Sick cat, need help advice plz

I have two cats in my house. One, a female, is about 7-8 months old and we have had her for about 5 months. My husband found her outside a building when she was about 7-8wks old so he brought her home and here she has stayed We have never had any illnesses with her except that she had fleas when we fist found her and we also had her dewormed cuz of the fleas. Now about 2 months ago we adopted another cat from a person who takes overflow from shelters in our area. He was about 4 months old at the time. When we got him he had a mild case of ringworm which has since cleared up (we didn't know it at the time) Also when we went to get him the person gave us some eye ointment cuz they said he has some discharge from being overstressed in the new enviornment??? I gave him the ointment for about a week and then it looked like everything was ok. At that time he was in a seperate room cuz of the ringworm. Now since then he has gotten sick again and got our other cat sick. He had sneezing, coughing and green eye discharge. She had a swollen eye and a little sneezing. They were both put on antibiotics, eye ointment and were given a vaccine. They have been off the meds for about two weeks now. Everything seemed to be going good unitl the male cat sarted having a little eye discharge, crusty drainage in the corner of his eye at times. I am really worried he is getting sick again??? He is eating and acting normal. My husband and I are at a loss cuz we can't keep taking them to the vet and spending a hundred dollars every month on cat meds and we really don't want to take them back to a shelter. Any advice, ideas and info would be greatly appreciated! We are both new to having cats so we aren't fully informed on everything but we are learning ! I have read some other posts and just want to add that our first cat that we got does occasionaly have a little black crusty drainage(?) right inside her nose. I don't know if that means anything????

You don't say what colour your second cat is, but my white cats have always had eye boogies that I wipe clean every day. My vet told me that as long as there are no other symptoms that it is normal, the way the cat's eye and tear ducts work. One of my cats, Wellington, is asthmatic and gets a dirty nose too, because of the way he breathes, but I just clean it as necessary. It's like a child, really.

Jenny, Gizmo's got her nose dirt back after a few days without it...is this a side effect of asthma or feline herpes? Gizzy is starting to breathe louder so I am about to start using the humidifier in the bedroom. It seems to help her. Do you have any other advice on what to do for a persistent crusty discharge in a cat's right nostril?

I really don't know - my vet told me that Wellington opens his nostrils more than most cats as he tries to get air into his lungs, so picks up more dirt. And his nose is naturally big, so that doesn't help. I just wipe it clean with a moist tissue as necessary. Funnily enough he gets it mostly in the left nostril, though both are affected.

The discharge from the eyes could simply be allergies. This happens to both my cats, but one more so than the other. She will also rub her ears/eyes with her paw more often. When their eyes are watering, I get a napkin or tissue and blot them (gently) dry. When I see built up crusties, I just get a warm, damp washcloth and wipe them out.

You will want to watch your kitty and make sure that the discharge isn't greenish or yellowish. Also, watch for excessive sneezing and coughing. One or two sneezes every once in awhile is okay, but more often than that isn't. Also, watch for changes in eating, playing, sleeping, and litterbox habits. If you notice a big change in any of those normal behaviors, then take your little one to the vet.

Stephanie

L-lysine costs about five dollars a tube from my vet here. If you give this to your cat, it might help with the discharges.
You can also get 'anti dust mite' shampoo and a HEPA vacuum and clean the house daily. If this is an allergy, that will help.