Advice please..my cat's been really ill..pneumonia?

Hi everyone,

I am desperate for any opinions, advice etc. I have a gorgeous black 11 year old domestic shorthair named Salem. I've had her since she was 2 years old, adopted her as a stray. She is strictly indoors. She's never been ill, checked out healthy when I adopted her and she had a complete blood test done about a year and a half ago and all was great.  Last week I noticed something was "off" with her. She did not have a bowel movement for a few days and her appetite was greatly decreased. She loves to eat (she's not overweight though, weighs 8lbs) and is always the first one running to her dish. So when she wasn't coming out for supper, I knew something was definitely up. Her breathing was also a bit heavy and I had heard her cough a few times. She was eating (much less than normal though) drinking and urinating. Brought her to our vet and he did a thorough physical exam, took her temp (normal), did 2 X-rays, CBC w/profile & Electrolytes and a feline leukemia & FIV test. All tests came back normal except her x-rays showed what he described as a lot of "junk" on her lungs. He diagnosed her with Asperation Pneumonia and gave her a steroid injection of Dexamethasone and the antibiotic Convenia. I have to go back in 14 days for another antibiotic injection and a follow up x-ray to see how things are looking. This was all on Saturday. From then on she seemed to be getting better and better. Eating a bit more, jumping on the bed, sleeping on her window seat again, rolling around purring etc. This morning I even heard her using her scratching post. Still heard a few coughing fits, but the vet said that's to be expected and it will take time. I bought a cool air humidifier to help with her breathing. From around noon onwards though today she seems to be breathing rather heavy again (it looked more relaxed yesterday) and coughing more as well. She also has not been wandering out nearly as much. She did eat a bit and urinate (4 days and no poops yet though..vet said I can try giving her a dulcolax). I'm very worried about her..I'm trying to tell myself that just like people, pneumonia is not going to be an overnight fix, but I cant help but me concerned. Also I just don't get how she got asperation pneumonia..?? She never throws up her wet food (I do not give her dry) and lives a very sheltered life here in my apartment. It seems to be a fairly rare diagnosis.  She has no runny eyes, no sneezing, she's not throwing up. Her coat is gorgeous and shiny. She had no fluid in her chest/lungs and her heart looked and sounds great. We have 2 other cats as well, also indoors, they are both fine. Any advice??? Please help

In a human with this one might be looking at a missed diagnosis of asthma, and asthma does respond to steroids - indeed most asthmatics in the UK are now treated with inhaled steroids.  However cats are NOT people, and whilst quite a few people with asthma have problems with GERD there is no saying that cats do - they are built quite differently.

Another possibility was something happened when she was eating, or she did a bit of retching.  Or the vet might be wrong, though AFAIK aspiratin pnemonia on an X-ray is distinctive.

What does matter is that she is responding to the treatment, so try not to worry, Easily said, hard to do, but how her health is is the really important thing.

If you have to go back you could ask him how he thinks she got it.

BTW the weight of a cat is no guide as to if it's overweight or underweight - condition scoring is, as cats vary quite a bit in size.

Hi.....
Watch the video on this thread.... if you cat's cough looks anything remotely like this, ask for different views of x-ray of the heart and lungs next time you are in, to see if there is fluid around the heart
http://www.thecatsite.com/t/239533/cat-cough-when-it-can-turn-out-to-be-a-sign-of-a-deadly-disease

I'd never heard of aspiration pneumonia before. I did a little reading - and it brings up more questions than anything. How does your vet think this happened? Is everything OK with her throat? Has he ruled out a motility problem with her swallowing? Will this potentially be an ongoing problem? Do you need to take the steps recommended on many of the websites to prevent it? (Not allowing your cat to sleep in one position for more than two hours being the primary one).

Are the x-rays being sent to a radiologist for confirmation or second opinion?

I don't know about your vet, but an x-ray of our cat resulted in QUITE different interpretation of the x-rays by the vet vs. the radiologist. The vet said our cat had an enlarged heart, pattern in her chest looked like bronchitis, not asthma, and it looked like she had the beginning stages of megacolon. We were told she may have a heart condition, she needed treatment for bronchitis, and she may have a small intestine/colon motility problem.

Well, the radiologist report said her heart was fine, her intestines looked fine - just like a kitty with a lot of gas (from stress, very normal), and agreed with treating her for bronchitis. So our cat with "an enlarged heart, bronchitis and megacolon" had bronchitis. We took her for a second opinion, and we are now at ease with her diagnosis and treatment.

Vibes for you and your kitty!

Please read this:

Severely ill patients may require hospitalization with oxygen, intravenous fluids, antibiotics and supportive care. Mildly affected pets that are well hydrated and eating properly may be treated as outpatients, with frequent follow-up examinations to monitor the progression of the infection. Additional treatments may include:

http://www.petplace.com/cats/aspiration-pneumonia-in-cats/page1.aspx

This is a very serious condition. I've had a couple of friends that had kitties that were hospitalized and put on oxygen for problems just like this. If she's not improving don't wait, please get her back to the vet and if he won't take her back now, find another one. If she's got fluid in her lungs, she needs to have the proper treatment.

Thanks for the advice everyone We are taking her back tomorrow for another look and further discussion. Going to see about sending the xrays to a radiologist as well. Our vet took 2 xrays and said there was no fluid in her chest/lungs and heart looked and sounded fine. But I am definitely going to get another opinion regardless. She's very lethargic and seems to go back and forth. Yesterday started great but then the rest of the day she stayed under the bed. She did eat, drink and urinate. That at bedtime she jumped up on the bed purring like crazy and wanting to be petted. I do have a lot more questions with the vet about the diagnosis. Will keep everyone updated! Thanks again. Anymore suggestions are welcome

oh my gosh, so back and forth. But at least she's having quite a few good moments and that's important! Please keep us posted and we're certainly hoping she'll recover quickly!