Should I give my kitten L-Lysine? How much?

nwfn

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I got a kitten from a cat rescue organization two weeks ago. She's had mild cold symptoms since I got her. I took her to the vet shortly after I got her, and she was diagnosed with conjunctivitis and an "upper respiratory infection", but her lungs were clear so they didn't prescribe antibiotics except eye drops for the conjunctivitis, which is now gone. But her cold seems worse tonight than before; she's breathing fine, but she's sneezing more and she's got mucus ejecting from her nose more often.

Given her background and the length of time this cold has been around, it seems like it's probably feline herpes virus, in which case antibiotics won't help anyway. I heard that L-Lysine might help. Is this true? Should I try giving her some? How much would make sense? She's almost 6 months old and about 3.5 lbs.

I would ask my vet, but she's not the brightest bulb when it comes to pet nutrition, so I'd like other opinions before going to her.
 
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nwfn

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Hmm based on some other threads around here, it seems like 250mg twice a day should be a safe dose to try. I'll ping the vet tomorrow to ask her opinion, though I wouldn't be surprised to hear "what is l-lysine?" or "switch to medi-cal food and all your cat's problems will go away!"
 

peaches08

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Is the drainage clear? Or yellowish and thick? Sometimes bacterial infections can occur secondary to viral infections.

I don't know the lysine dosaging for maintenance vs. a flare, but I have heard lots of good things about it with regards to FHV.
 
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nwfn

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Her mucus is white and thick. When I spoke with the vet, she seemed to think that white was okay, but yellow or green were bad. Her eye discharge was yellowy-green when she had conjunctivitis, but now it's much less and all white like her mucus.
 

stephanietx

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Congratulations on your new kitty!  It's very common for kitties to come with or develop an upper respiratory infection after adoption due to all the stress of the move and the new environment.  The lysine dose is 500 mg daily for maintenance and 1000mg daily during a flare up.  It's important that you do it in 2 doses as the lysine is passed out of the body as the cat urinates.  You can pick up lysine pills at the health food store or in the supplements section of the store.  Get the 500mg pills, pure lysine not with something else in it.  Just crush between two spoons, add into wet food with a bit of water added and allow the pill to dissolve.
 
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nwfn

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Thanks guys. I spoke with the vet this morning and they prescribed her a lysine gel. It is ridiculously expensive (over $50), so in the future I will just buy the pills. They also prescribed once/day application which is definitely wrong, so from now on I will be dealing with my cat's health myself instead of trusting these guys at all, unless I need antibiotics or something else that I can't get myself.
 

stephanietx

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If you want more bang for your buck, order the powdered Lysine (NOW brand or VitaCost brand) from Amazon.  It works out to be much, much cheaper in the long run.
 

marc999

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Bah...Amazon.com won't ship just about any supplements to Canada.  Amazon.ca doesn't carry that lysine powder.

Iherb.com - will, but I risk losing the product at the border.  

Canada doesn't allow more than 90 days supply of supplements imported.  What a bummer.  That 1 pound jar of NOW lysine powder is a good price,

Are there any Canadians here who have found that 1 pound -  NOW brand of L-Lysine powder, whether online or in a store?  

Well.ca carries NOW, but not the powder and what they do have is overpriced after shipping. 
 

irinasak

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Lysine is more common than you would think. Try regular drug stores or nature/health stores. I thought that Romania no way would carry that, but now I see it everywhere.
 

marc999

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Just the capsules or tablets.   The powder is not as common as I would have hoped.

The powder is the pure form (L-Lysine HCL).

I know some people use generic brands with 'other ingredients' and maybe that's fine, but it could be a gamble.  
 

oneandahalfcats

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Just the capsules or tablets.   The powder is not as common as I would have hoped.

The powder is the pure form (L-Lysine HCL).

I know some people use generic brands with 'other ingredients' and maybe that's fine, but it could be a gamble.  
I use Liquid Immuno brand of L-Lysine which my holistic vet carries. This one is for pet use. You can find this online and in this way, may find a supplier in the process. Or, see if your vet is willing to get this in for you. Here is a link to what you are looking for : http://www.pureformulas.com/liquid-immuno-4-oz-by-rx-vitamins.html

Also comes in chicken flavor apparently : http://www.goldenneedleonline.com/Liquid-Immuno-Chicken-Flavor-4-fl-oz.-120ml-RX114-4CF.html
 

marc999

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Thanks for that.  Yet @ $38 for 120ml  pre-shipping to non-U.S. states  [directions - 2 x 2ml /day = 120ml / 4ml = 30 days worth] ....yikes, that's steep. 

I'll keep looking. 
 

oneandahalfcats

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Thanks for that.  Yet @ $38 for 120ml pre-shipping to non-U.S. states  [directions - 2 x 2ml /day = 120ml / 4ml = 30 days worth] ....yikes, that's steep. 

I'll keep looking. 
You definitely don't want to order this online but try and find a local supplier. I am in Ontario like yourself and paid under $20.00 for my bottle. Whichever one you go with, look for pharmaceutical grade to ensure that it is high quality.
 
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lrosewiles

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You could also look for Enisyl-F Lysine Treats, $20 for a 180gram pouch here in the US.  I got them for our rescue Ellie (Little Ginger) who came to me with a bad URI and they seem to be helping her.
 

marc999

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As per a recent email conversation I had with another Vet (with over 40+ yrs. experience),

"I no longer prescribe l-lysine when addressing FHV-1. Recent studies in FHV-1- confirmed shelter cats revealed that those cats administered l-lysine had increased morbidity (severity of symptoms) than those not being administered the l-lysine. Other experts continue to prescribe it, however, so the jury is still out when it comes to l-lysine." 

There's food for thought.  Considering the number of people, it has helped - I will continue to administer L-Lysine @ 1,000 mg/day -  500mg x 2 meals (been 48 hrs. thus far) and monitor results: improvement, no change, or worsening.  

I do not have a source for where the Vet. obtained this case study, or report but thought I'd share.   
 

penticton

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Wouldn't it just be easier to buy a tube of the Lysine goo for your cat from your local vet's office? You can ask for a tube of it, most if not all vet's will sell it to you.

The price is around $25 for a fliptop tube that'll last you a long time.
 

amycat1

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My cats enjoy the chicken flavored Enisyl-F Lysine Treats.
 

pandawolf

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I just started my cats on L-lysine 500 my 2 times a day. I have 11 cats from 3 boys that are 6 months. 2 old boys that are 5&6 yrs old. Then have 2 males cats that are 2&3 yrs old and 3 boys that are 15 months old and my little girl who will be turning 3 july. 3 of the cats are not showing any signs of being sick. All of them seem to be getting better on their own except my little 5 lb female and another 6 month old boy his eye is still swollen and red but he is eating, drinking but my little girl is not doing well she is refusing to eat or drink so I give her 6 - 10 ml syringes of chicken baby food mixed with little bit of pedialyte and 6 - ml of pedialyte every 4 hours. I just started her on lysine today at 5:15 pm
She has clear snot from her nose when she sneezes and her eyes are little red around left one but not inflammed. I am terrified and hoping this helps her. If anyone has used Lysine how long did it take to see any results?
 

gail jones

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FYI  sometimes it cost so much to take the cats to the vet . were talking hundreds of dollars for a cold,  My vet tests them for everything everytime 400 is about right. 

I have obtained fish mox and fish cillin  Everytime my cats start with the sniffles i give them a 250 capsule and they do fine. i know when to bring them to the vets I never let them suffer and i never  leave them in pain. Thats a trip to the vets without hesitation. 
 

our3girls

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When my cats have became sick Ieo have used amoxicillin liquid.One of my cats chirpers our munchkin had a realy bad pneumonia and I put some 300mg capsules open them up and emptied the power to mix with liquid.2 weeks later she was healthy.Also metronidazole 50mg worked when my cats were sick
 
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