My Cat Is Getting Worse

My cat Adele just turned 4 a couple weeks ago. She's very healthy and has had no health problems. A couple days ago, I woke up for work and noticed her doing this weird hicc-cough type thing if that's what you could call it. I thought she'd inhaled some food or had choked on hair. This went on though off and on for several minutes. I had to go to work and asked my mother to look in on her during the day. When I got home, my mother said she didn't notice anything out of the ordinary. Her behavior was fine and she was eating well, very playful. That night, however, Adele started up with these mini coughing episodes. It seemed to prevent her from sleeping. It passed again and she was fine for the rest of that night.

The next morning, she ran out of the room bright eyed and bushy tailed. I thought whatever was plaguing her was gone. I went to work and my mom came in to feed her that afternoon again. When I returned home, my mom told me she had some more episodes and so I immediately made an appointment. I took her to the vet and she had a temp of 104.1. He said she was warm but she had panicked on the way to the doctor so he wasn't sure it was a "true" fever. He said she seemed very alert and not as sick as he'd expect if she was running a temp. She checked out fine: good weight, lungs clear, very frisky. He told me he didn't think she needed an x Ray and said he could do some blood work. However he expected an URI so he prescribed clavamox. He gave her a dose there and said to continue for 5 days at home. Well today she is a different cat. This morning, her appetite was less and now she won't eat a thing. I gave her a pill this morning and I don't know if this is the pill or her sickness. Now she's doing this strange snorting thing like something is stuck up her nose. Because she's not eating, I can't even eat. I plan to take her back first thing tomorrow but her behavior is unsettling. In addition the doctor suggested inflammatory disease like FIP yesterday but when I expressed concern, he said he wouldn't jump to that conclusion. I just spoke to the other vet on the phone and he said to continue the meds and it's all the URI. Even my other cats are hissing at her though. It's all very upsetting.

Hi, I recently had a vet downplay the side effects of antibiotics and I'm not sure why because they are available all over the internet.

• Allergic reaction (labored breathing, hives, etc)
• Loss of appetite
• Vomiting/Nausea
• Diarrhea

It also bothers me when vets prescribe antibiotics for URIs because most URIs are caused by viruses and antibiotics have no effect on viruses. It's just another example of antibiotic overuse. You could try and see if she will eat some tuna since it has a very strong smell.

WorriedSoMuch said:

My cat Adele just turned 4 a couple weeks ago. She's very healthy and has had no health problems. A couple days ago, I woke up for work and noticed her doing this weird hicc-cough type thing if that's what you could call it. I thought she'd inhaled some food or had choked on hair. This went on though off and on for several minutes. I had to go to work and asked my mother to look in on her during the day. When I got home, my mother said she didn't notice anything out of the ordinary. Her behavior was fine and she was eating well, very playful. That night, however, Adele started up with these mini coughing episodes. It seemed to prevent her from sleeping. It passed again and she was fine for the rest of that night.

The next morning, she ran out of the room bright eyed and bushy tailed. I thought whatever was plaguing her was gone. I went to work and my mom came in to feed her that afternoon again. When I returned home, my mom told me she had some more episodes and so I immediately made an appointment. I took her to the vet and she had a temp of 104.1. He said she was warm but she had panicked on the way to the doctor so he wasn't sure it was a "true" fever. He said she seemed very alert and not as sick as he'd expect if she was running a temp. She checked out fine: good weight, lungs clear, very frisky. He told me he didn't think she needed an x Ray and said he could do some blood work. However he expected an URI so he prescribed clavamox. He gave her a dose there and said to continue for 5 days at home. Well today she is a different cat. This morning, her appetite was less and now she won't eat a thing. I gave her a pill this morning and I don't know if this is the pill or her sickness. Now she's doing this strange snorting thing like something is stuck up her nose. Because she's not eating, I can't even eat. I plan to take her back first thing tomorrow but her behavior is unsettling. In addition the doctor suggested inflammatory disease like FIP yesterday but when I expressed concern, he said he wouldn't jump to that conclusion. I just spoke to the other vet on the phone and he said to continue the meds and it's all the URI. Even my other cats are hissing at her though. It's all very upsetting.

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A cat's normal body temperature can range from 100.5 to 102.5 degrees. Because 101.5 degrees is right in the middle, it's often referred to as a “normal” body temperature. Being that their body temperature is higher than ours, they can also tolerate higher temperatures (provided they have access to water).

Most of the symptoms sound like URI. The antibiotic is usually prescribed because secondary infections are common.

Have you tried taking your cat into the bathroom and steaming it up. That often gives some relief.

Your cat cannot smell her food. Find something stinky. If she continues to refuse to eat get some baby food and cheek it in her mouth or ask the vet to give you a small syringe and instruct you on how to feed her.

Hang in there. A sick pet is always upsetting.

Keep her eyes and nose cleared. Some posters here have used the little ball syringes sold in the infant departments. Be very gentle. A warm cloth on the eyes can help if there is a crust.

@fairycatmom I wonder myself if the antibiotic is making her feel worse. When I take her in tomorrow, I will ask if maybe another would help. He did suggest Baytril but I was concerned about what I read on blindness.

@kittens mom, how do I know if her nose is stuffy? It doesn't seem that it is. There is no discharge from her eyes or nose but she is snorting now. She has not coughed today, just snorted. I fed her by hand earlier and got her to eat a small amount independently so that was somewhat encouraging. However, she's very lethargic and I'm not sure she's used the litterbox since this morning.

WorriedSoMuch said:

@fairycatmom I wonder myself if the antibiotic is making her feel worse. When I take her in tomorrow, I will ask if maybe another would help. He did suggest Baytril but I was concerned about what I read on blindness.

@kittens mom, how do I know if her nose is stuffy? It doesn't seem that it is. There is no discharge from her eyes or nose but she is snorting now. She has not coughed today, just snorted. I fed her by hand earlier and got her to eat a small amount independently so that was somewhat encouraging. However, she's very lethargic and I'm not sure she's used the litterbox since this morning.

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I don't think that a bit of steam would hurt. and if the snorting quit you have relived her of some discomfort.

there are other antibiotics in the same class as enrofloxacin.( Baytril). Pradofloxacin (sp?) has a higher threshold of safety. From my perspective I would stick with the clavamox unless the vet did a culture to see what bacteria if any you were fighting and if another antibiotic would be better. Most vets prescribe enrofloxacin below the threshold for extra safety.

I know how worried you are, I was so scared the first time my cat got a cold. I kept putting my ear up to his tummy to make sure his lungs were clear. Honestly, just like when we have colds, they are going to feel bad for at least a week. I was all over Google at that time and most, ~90%, are caused by viruses, so more than likely the antibiotic won't have an effect on her cold. I don't know if you are interested, but sometimes I use alternative/homeopathic remedies. When a few years later it recurred and he spread it to more of my cats, I ended up giving all of them some Pulsatilla and Lysine treats to help with their discomfort. I also recently found this but haven't needed to use it: FCV Protect^{[emoji]8482[/emoji]} Granules by Pet Alive. They were also very sleepy.

Thank you both so much for the feedback and suggestions. I've continued the clavamox and also tried the steam as well. The steam was helpful, but not the antibiotic. I started to hand feed her which stimulated her appetite and now she's been eating regularly. She went to the bathroom yesterday and it was a bit soft but I'm assuming that's the antibiotic. I'm glad to see her interest in food again but she's still so lethargic to me. I mean, she spends most of the time on the couch unless she's eating. Usually she's the type of cat that's all over the place, on counters and knocking stuff down. The contrast is startling for me. Yesterday I did a play session with my cats and she played a bit with a wand toy but not the same way she usually does. She also wouldn't play with the laser toy at all which was surprising. She's still sneezing and snorting. Now she rubs her nose as well. I noticed it's very warm, her nose and in general, she feels warm. I'm concerned that means a fever is present.

The vet called me yesterday and when I told him she was eating again, he said that he didn't see the need to bring her in. He said to just continue what I was doing and it would run its course. When I brought up FIP again, he told me to not worry about that now, that it doesn't present this way. However I am, especially if she's still running a fever and is lethargic

If you're not satisfied with the answers or treatment the vet is providing, you are free to get a second opinion from another vet. Bring copies of your cat's medical records with you to the appointment for the new vet to review.

The antibiotic won't cure the virus. It's a preventive for secondary infections. It is something most vets now decide on a case by case basis. I'm glad she's eating and playing some. LTS3   is correct. You can get a second opinion or you can schedule a visit to your regular vet because you have questions. My vet emails with me which has been a lifesaver a few times. She answered me at 8pm the night before my cats dental.

I'm glad your baby is getting better. The virus simply has to run it's course. You might ask your vet about L-lysine.

Thanks again for the responses. Adele seems more alert. She's climbing on things again but she's not 100%. She is still sniffling and sneezing. She went back to the vet who feels she is doing better but wanted her on the antibiotics for a few more days. He says the sneezing may last awhile. However now her sister Lexi is sick with the same symptoms. I'm so worried that this is serious. I'm taking Lexi to the vet tomorrow. She has a cough, just like her sister started with. She's very close to her sister but is this normal for her to catch this cold like this? My vet assured me it was doubtful my other cats would catch it.

Glad that she's feeling better. Yes, kitty colds are extremely contagious-I'm very surprised you weren't told to isolate her. It is also likely to recur in the future, (search Feline Rhinotracheitis Virus and Calicivirus)-kind of like herpes does in humans. http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=1+2134&aid=210

They never told me to isolate her and sadly, my cat Lexi is worse now too. I rushed her off to the vet yesterday and they put her on the same medicine. Adele is sneezing just a bit but is generally back to her old self so I figured the same thing would work. As suspected, Lexi lost her appetite last night. She was put on a stronger dose of clavamox because she's heavier. I was trying to get Lexi to eat by hand feeding her but nothing stimulated her to eat. After a restless night with me getting up to check her, seeing if she wanted to eat, and also dealing with my other cat who vomited, I fell asleep briefly and woke up at 7 with her breathing with her mouth open. I began calling vets in a panic. She didn't seem distressed, just breathing calmly like that but I wasn't taking chances. I finally got a hold of the vet after 8 as they had just opened. They put the vet on the phone right away and he asked me some questions and said he figured her nose was plugged and that was causing it. He said if she seemed distressed, call back and he'd see her as he was booked since they only work a half day Saturday. Well by 9:30, she was making strange sounds and looked bad, so I called a cab and rushed there. Immediately in the cab, she stopped breathing with her mouth open and when he saw her, she looked fine. He checked her over again carefully and reassured me she's not in any distress. He said it was all nasal. Then he gave her some fluids because her temp was 106 which I thought was awfully high. It was only 103.8 yesterday. She also had lost a few ounces.

He then gave her an appetite stimulant and an anti congestant. However she's no better. She ate when she got home and was breathing through her nose again. However now she won't eat again so the stimulant isn't working. She's just laying there with her mouth slightly ajar and her tongue sticking out a bit. She's calm and not gasping or I'd be at the ER. I just liquified some Hills he gave me and syringe fed her. I'm just not sure what else to do to make her feel better. The vet is closed tomorrow so I'm anxious.

Hi, sorry that they are feeling so bad. Was the appetite stimulant Mirtazapine? If so, please be very careful with it. My vet prescribed it about a month ago for one of my cats, but after researching it I decided not to give it to him. I searched "mirtazapine cats" to see what it was and a thread called Dangers of Mirtazapine from medschat.com came up and I spent about an hour reading it. Then I knew there wasn't any way I would give it to him. Please be very careful if that is what she was given, it is prescribed for depression in humans so it affects the brain.

I have seen it suggested to get saline nose drops, the kind for baby's because the dropper will fit their noses. Make sure it doesn't have any other ingredients though, just salt and water, I would check on other ingredients first before buying if there are any to make sure they are safe for cats.

I was also shopping online at Chewy the other day and came across Tomlyn Nutri-Cal High-Calorie Dietary Cat Supplement. It seems good to have on hand as it says it stimulates appetite. Maybe you could call some pet stores and see if they have it or something similar in stock?

You can also feed them with a syringe if necessary. I had saved one and three milliliter syringes that had medicine in them from years ago, but if you don't have any maybe ask at a pharmacy. I mixed some water with canned food and sucked it up. Sometimes it would get stuck, but I just pushed it out and then it worked again. It should work for most wet food, but I used Canidae All Life Stages-the green can- if for some reason it doesn't. One time I used my hand mixer and made it very fine so you could do that if it needs to be finer.

Hope they are feeling better soon

I hope all your babies feel better soon.  The first time I dealt with a kitty cold I was really scared too.  My oldest cat who is now nine years old had a really bad URI , ear infection and ear mites all at the same time when she was a young kitten.  She woke me up sneezing in my face repeatedly and I in turn woke my hubby up and told him he had to get here to the vet the next day while I had to work.  It took two of us to medicate a tiny six week old kitten and she was noisy as hell too.  It took two rounds of antibiotics to get rid of everything. I am still surprised she never stopped eating.

Almost two years ago I adopted a 7 week old kitten.  He came home with a kitty cold but did not show any symptoms other than sneezing once in a while for over a week.  By the time he showed symptoms to indicate he was sick versus just adjusting to a new environment he had shared his cold with my other 3 cats.  Casey the kitten and Starbuck my oldest required vet care and medicine.  Apollo and Sonny had more mild kitty colds and were just treated at home with steam treatments.  None of mine ever stopped eating though. Apollo slept a lot more and was very clingy with me when he was not feeling well.

I do not have any advice on syringe feeding but I will say that steam treatments really did help my cats when they were sick.  I steamed them 2-4 times a day for about 20 minutes depending on how bad the congestion was.  When Starbuck caught Casey's cold she scared the hell out of me because I was waiting for hubby to get home with the car to take her to the vet and she started coughing really bad.  She reminded me of a friend who used to have asthma.  I tried to call a cab but could not get one before hubby was going to be home because I live in the suburbs and it is next to impossible to get a cab during rush hour without advance reservations.  I called everyone I knew and kept getting voice mail because they were driving.  I called the vet's office in tears and the receptionist actually put the vet on the phone so she could hear what was happening.  The vet told me to steam treat her immediately and I spent 30 minutes in the bathroom with her.  By the time hubby got home the coughing had stopped and she was just sneezing.  The vet was surprised that the coughing had stopped so easily and they still treated her for the cold since my other cat had been treated for one.

FairyCatMom said:

Hi, sorry that they are feeling so bad. Was the appetite stimulant Mirtazapine? If so, please be very careful with it. My vet prescribed it about a month ago for one of my cats, but after researching it I decided not to give it to him. I searched "mirtazapine cats" to see what it was and a thread called Dangers of Mirtazapine from medschat.com came up and I spent about an hour reading it. Then I knew there wasn't any way I would give it to him. Please be very careful if that is what she was given, it is prescribed for depression in humans so it affects the brain.

I have seen it suggested to get saline nose drops, the kind for baby's because the dropper will fit their noses. Make sure it doesn't have any other ingredients though, just salt and water, I would check on other ingredients first before buying if there are any to make sure they are safe for cats.

I was also shopping online at Chewy the other day and came across Tomlyn Nutri-Cal High-Calorie Dietary Cat Supplement. It seems good to have on hand as it says it stimulates appetite. Maybe you could call some pet stores and see if they have it or something similar in stock?

You can also feed them with a syringe if necessary. I had saved one and three milliliter syringes that had medicine in them from years ago, but if you don't have any maybe ask at a pharmacy. I mixed some water with canned food and sucked it up. Sometimes it would get stuck, but I just pushed it out and then it worked again. It should work for most wet food, but I used Canidae All Life Stages-the green can- if for some reason it doesn't. One time I used my hand mixer and made it very fine so you could do that if it needs to be finer.

Hope they are feeling better soon:rub:

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I truly appreciate you taking the time to answer me. I'm just beside myself right now. She seemed to sleep well last night, but I found some vomit on the bed. I'm not sure if it was her, as my other 2 cats seem to be coming down with something too. It's just insane how this is traveling. My cat Delilah was sneezing and gagging last night so it's possible it was her. However, Lexi was in that room. I just don't know. The medicine was unfortunately the one you mentioned and he dosed her right there. I had no idea about the side effects. I do now and I'm terrified. Last night she was a zombie before she fell asleep. I think this medicine is not agreeing with her at all. She seems kind of out it, breathing off and on with her mouth open. It also did not enhance her appetite at all. I have been syringe feeding her the Hills as well as some Sheba Pate. She won't eat independently and it's a real struggle. I'm not sure if she vomited last night either, so my fear is she lost all the nutrition I tried to get in her yesterday. I've tried saline drops too but it seemed to cause her to breathe with her mouth open even more. This stimulant medicine can take days to wear off as I understand it so I don't know what to do. I'm at my wits end. I feel like maybe this is all my fault for taking her back to the doctor and maybe she won't recover. Now I have another sneezing cat, and my other who vomited again this morning after she did yesterday. I'm praying so hard to get through this

catlover73 said:

I hope all your babies feel better soon.  The first time I dealt with a kitty cold I was really scared too.  My oldest cat who is now nine years old had a really bad URI , ear infection and ear mites all at the same time when she was a young kitten.  She woke me up sneezing in my face repeatedly and I in turn woke my hubby up and told him he had to get here to the vet the next day while I had to work.  It took two of us to medicate a tiny six week old kitten and she was noisy as hell too.  It took two rounds of antibiotics to get rid of everything. I am still surprised she never stopped eating.

Almost two years ago I adopted a 7 week old kitten.  He came home with a kitty cold but did not show any symptoms other than sneezing once in a while for over a week.  By the time he showed symptoms to indicate he was sick versus just adjusting to a new environment he had shared his cold with my other 3 cats.  Casey the kitten and Starbuck my oldest required vet care and medicine.  Apollo and Sonny had more mild kitty colds and were just treated at home with steam treatments.  None of mine ever stopped eating though. Apollo slept a lot more and was very clingy with me when he was not feeling well.

I do not have any advice on syringe feeding but I will say that steam treatments really did help my cats when they were sick.  I steamed them 2-4 times a day for about 20 minutes depending on how bad the congestion was.  When Starbuck caught Casey's cold she scared the hell out of me because I was waiting for hubby to get home with the car to take her to the vet and she started coughing really bad.  She reminded me of a friend who used to have asthma.  I tried to call a cab but could not get one before hubby was going to be home because I live in the suburbs and it is next to impossible to get a cab during rush hour without advance reservations.  I called everyone I knew and kept getting voice mail because they were driving.  I called the vet's office in tears and the receptionist actually put the vet on the phone so she could hear what was happening.  The vet told me to steam treat her immediately and I spent 30 minutes in the bathroom with her.  By the time hubby got home the coughing had stopped and she was just sneezing.  The vet was surprised that the coughing had stopped so easily and they still treated her for the cold since my other cat had been treated for one.

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Thank you for the good vibes and I'm glad your cats recovered. My cat Delilah had a bad URI as a kitten and she didn't stop eating either. This is worse I think because Lexi won't eat. I've been doing the steam as well for around 15 minutes or so a couple times a day. It helps her a bit I think but not enough to get her to eat [emoji]128546[/emoji]

I am wondering if it would be a good idea to take Lexi in for a 2nd opinion with another vet.  I am not a vet but based on my personal experience it seems odd that the vet is not willing to try other medications when the symptoms are not improving.  When Starbuck had her bad URI as a kitten it took two rounds of different antibiotics to get rid of it completely.  

Also you mentioned one of your cats was throwing up.  I know it is hard to figure out which one in a multi-cat household.  I am wondering if someone has nausea from the antibiotics and it is causing the lack of eating issues. You could try asking your vet for something for nausea and see if this helps with Lexi's appetite.

If your vet is unwilling to listen to you about trying new medicines then I would find another vet. 

I hope the effects of the mirtazapine have worn off by now and she's okay. Cyproheptadine is also used for appetite stimulation, it is much safer and is an allergy medicine. It's still prescription in the US, but your vet should prescribe it if you feel the syringe feeding is not enough. Based on your description, it seems like it more likely fits Feline Rhinotracheitis Virus on that PetEducation article I linked a few posts up. It says that lack of appetite and depression can be severe during it. If you can, I would try and get some Lysine treats. The ones I ordered are made by VetriScience and are called Lysine Plus Immune Health Bite-Sized Cat Chews. But, there are other brands too and any good pet store should carry at least one brand. Give them to all of your cats because it will help all of them during this time. My cat vomited during his first bout also, I know it's scary when cats are sick-hoping and praying they feel better soon.

You may want to consider trying to get one of them diagnosed. There is a diagnostic test where they take a culture to determine what virus it is, but it may be expensive. I would call a few places and ask how much they charge to find a good price if you want to to that. Veterinarians can be so hit and miss, at this website you can search all veterinarians in the US https://www.aavsb.org/OurServices/look-up-a-license . I always search for reviews of veterinarians on Google before I take my cats to them, it makes me feel a little better. I also recently found Dr. Karen Becker online and I wish all vets were as good as her. This is her video on URIs http://healthypets.mercola.com/site...omes-of-respiratory-diseases-in-pet-cats.aspx

I have been through many, many bouts of respiratory virus.  Nearly every cat and kitten we rescues pull from Animal Control comes down with respiratory viruses.  Most pet cats are vaccinated for the worst of the respiratory viruses, but many of the ones we get were never cared for properly, the moms were never spayed or vaccinated either.  A couple of years ago, I had three mama cats with 6 kittens each, pulled from death row, all had been turned in by one person. All the kitens had been born on the same day. The mama cats were sisters.  They were looking fine when I got them but came down with nasty respiratory virus a couple of days later.  I had to syringe feed the kittens because their noses were blocked and they would not or could not nurse.  One of the mama cats rejected her kittens and would swat them away if they tried to get close to her.  The other mom would have taken them but she was sick too and there was no way she would be able to nurse 12 kittens.  (The third mom was isolated in a separate room with her babies and that group didn't get quite as sick.)  Every one of them was on Clavamox.  It is absolutely the best and safest drug to use to support cats through a respiratory virus.  The reason for antibiotics is that most of these viruses deplete the immune system (i.e. destroy some of the white cells in the blood) and then bacteria can take over so you get a secondary infection.  Clavamox is in the penicillin family, it's basically amoxicillin with an additive, clavulen, which makes resistant bacteria not resistant, so it is very broad spectrum.  It has very few side effects, and in pill form, it has very little taste so you can actually crush it and mix it with formula or goat milk or even food if they are eating.  In rescue, we have been using this for years and it's very safe.  (Our vets save the heavy duty antibiotics for heavy duty bacterial infections where nothing else may work.)

Anyhow, with 18 kittens and 3 mama cats in that group, I lost only one kitten, the tiniest one, because her URI turned into pneumonia.  The others did well.  They all got steam treatments in the bathroom, just running the shower with warm water for 15 minutes or so and then leaving them in the steamy bathroom until the steam cooled.  After that I could suction out their little noses with a baby nose syringe.  I wouldn't put drops in their noses because they could inhale them and that could cause pneumonia, but using wet cotton balls could loosen up the crud that was blocking their noses and then it would run out because of the steam treatment.  Then I would feed them with a syringe, just a little bit at a time, and let 6 at a time nurse on the mother that didn't reject them.  After about a week to 10 days, the mama who rejected her kittens felt well enough to take them back, and she produced milk again. 

I'm telling you all just to say that you are doing everything right, just keep on doing it and give it time, and their own immune systems will rebound and help them fight this off.  Obviously the one they got was not one of the ones included in the vaccine, but having had this, they will be immune to it in the future.  But just like with human colds, there may be a new one someday.  You can understand their lack of appetite if you remember how you felt on the worst day of a cold, here your nose is stuffed up, your sinuses ache, and you can't taste anything.  Your cats are going through the same thing.  You are suporting them by getting some nuorishment into them, and they will eat again in a few days when their noses clear up.  I don't think you need any more of a diagnosis -- they have an upper respiratory virus and "this too shall pass."  Just keep supporting them through it, and all of you should be fine pretty soon.

With respect, this isn't true. Feline viruses mutate just like human viruses. Feline vaccines fail just like human vaccines.

I appreciate all the immense help you've all provided me but now I am in panic mode again. It's already been a stressful day. I had to take the day off work to take Delilah in as she was open mouth breathing. Can someone please help me out? I'm in tears. I noticed Lexi has a rusty colored spot in one of her eyes and I remember in looking up
FIP that it mentioned uveitis developing and now I'm terrified that this is it for her. Lexi has been lethargic still but she's eating again. It's just one small spot under her pupil and I don't know if this was there before but I was checking her eyes for clarity and saw this. I feel about to pass out. I'm going to call my vet in the morning but I'm not sure how much I can endure. Both Lexi and Delilah are still so sick.