like he can be quite affectionate when he wants to be! But being an independent minded sort, he'll never let you know that.  

It is for stories like this that I sometimes wish I believed in hell. 

I'm glad you were able to rescue her and give her as much comfort and safety as she would accept.

She had a little puking episode last night, but nothing really came up. Might have been from a pill that went down wrong though. It's slow going.

Sending good vibes.