What could it be?

catlover777

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We are thinking of potentially adopting a cat. Upon inspection today, the director has found that the cat and her siblings are sneezing. The cat in question has sneezed blood due to irritation of her nasal passages. They said her eyes look good, no discharge or anything. They put the cats on antibiotics. This could be an array of things, but considering the situation, is it more likely to be an Upper Respiratory Infection? If so, how long do those take to treat?
 
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catlover777

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Yikes! I was hoping for less but thanks for the response :)
 

stephenq

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Yikes! I was hoping for less but thanks for the response :)
If you have no other cats at home then there would be nothing wrong with adopting them while they have their cold, provided you are given all the proper meds and instructions, including an agreement to extend the meds as needed, and to be given other meds should it move into their eyes (which it usually does).  In other words, i would want a promise of full and complete treatment from the shelter if you took one of the cats home.  If not, you can of course wait, depending on what their hold policy is.  Every rescue group or shelter should have a written medical policy which you can examine. 

Also, see this article I wrote on common ailments in shelter cats: http://www.thecatsite.com/a/identif...dopted-from-animal-shelters-and-rescue-groups
 

di and bob

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I would also have some L-lysine on hand, it works well for things like this, and helps build up the immune system. I buy it as treats on Amazon and as soon as my cats start sneezing I start them on it. All the luck!
 

di and bob

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I too would go ahead with the adoption, upper respiratory infections are VERY common among cats in a shelter environment. If it's viral the antibiotics won't do anything anyway. You'll just have to weigh the stress from being in the shelter to the stress of being in a new home, because stress does not help any illness. Bless you for adopting one of these babies, you should consider two, they keep each other company, have a playmate, and really are no more bother to care for!
All the luck!
 

stephenq

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I too would go ahead with the adoption, upper respiratory infections are VERY common among cats in a shelter environment. If it's viral the antibiotics won't do anything anyway. You'll just have to weigh the stress from being in the shelter to the stress of being in a new home, because stress does not help any illness. Bless you for adopting one of these babies, you should consider two, they keep each other company, have a playmate, and really are no more bother to care for!
All the luck!
I just want to add to Di and Bob's thread, that while URI's are almost always viral, it is standard and accepted vet practice to proscribe antibiotics due to the risk of secondary bacterial infections.  Cats routinely get secondary bacterial eye infections which are treated with antibiotic ointments, and sometimes viral eye infections for which there are anti-viral eye meds available.  Avoiding unnecessary antibiotic use is a good goal and should be done with a vet's advice when that vet believes that a cat's illness is only viral. Careful monitoring is needed as a viral infection can become a bacterial one at any time.
 
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catlover777

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She's being taken to the vet for her check up this Monday! Her last round of antibiotics which seem to work since she's not sniffling or sneezing as much end Sunday night. She will be microchipped and we should be able to adopt her next week :)
 
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