Cat sneezing a ton - otherwise fine - vet has no answers.

Hey guys,

So my little guy, Corvo, is always sneezing. at least twice a week he has a sneezing fit and he ends up sneezing out a joint, solid mass, of slightly blooded snot. We've taken to the vet three times now. The first visit the vet said other then the sneezing, he seemed fine. Eating, drinking, playing, etc. Lungs were great and so were his heart, but she gave us 3 weeks of antibiotics to see if it helped. It did, and during the 3 weeks his sneezing went down considerably. We brought him back in for a checkup, and again the vet said he was looking great, though she did say he seemed a little gassy (which his always is, we've wormed him a lot, so it's not parasites.) but other then that said his coat was shiny and he looked wonderful. Welp, not a week after the visit he started sneezing again and jettisoning out big hard masses of snot build up. We waited 2 weeks to see if it would calm down, but we ended up having to bring him back in. Vet took his temp, listened to his heart, and said she thinks he just has permanent damage from the infection he originally had as a kitten. (The shelter we got him from let his URI go on for more then a month without getting him any medical attention) and she now thinks he's just pron to viral illnesses. She said not much can be done to figure it out unless I want to drop a couple hundred in blood tests and chest Xrays - which said she personally thought the Xrays wouldn't help, as his breathing sounds fine. It all seems to be up in his nose.

Should I go to a different vet? Or is he just going to be a sneezy cat forever? He doesn't seem to be in pain, he eats a ton, drinks, plays, bathroom is normal, is affectionate and seems to have no other issues then the massive sneezing. Maybe I should just wait and see if any more symptoms pop up? I just can't afford to spend up to $1000 trying to figure out whats wrong with my cat - especially when it doesn't seem life threatening. It would be one thing if the vet had some idea of what direction to go in, but she doesn't to seem to think it's a big problem. Anyone else deal with a very sneezy at? any suggestions would be great...

This is him. I showed the video to the vet and she said it just sounded like a hair ball, but he always seems to do this before having a sneezing fit.

My guy sneezes, but not like that - just 3 or 4 times every day, but he always had a crusty mass of snot on his right nostril. So I've been giving him Lysine on the off chance that it could be FHV - its cheap and harmless.

Now, a month later his nose is clear and he only sneezes now and then. Maybe????? for my guy? Couldn't hurt for you to try. Although it does sound like the sneezes your guy is experiencing are almost "deeper" (like a cough?).

Good luck investigating.

I had a Scottish Fold boy that did that.  I got him back when he was 5 yrs old due to owner moving to place that would not accept cats.  He did that every so often, sometimes til he snorted blood. Other than that, he was fine and lived to be 16 yrs old.  Never even had a cold.

pam in TX

My cat who has Feline Asthma sounds like that when he has an asthma attack.  He also sneezes a lot sometimes with greenish junk sometimes with nothing but clear.  He's been on antibiotics for it, and it makes it clear but it comes back with the discharge after he stops the antibiotics.  Going to get him back to the vet to see if he's got another infection.

Ask the vet to do a culture and sensitivity test of the nasal discharge to rule out some kind of infection that's not your run of the mill upper respiratory infection.  The culture will tell the vet what kind of infection it is (bacterial and what kind of bacteria or a viral infection).  The sensitivity test will tell the vet what medication will effectively treat the infection.  It takes several days to get the results, but it's worth it. 

When does he sneeze the most? Try cleaning your home thoroughly. Change to a different type of litter, too. Try using a vaporizer in the room he spends the most time in. Give him a fatty acid supplement. You can also apply a few drops of saline nasal solution to his nose.

If the vet says he's fine other wise, and you know he's fine otherwise..try to notice or pay attention to when he starts sneezing. is it random? is it right after potty? right after eating? 

My cat, Charlie used get a bit sneezy after he used the litter box, and at first i used to freak out, but after the vet checked him out and found him to be good, I figured it must have been the litter box. The clay litter would create soo much dust..it caused him to sneeze. I use a brand that is less dusty, and I mix with crystals...and his sneezing is pretty much non existent. My place also just gets really dusty. I have to clean on a daily basis. and its not just upkeep cleaning, its like spring cleaning like cleaning everyday to get rid of the dust in the air...

Not saying your cat is sneezing only from his litter box (as you have mentioned he has a pre-existing condition), but maybe you can try to eliminate other stuff that might cause him to sneeze. For my cat it was the litter...for your cat..maybe something else??

good vibes for your little guy