Respiratory problem

Hopefully someone can give me some insight.   About a month ago my cat was sneezing like crazy and sounded congested...  finally took him to the vet and they gave him an antibiotic shot that they said would last 2 weeks - after 2 weeks he was exactly the same, so I called the vet and they gave him a different antibiotic in pill form.  It's been about a week and he is STILL the same!  He doesn't seem like he is SICK, I mean he is eating the same, he is sleeping in his usual spot, he doesn't appear distressed, he is grooming himself.    I'm not trusting this vet!   What could this be?  Allergies maybe?  The cat is 16 or 17 years old (not sure because I adopted him from a shelter in 2000 and the paperwork had conflicting ages on it)

Hi Sunlover !

I, sure as heck, would be looking for a competent feline-only Vet...........not because the cat is still sneezing and congested, BUT........because this appears to be sub-standard veterinary practice.....I think it's bordering on malpractice !

If , on the first examination, the only symptoms were sneezing and nasal congestion, there was no fever and the cat's behaviour was otherwise normal, any competent cat Vet would presume this to be a flareup of one of the feline viruses that most cats have been exposed to during their lives (viruses are immune to antibiotics),or, that possibly an allergy was at play. There would be no clinical reason to prescribe any antibiotic. You should have been asked about the possibility of any allergens (has anything new been brought into the house etc), given some practical suggestions for symptomatic relief (more later) and told to return if he became feverish or things worsened. If the Vet had any real doubts, or wanted to be absolutely sure that there was no bacterial infection, a sample of nasal discharge would have been taken and sent off for culture.

But, to just throw an antibiotic at something you haven't identified.......and worse, to do the same a second time ?  Sorry, "Doc", you lose.

So, a few suggestions and some reading about what might be behind those symptoms (and some practical symptomatic relief):

• find yourself a competent cat Vet....general practice Vets are best left for the dogs. See if there's a cat-only clinic (not "cat-friendly") around. You can also search for one here: http://www.catvets.com/cat-owners/find-vets-and-practices - don't use the red "cat-friendly" bar at the bottom. Membership in the AAFP doesn't guarantee competency, just offers a starting point.
• that injectible antibiotic is probably one you probably should know more about - so you can decide whether/not to ever allow its use again. It has a known history of causing severe problems for some cats - personally, I refuse to use it, ever. It's called "Convenia"...as in convenient for the owner, not so much for cats though. Some reading: http://www.catinfo.org/?link=convenia
• Some info about cat cold viruses and some symptomatic relief: http://harpsie.com/cat_flu.htm  

Hope that helps !

White Shadow, thank you SO much for your reply.   I know the town I am in used to have a cat clinic about 3 miles from me!  I wish it were still there.  I'll have to check out that link you sent.  I mean this cat is remaining EXACTLY the same!  The vet listened to his lungs (said they were clear) and shined a flashlight up his nostril.  (seriously, with how tiny a cat's nostril is, how could they SEE anything??) 

At least he's not "sick" but come on, it must be uncomfortable for him.  There is nothing new around that would cause allergies - except the fact it has been so COLD, COLD, COLD the past few months and the furnace has been running constantly and I DID forget to clean the filter!   (I know I'll get a scratchy throat if I forget to clean the filter at times!)  Maybe he's affected??  Doesn't sound possible, but who knows!

Check around. Maybe some of the vets from the cat clinic are still in the area.

Sunlover said:

 
...it has been so COLD, COLD, COLD the past few months and the furnace has been running constantly.....

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HEY !

I wonder if you might have fingered the culprit right there.....not the filter, necessarily (but maybe)......I'm thinking: the humidity level. Unless you have some humidifying "equipment" going (central or room humidifiers, perhaps the drier air is causing all this.

If you already have some kind of humidifier in your place,  you might need to increase the output. If there's none, and you want to experiment, choose a room where you will isolate him for a couple/three days, set up a humidifier (borrow one?) and see if that clears him up.

On another forum, someone dealing with what was thought to be a skin allergy is now thinking it's related to humidity.

I just had one more thought...I used to deal with personal allergies, and I remember that the effects were worse in periods of high humidity. So, if you're already humidifying, the adjustment might need to go up - or down !

Post back for sure IF any of that makes a difference. (after you don a mask, turn off the furnace and change the filter )

I did clean out the filter this morning... and you are right it is VERY dry in here!  I can't even comb my hair without spraying the brush every few brushes of hair - my hair stand out on end and the rest clings all around my face if I don't spray the brush, the static electricity it horrendous.  My daughter has a humidifier she bought a few years ago and it's in the closet.  I can set it up in the LR by his favorite spot (the couch!) and see if it helps!  Thanks!

Sunlover said:

 
I can set it up in the LR by his favorite spot (the couch!) and see if it helps

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Most of the small humidifiers pump out only enough humidity to keep a small room comfortable, so if the LR is large and open to the rest of the place, I doubt it will do much for him. Confining him in a smaller room with it in there - even for a day - would probably be enough to tell whether/not dry air is the problem.

I have a feeling that it may need to be a warm-mist rather than a cool air humidifier....could be wrong but, I use the warm variety and it works wonders for cats with viral flareups.

You can set up a vaporizer close to where your kitty spends most of his time.  Also, simmering water on the stove will help raise the humidity in your home.  Steaming your kitting in the bathroom will help, too.

Thank you for all your suggestions.  I will give it a try - he has 2 more pills left, (I was supposed to call for refills when these were done so I'll try the humidifier and steaming and see what happens)