Chronic URI but negative for herpes? Can that happen?

Hello everyone!

Is it possible for a cat to be chronically congested, but still test negative for herpes?

The reason I ask is, I have brought home a new adoption - Alvin, a very friendly 1.5 year old kitty.

Alvin has chronic nasal congestion (occasional sneezing with a bit of green snot, watery eye, and sniffling). He has been tested for herpes and it came back negative. Is that possible? He has also been vaccinated, but is due for another round shortly.

He is currently on l-lysine and finishing off a round of doxycycline to control the congestion. The vet he had been going to knew he was to be adopted and did not show much concern about it.

Other than the congestion, he is a friendly and playful creature and shows no other signs of illness.

I was assured he was not contagious; that no other cat got sick from him in the year he was at the foster home (while he was always congested) ... but I am worried anyway for my other cat, Bruce, who is just over 2 yrs old (very healthy and with all his shots up to date). I was too trusting and they have already met ... and the Internet is full of terrors with regards to URIs. Which is why I am scared.

Background: He (Alvin) came from a foster home. Before that, he was rescued as a kitten from a terrible hoarder situation (he has a droopy eyelid as a result). His brothers did not survive long after their rescue, sadly, which is probably why he wants so desperately to be friends with everyone.


Thanks!

It is possible. Ask your vet about culturing the congestion if the current round of antibiotics does not resolve the congestion.

If not Herpes, Calicivirus is also the culprit of URIs in cats. Though, if a Upper Respiratory Panel was done, it would test for Calici, as well as Mycoplasma and a few others.

It's also possible that he has structural problems in his nasal passage that is contributing to the problem.

I adopted a kitty who developed a chronic URI due to a psuedomonas infection.  I would suggest two things.  First, get a PCR URD test to be sure it's not herpes or one of the other diseases it tests for.  Here's a good overview of what URD tests for and symptoms.  http://www.2ndchance.info/cateyeIdexxURDpanel.pdf   Secondly, get any discolored discharge tested via and culture and sensitivity test.  The culture will tell the vet if it's bacterial or viral and the sensitivity test will tell the vet which med(s) will most effectively treat it. 

Additionally, you can give a daily antihistamine to help with the sneezies. 

It is rare but bordetella can spread from dogs to cats. I was just reading up on preventable URI's as I am hoping to foster soon and want my cats to be healthy.

http://www.felinebb.info/index.asp?lan=auto457400648

Well, I spoke to the vet that has been treating Alvin the whole time.

Before I continue, I would like to say that everyone else getting a cat from a foster home needs to ask who the vet was that treated them, and speak to them directly. A simple "is this cat contagious?" question is something they will happily answer...Don't be trusting (and careless) like I was.

Alvin not only has herpes that causes URIs, he also has a very aggressive bacterial URI in progress, which is very contagious and no vaccine exists for it. The vet suggested he be kept away for three weeks before being introduced to a healthy cat. Dammit. The herpes virus itself is not as big a concern as Bruce is vaccinated, but even that is not 100%.

So ... The foster mom had no idea what the vet was saying to her, and I listened to her. I should have asked to speak to the vet first, instead of finding out this way. I isolated Alvin yesterday, so hopefully the contact they did have wasn't enough to pass it along to Bruce. Will keep an eye on him for lethargy and odd behaviour, and I will be disinfecting lots.

Alvin will be returning to the foster home, sadly. I have already risked Bruce enough with my ignorance.

This will not stop me from adopting foster or rescue cats in the future, but this will certainly change the way I educate myself about them first. Rescue cats need good homes ... We just need to be sure the pets we are already dedicated to are safe in the process.

Why does he need to return to the foster?  If you can confine him to a room by himself he'll be able to ride out the infection and should be fine.  We kept Hannah in isolation for a month due to her illnesses when we adopted her and she was so sick.  There was no way I was returning her anywhere.

If the foster mom insisted Alvin was fine and encouraged introducing him immediately, then what else has he been exposed to in a foster home with 30 cats, both feral and rescues? Even with excellent veterinary care, she may have misunderstood other diagnoses, and let cats mingle that really shouldn't have been mingling.

I just hope I didn't bring in anything else besides the bacteria.

Returning him is not the answer.  Getting proper medical help for him and loving him is the answer.  Most of us have adopted cats and they've become sick once in their new homes.  It happens all the time and the kitties don't get returned.

I'm sorry that you want to return the kitty. URIs and herpes virus (FHV) are extremely common in shelter kitties and multicat foster homes. And oftentimes the stress and unfamiliarity of a new environment can bring it on. The two I adopted also came down with URIs shortly after I brought them home. But I got them treated and the URIs cleared up and they are on l-lysine to prevent future URIs. I had a cat already who got exposed, but was treated, too. It's been four years with no other instance except for a runny eye (clear discharge) one time, which went after after a couple weeks of doubling the l-lysine. I hope you will reconsider and give this guy a chance. He needs your help. If I had given up on the two I adopted, I'd really be missing out. They are full of love.

This isn't an easy decision. I have taken everything into consideration, and feel this is the best way. This particular foster home is a caring one. Regular vet visits (even if not always understood) and plenty of room to roam. He will not be returning to a hovel. I was hoping to give him a less crowded place to live, and my first cat a friend. I still wish I could. Perhaps if he gets over the bacteria (finally) and I can be better prepared for how to deal with his problems, I can try in the future.

The biggest reason I am returning him is that I asked the vet if she would adopt Alvin were she in my position and knowing what she knows ... and with a heavy heart she said "no". A vet said no, she would not. Who better than her than to care for a cat like this? He has been on antibiotics since April, and he has never had an uncongested moment, so his situation is not as clear-cut as it seems.

If Alvin was my first cat, I would not hesitate to keep him. But he is not. WhenI first said I was interested in adopting him, I specifically said "only if Bruce won't catch anything from him". And now Bruce may very well have caught something all because of my ignorance. If I failed my healthy cat like this, what right have I to try and care for a sick cat? Right now I just want Bruce to be ok, and Alvin to stop being locked in a room when he loves company.

My biggest reason for posting all this is so that others (non experts like me) know to do their homework, and to isolate new cats no matter what they hear. Take them to a vet, and find out exactly what their needs are. Make sure your current pets are safe and that they cannot infect the new ones, too.

There is no guarantee that Bruce will not catch anything from any cat you bring in. The stress of having his territory imposed upon is enough to trigger an URI, urinary tract infection, or some other illness.  I really wish you'd give it a chance and see how things go. 

I agree that any new cat should be isolated and should be checked out by YOUR vet before any introduction with resident cats is done.

I'm sorry you feel the need to return Alvin. I'm even sorrier for Alvin that this particular vet is deeming him "unadoptable" based on her response. Has anyone taken into consideration that It might have been that he was stressed in his foster home, thus why the chronic URI?

I am curious what medications Alvin has been on. There are some excellent medications to treat herpes flare-ups and help keep them at bay.

If you adopted Bruce from a rescue or shelter he has likely already been exposed to the herpes virus.

I have personally taken in cats that many vets would not, simply because they "do not have the time to deal with it." Those cats are thriving now! None of us on this site were experts on cats BEFORE we had cats. It's something you learn as you go.

I don't say all this to try to make you feel guilty about Alvin. It is your choice whether you choose to keep him or not. BUT, I woudn't base my decision on 1 vet's opinion about adopting him.

I, too, hope that you reconsider. Any new cat you bring home from a shelter, foster or rescue will have been exposed to all of the things you describe above. There is no test for Herpes that I know of and it IS a virus and that does not mean at all that Bruce will get it either. I have a Herpes kitty and the other's are just fine even when she has a flare-up.

I understand that the reason you posted this was so warn others to do their homework when adopting kitties from fosters, etc. But, you can't expect us not to want to try to convince you to keep Alvin and work through his illness and not give up on him. Bringing him back there will not be good for the little guy. Do you like him, Alvin? Is the only reason because you are worried about Bruce? Because Bruce has already been exposed so the worst is over since Bruce is fine.

Any kitty that you bring home from a rescue situation needs to be isolated from resident cats for at least two weeks anyway. There are multiple reasons for this not just for health reasons. You also want a negative stool sample before you allow cats to share litter boxes. Is there anyway you can keep Alvin isolated until he feels better. And, don't feel bad for Alvin being confined !!!! This would only be a few weeks out of lifetime with you and Bruce. I don't understand why people are always in such a rush to introduce new cats when they have years ahead of them to be together. :shame:

Alvin may need a different antibiotic to get him through this but I am certain he will get better and recover. I hope your vet is encouraging this too. Stress is a major factor as well in these kitties getting sick. I hope that you reconsider and try to get him healthy first and then make your decision. :cross:

Feralvr said:

I, too, hope that you reconsider. Any new cat you bring home from a shelter, foster or rescue will have been exposed to all of the things you describe above. There is no test for Herpes that I know of and it IS a virus and that does not mean at all that Bruce will get it either. I have a Herpes kitty and the other's are just fine even when she has a flare-up.

I understand that the reason you posted this was so warn others to do their homework when adopting kitties from fosters, etc. But, you can't expect us not to want to try to convince you to keep Alvin and work through his illness and not give up on him. Bringing him back there will not be good for the little guy. Do you like him, Alvin? Is the only reason because you are worried about Bruce? Because Bruce has already been exposed so the worst is over since Bruce is fine.

Any kitty that you bring home from a rescue situation needs to be isolated from resident cats for at least two weeks anyway. There are multiple reasons for this not just for health reasons. You also want a negative stool sample before you allow cats to share litter boxes. Is there anyway you can keep Alvin isolated until he feels better. And, don't feel bad for Alvin being confined !!!! This would only be a few weeks out of lifetime with you and Bruce. I don't understand why people are always in such a rush to introduce new cats when they have years ahead of them to be together.

Alvin may need a different antibiotic to get him through this but I am certain he will get better and recover. I hope your vet is encouraging this too. Stress is a major factor as well in these kitties getting sick. I hope that you reconsider and try to get him healthy first and then make your decision.

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The two cats I adopted were just at the shelter's vet in April to get updated shots. i checked the place out-looks pretty top notch, big hospital the shelter gets a discount at.

I kept them separate from my resident cat for over a week, then the next week, my first cat got some virus and is recovering , in a separate room, for 2 weeks while she fights it off.

I didn;t bring the two new kittens to my vets or do the stool samples-the no kill place I went to is so thorough with everything, I was very impressed.

I asked my vet if the newbies should come in, and the answer was I didn;t have to unless they showed signs of being ill, etc.

I have to stop by there tonight to pick up my pet insurance forms, so i'll ask again.

i'm afraid of my cat catching this virus all over again, but I'm hoping she builds some immunity to it. I can't imagine bringing the two kittens back. Got them 6/6 and they're so loving and good natured in personality, and very ready, at 9 months, to have a home.

kasalexis said:

The two cats I adopted were just at the shelter's vet in April to get updated shots. i checked the place out-looks pretty top notch, big hospital the shelter gets a discount at.
I kept them separate from my resident cat for over a week, then the next week, my first cat got some virus and is recovering , in a separate room, for 2 weeks while she fights it off.
I didn;t bring the two new kittens to my vets or do the stool samples-the no kill place I went to is so thorough with everything, I was very impressed.
I asked my vet if the newbies should come in, and the answer was I didn;t have to unless they showed signs of being ill, etc.
I have to stop by there tonight to pick up my pet insurance forms, so i'll ask again.
i'm afraid of my cat catching this virus all over again, but I'm hoping she builds some immunity to it. I can't imagine bringing the two kittens back. Got them 6/6 and they're so loving and good natured in personality, and very ready, at 9 months, to have a home.

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Glad that they have you and I am sure you are right that they were SO very ready and waiting for a loving home!! There are so many in need. I know it is tough when we rescue/adopt from shelter environments because most of the kitties do come down with these common viruses that can be treated. Most of our resident cats are already vaccinated and have healthy immune systems so they will not even become ill. :cross: