URI Recovery

My cat was diagnosed with an upper respiratory infection 7 days ago. The vet said it might take a while to recover. My kittie is a 13 year old Siamese. He's been on medicine (Amoxil, Viralys Powder, and Homeopathic Ars drops that go in his water). He lost his appetite too, so I've been feeding him Hills A/D prescription diet through a syringe as well.

I was just curious, from other people's experience, how long does it usually take for your cat to start showing signs of improvement? My kittie will sometimes act like he used to (before he got sick), but other days he looks like he won't even make it through the day. Then the next he'll look better, etc...

My kittie is really weak, and fatigued. And when he stands up, he seems dizzy and loses his balance for the first few steps and usually stumbles in one direction until he gets his bearings. But he still walks really gingerly.

Is this typical for a cat recovering from a URI? My vet is closed today, so I can't call them to ask.

I hope I've asked this question in the right spot.

Thanks

Wow, this sounds really serious... I have had several URIs here, but never anything like this... if your kitty has been on Amoxi for the last 7 days and is still like this, the antibiotic is not working; you should see some major improvement in 3-4 days with the correct antibiotic. Is this the only thing that is going on with your kitty? You said you are force feeding A/D - how much is he getting a day? He should be getting close to 3/4 can at least; is he getting all that? If not, how much is he eating, and for how long has he been eating that much? Is he looking yellow at all?
I am inclined to tell you to take your kitty to the emergency vet tomorrow, this does not sound good... Sorry to say, but IMHO there is something wrong in this picture; I would not wait for Monday.

Originally Posted by jsuperstar

My kittie is really weak, and fatigued. And when he stands up, he seems dizzy and loses his balance for the first few steps and usually stumbles in one direction until he gets his bearings. But he still walks really gingerly.

Is this typical for a cat recovering from a URI? My vet is closed today, so I can't call them to ask.

Click to expand...

jsuperstar, all my 3 cats have had URIs, some several times - none ever had this. I do not believe this is URI related, and I would take this as an emergency...

Hi Carolina,

Thanks for replying so quick. My kittie was never a big eater, but the vet said to feed him 3cc's every three hours. I find it tends to get him bloated, and he walks really funny afterwards.

I'm going to take your advice and get him to the emergency today. He's breathing really heavy now.

Thanks for your help

Originally Posted by jsuperstar

Hi Carolina,

Thanks for replying so quick. My kittie was never a big eater, but the vet said to feed him 3cc's every three hours. I find it tends to get him bloated, and he walks really funny afterwards.

I'm going to take your advice and get him to the emergency today. He's breathing really heavy now.

Thanks for your help

Click to expand...

Breathing heavy is an immediate sign of emergency... Please come back and tell us how it went, ok.... I hope you go now (immediately)... If you do not have the information for the emergency vet, call your vet and they will have a recording with the nearest 24hr ER on their Answering machine. Good luck!

Originally Posted by jsuperstar

Hi Carolina,

Thanks for replying so quick. My kittie was never a big eater, but the vet said to feed him 3cc's every three hours.

Click to expand...

OMG this is not good... not nearly enough for him to survive... A/D, for a 5lb kitty, minimum 140cc a day... 8lb kitty minimum 200 cc a day, for a 10lb kitty, 236cc a day...

If you feed around the clock 3cc every 3 hours, you will be feeding him only 24cc a day! That is almost 120 less than what he needs if he is 5 lbs, if he is 8 lbs, that is almost 180cc less than needed... No wonder he is dizzy and falling... If he continues like this, he will end up in liver failure.... Did your vet forget a 0 after the 3? It would make much more sense to feed 30cc every 3 hours then 3cc... I never heard such a small amount...
Here is the feeding guide for A/D... please feed him more and take him to the ER immediately... he probably needs some fluids ASAP. I would mention the amount of food he has been eating...

Is there an update on your kitty? Did you take him to the vet?

Thank you for all your concerns, it really means a lot to me. Last Saturday I took my kittie to the vet cuz his nose was plugged, he couldn't smell his food and therefore wasn't eating. The vet gave him a bunch of meds and a couple of shots at the clinic, sent us home, and told us to syringe feed him every 2 to 3 hours the Hill A/D food.

He only got worse. Some days he seemed to be getting better though. He seemed to have more skip in his step, and started doing things that he used to do when he was healthy. But last night he just wasn't himself. I called the vet as you suggested, and he said that he doesn't think an I.V. would do any good at this point, and that it just doesn't look very good. He said there was nothing he could do (the vet I've discovered is a real jerk, there's a lot more to it, but I won't get into it here). At 9:02 this morning I watched my kittie take his last breath, and it broke my heart into pieces. But at least he's not suffering anymore.

Thanks again for your help every1

Oh my Gosh... I am so so sorry
RIP little one...

I am so sorry for your loss.

Rest in peace beloved kitty.

I am truly sorry for your loss. I will now close this thread. When you feel able, please post in the Crossing the Bridge forum.