URI, new at this

Hello Everyone-
I adoped a kitty (Nibbles) from the local shelter Feburary 2010. She came home with a URI and despite quarantining, all my other cats (3) caught it. They all took clavamox and got better. Over the weekend my cat, Pumpkin (13 years old) came down with URI, again.
Currently, Pumpkin is on Clavamox, and quarantined. The other cats have not shown signs (yet).
Pumpkin is refusing to eat, 2nd day. Going to call the vet, but since I am new at this situation, any suggestions or older posts, please send them to me, if possible. Force feeding, etc.
Thanks for your help. I am kinda stressed, but going to do the best I can.

Thanks again.

Go up to the top of the page next to Shop Menu and click on search. Type in URI and threads will come up.

It sounds like you got a good handle on it before, so just be confident this will be no different.

It is so hard when these things make their way through all of our kitties. Please let us know what the vet suggests.

Sending many for your kitty and welcome to TCS. I will look for you in the threads!!

Welcome to TCS!

I wish we could offer advice, but your vet will be the best source for help. Sometimes seniors cats are more susceptible to things like URIs. When they are not eating, it is best to get vet help ASAP, as it can have dire consequences. Please let us know what your vet says, and keep us updated on Pumpkin!

Clavamox does not stop a URI, it is given to ward off other diseases taking effect while the cats immune system is lowered from the URI. URI is caused by herpes or calcivirus, so most pet cats will be vaccinated against it if given regular vaccines so while they may get URI they won't get it as bad as some unvaccinated cats.

Some cats can be carriers and it doesn't show until certain circumstances (usually stress related) and others are just more susceptible (especially older cats) I would go to the vet as sometimes they do need fluids to help them get over it

I went through the same thing with my older kitty when I adopted a younger cat and brought her into our home. Not only did she get a couple of URIs, she also got her first ever urinary tract infection.

Stress will bring on an URI, UTI, and other illnesses, so it's important that you keep the stress level to a minimum in your home and maintain a schedule as much as possible. To help with stress, you might want to get a couple of Feliway diffusers and plug them in and run them 24/7. Also, provide your older girl with a "safe place" to escape to and chill out when the stress of the newer kitty gets on her nerves. Also, stand up for your older cat when the younger one starts aggravating her. For example, break up skirmishes, distract the younger kitty with a toy, or using a towel, "herd" the younger kitty away from the older kitty.

For the URI, steam your girl in the bathroom. Get the shower nice and steamy, then take her in there and sit with her until the steam dissipates. You can also take her in there while you're showering. Doing this several times a day helps clear up the mucous and open up the nasal passages. Since you have her quarantined, you can also run a vaporizer 24/7. I add a bit of eucalyptus oil to the little well on the time vaporizer. That will also help open up the nasal passages. CAUTION: If eucalyptus oil is ingested, it can be fatal to cats, so be sure to keep it out of the reach of kitties.

To stimulate the appetite, try getting the stinkiest canned food you can find. Spoon a bit out onto a microwave safe plate or bowl. Nuke it in the microwave for about 6-10 seconds, just enough to warm it up and enhance the aroma, but not enough to burn her tongue. Since your girl is congested and can't smell, she won't eat. If kitties can't smell their food, they won't eat. Also, elevate the food and water if possible. You can use a couple of books or a piece of wood. This will help because she won't need to bend her head down as far to eat/drink. When she bends her head down to eat/drink, the snot is running out her nose. Because she's anticipating the snot running out her nose/toward her nose, she won't want to bend her head over.

Be sure to keep her hydrated and eating something. You can try stage 2 baby food, meat with no garlic or onions, too. You can even give her a bit of plain (non-flavored) Pedialyte.

If I think of anything else, I'll be back to post!

Thank you so much for the great advice.

I was so busy checking on Pumpkin yesterday. I didn't have time to get online.

She ate yesterday and this morning, teaspoons of the Hill's a/d. The vet said to get a dropper and dilute the a/d with chicken broth. I cooked down some chicken thighs and mixed broth with the a/d, she is getting droppers of that, frequently.

She is perking up (a tiny bit) and goes out of her cage to sleep on the couch. She is never allowed down to the basement, so she is looking around at everything.

She still is sick. I noticed that another cat sneezed this morning, so I gave the rest of the cats (3) l-lysine and some minced garlic shoved into a pill pocket.

I read online to put a bit of sesame oil on the nose leather, as their nose hurts from the congestion.
http://www.holisticat.com/Home.html

I also have been putting droppers of saline on her nose. This morning she sneezed some great productive sneezes, a normal color discharge.

Should I call the vet and get the other cat that sneezed started on Clavamox?

I have all the cats in different areas, one is outside, one outside on the porch and one is terrified of the outdoors and sleeps in my closet during the day.

The whole entire house has been wiped down with Colorox. All the cat beds washed with colorox. I have been busy.

Thanks for reading and helping. I feel responsible for this mess, as I went to the shelter and brought this madness home. OK, trying not to be "Debbie Downer"....

Thanks again!

I would be very careful of garlic. The ASPCA website discourages it use. Please check with your vet.

Garlic is not good for kitties, so I would be very cautious about that. You can take some of the chicken you boiled and shred it. Add enough broth to make it the consistency of chicken salad and feed her that.

Lysine takes about a month to take any effect on the body, just fyi.

Originally Posted by MsNibbles

I feel responsible for this mess, as I went to the shelter and brought this madness home. OK, trying not to be "Debbie Downer"....

Click to expand...

As I was advised, after bringing home kittens with calici virus AND ringworm, which affected my other cats:


"This, too, shall pass!"

Don't feel guilty for saving a cat from a shelter! You did the recommended quarantine, etc., so there's really no need to blame yourself!

The cats will recover with good nursing and vigilance. Antibiotics and garlic won't help a virus, but L-lysine can help with herpes and possiby calici virus, but it takes about a month before it works. Hang in there!

Arrgghhhh!! NO GARLIC!!!! TOXIC TO KITTIES AS ARE ONIONS!!!

Stopped the garlic, they refused it, thank goodness. I put it into a pill pocked and they didn't eat it. I read that garlic was good from "The New Natural Cat".

Thanks for the advice concerning the garlic, I am glad that I found some help, because it is stressful here. Goodness. Is there anything I need to watch for in case they ingested some of the garlic? All the other cats (3) appear in good health, so far.

Ms. Pumpkin (cat with URI) is still not eating. We have been syringe feeding her, still. A teaspoon of watered down hills a/d every two hours. I have a mobile vet that is going to come by around 5:30 today, as we do not want to put her into a car and take her to the vet.

She threw up sometime during the night. We are still giving her the clavamox.

I am still carrying much guilt about bringing home this virus from the shelter, but now I am informed of the dangers. However, I will not tell all my friends, because I do not want to reinforce negative stigma of shelter pets. All animals deserve loving homes and I have a good friend that adopted a cat from the shelter and didn't experience anything horrible.

Thanks for listening and all the advice. I will check in and update as soon as I can. I am still cloroxing the heck out of the house and now I am cleaning windows, decks. Cleaning is good therapy.

Cats can develop bad URIs from other places too, since it is stressed based, lots of cats get it when moved (one of mine gets one when we move homes, even though the furniture and us are all constant, just the change upsets him)

garlic can cause diarrhea and other gastro issues and drops / raises in red blood cells

I decided to get a second (& third opinion) regarding Ms. Pumpkin.
Pumpkin was vomiting yesterday, and not eating.
No more garlic, only for humans. All the other cats are looking good.

2nd opinion:
My next door neighbor had her mobile vet over yesterday, I ran over and consulted him about Pumpkin. He recommended giving all my cats two 500mg doses of L-Lysine (am/pm). He encouraged getting her to breathe steam and get l-lysine started and stop the clavamox, because it could be making her vomit. He also stated to try a different brand of food, because she may associate the a/d food with being sick. For example: if you get sick after eating Subway, you never want Subway again.


3rd opinion:
I called a mobile vet that I used years ago. She took Pumpkin home with her and administered sub-cutaneous fluids and stopped the clavamox. She said that the clavamox was making Pumpkin vomit. She recommends making a steam-room tent. Basically, put shower curtains over a wire dog kennel to create a steam room. She also talked about trying a nebulizer.
I found this neat site on how to build a nebulizer tent-steam room for a cat:
http://catnipkids.homestead.com/nebulizer.html

The good news is, Pumkin ate food last night, according to the mobile vet.

SO, Pumpkin will come back home this afternoon and I am busy today creating the steam-tent. I am very interested in the nebulizer treatments. Anyone have experience with nebuilzers?

You can confine her to a room and run a vaporizer 24/7 and take her into the bathroom while you're showering, too.

My neighbor came over to check on Ms. Pumpkin's progress yesterday. She brought me some frozen shrimp, becuase her former cat went nuts for shrimp and she wanted me to steam up some shrimp for Ms. Pumpkin.

Guess what? I steamed it up and she was going nuts over the aroma! She has eaten 5 shrimp since last night and she is doing much better!

Also, the tent that I made from the shower curtain works great. She stays in the steam tent for 30-60 minutes and she loves it. She comes out and sneezes and eats.

I even steamed some shrimp inside of her steam tent and she was purring, meowing and going nuts.

Oh, I am so excited.

All the other cats are getting two does of l-lysine a day and everyone seems to be in good health.

Thanks