Really trying to NOT take Sylvester to the vet.......

Last week Socks started with the upper respiratory thing, sneezing, congestion, eyes watery and tired looking, but he took it easy and was better in about a week. This past Sunday my little buddy Sylvester started with it, and we thought he would take about a week or so to get over it like Socks, and it seems like he might but we don't know; we started to give him and the others Transfer Factors Plus (colostrum, immune booster) that a vet told us about years ago, but ran out but got more yesterday. Monday he seemed perkier, we thought "wow, that was fast", didn't seem right yet but better, but the last few days has been so-so, resting but congested, clear mucous but his eyes are clear, he eats and drinks, so we are thinking give it more time, he doesn't seem in distress, seems a bit better each day and last night we were told about L-Lysine so we bought it in treat form and are giving it to the rest as they all seem to have a touch of it plus vomiting. Lovely!

I hesitate to just take him to the vet for several reasons, I got him 11 months ago (click on my avatar and that's him!) from a bad situation, he was outdoors then indoors then outdoors/indoors over and over again, has only been to the vet twice in his life once when they had him neutered and when I adopted him to get "cleaned up" and tested for FIP FIV etc., and I think taking him would REALLY stress him out and possibly weaken him. Plus, I'm not always too keen on the fact that they always want to give antibiotic shots as it isn't always needed and can make things worse. We were told years ago if the mucous discharge is clear let it go, give it time, but if it turns color bring them in, not sure if that is good or not, but he is clear still. So I am torn, do we let him rest and give it some more time as it has been 5 days but he seems somewhat better, or do we take him in and have him checked and see what they say? Like I said Socks got over it but it took about a week, and he seems to be a bit better, this morning when he sneezed a few times it sounded "looser" like maybe it is starting to break up with the Transfer and the Lysine, but I don't want him to be sick, if he has to go we will go but if he can kick it at home that of course would be our preferred choice!

Any suggestions would be helpful, thank you! And I also remember when I took Sebastian at the end he was a mess with a URI, they gave him two antibiotic shots in a short time, and not longer after he passed but probably from something else, and I know this is different but it is too similar as Sylvester looks an AWFUL lot like Sebastian did, brings back bad memories and puts doubt in my mind about antibiotic shots and all.

URIs can take time to pass. As long as he's eating, drinking, and using the litter box, and isn't having any discolored discharge, i don't think he needs a vet visit unless things get worse. Best thing you can do to help a URI pass is feed good quality wet food (stuffed up cats can't smell their food, and therefore wont eat). Provide as much of a stress free environment as possible, so his immune system can get itself going again. 

Thank you for the reply! Last night, he actually laid in my lap, he has never done that before! Deb said "he feels better being close to you", and again last night he laid on the sofa next to me and I just scratched his neck for a long time, he was relaxed and could rest. He IS better, but not where we want him to be yet, but he looks better, but still is sniffling and snorting but it is all clear liquid. He seems to get a bit worse after he eats the L-lysine treats, and I wonder if that is really enhancing his immune system to kick it out? I know when I take things like Elderberry and Echinacea and Astragalus and others for my health they can make me feel worse for awhile because of the detox effect, so maybe it is true with this too. But he is getting better, actually comes into the kitchen again when I am in there, and did his little "pony" act where I put my hand down to pet him and he stands up and bonks into my hand, looks like a pony standing on it's hind legs ha ha!

But he is getting better, it should take a few more days but we will watch him and of course if he gets worse we'll take him, but I am not fond of vets as some want to give antibiotic shots all the time, no thanks unless it is truly needed!

Thanks again.... 

You can request that any cat in your care not be given any antibiotic shots. They can put it on your charts. I have mine set for no convenia. I do think if in a couple of days he's still coughing and feeling poorly then it would be good to bring him in. You can mix antibiotic drops such as clavamox in tuna broth or another smelly food to mask the taste and smell if they decide he needs something. Pills are not as easy but I've hidden them in cheese or a bit of ground meat. Hope the little guy feels better soon.

Les26 said:

 
Thank you for the reply! Last night, he actually laid in my lap, he has never done that before! Deb said "he feels better being close to you", and again last night he laid on the sofa next to me and I just scratched his neck for a long time, he was relaxed and could rest. He IS better, but not where we want him to be yet, but he looks better, but still is sniffling and snorting but it is all clear liquid. He seems to get a bit worse after he eats the L-lysine treats, and I wonder if that is really enhancing his immune system to kick it out? I know when I take things like Elderberry and Echinacea and Astragalus and others for my health they can make me feel worse for awhile because of the detox effect, so maybe it is true with this too. But he is getting better, actually comes into the kitchen again when I am in there, and did his little "pony" act where I put my hand down to pet him and he stands up and bonks into my hand, looks like a pony standing on it's hind legs ha ha!

But he is getting better, it should take a few more days but we will watch him and of course if he gets worse we'll take him, but I am not fond of vets as some want to give antibiotic shots all the time, no thanks unless it is truly needed!

Thanks again.... 

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There isn't a lot of science to support l-lysine, unfortunately. I don't use it for my cats, but thankfully since I put all my cats on raw really no one gets URIs anymore. The best product that I know of to boost the immune system for kitties is Lactoferrin. I agree with you about trying to avoid antibiotic shots. URIs are most of the time viral, so antibiotics wont do much unless there's an underlining infection. 

missmimz said:

 
There isn't a lot of science to support l-lysine, unfortunately. I don't use it for my cats, but thankfully since I put all my cats on raw really no one gets URIs anymore. The best product that I know of to boost the immune system for kitties is Lactoferrin. I agree with you about trying to avoid antibiotic shots. URIs are most of the time viral, so antibiotics wont do much unless there's an underlining infection. 

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Someone else here had mentioned Lactoferrin to me in a message, but I am giving him Transfer Factor Plus which if I am not mistaken is very similar to it (colostrum, Mother's milk), so I don't want to add that if they are the same thing or close to it. A vet told us about Transfer Factor years ago to boost the immune system of a cat we had who had a brain tumor, we started her on that and a small amount of prednisone and she lived 1.5 years after diagnosis for which we were grateful!

Thank you again....

Les26 said:

 
Someone else here had mentioned Lactoferrin to me in a message, but I am giving him Transfer Factor Plus which if I am not mistaken is very similar to it (colostrum, Mother's milk), so I don't want to add that if they are the same thing or close to it. A vet told us about Transfer Factor years ago to boost the immune system of a cat we had who had a brain tumor, we started her on that and a small amount of prednisone and she lived 1.5 years after diagnosis for which we were grateful!

Thank you again....

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Yeah I agree I wouldn't mix the two supplements. I've never heard of transfer factor plus, but I'll check it out. Hope he feels better soon  

missmimz said:

 
Yeah I agree I wouldn't mix the two supplements. I've never heard of transfer factor plus, but I'll check it out. Hope he feels better soon  

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It's good stuff, I take it on occasion also if not feeling well; there is Transfer Factor and Transfer Factor Plus, the vet told us to get the Plus, I think it has mushroom and some other stuff in it, plus it is a capsule so it is easy to open up and pour onto their food or give partial dosages if desired.

Thanks again! He seems to be on the mend, resting but also moving around more. The mucus in his eyes seems to have dried up, not so weepy anymore, still snuffling and snorting but that should leave soon too I'm sure!

He is my joy, I love him dearly, he looks like Simon a tuxedo who passed May 2014 and Sebastian a Chantilly who passed November 2015 put together, a 50/50 blend of the two boys which is a great tribute to them but he is certainly a great little cat in his own right! 

Well my little guy seems like he is over the hump and I didn't have to take him to the vet! He still is sneezing and snorting just a little, has some more energy, seems more like himself so I think in a few days he'll be back to normal. But a lot of ours don't seem like they are feeling well, very lethargic, some vomiting, just not right, just like us people here in Pennsylvania, everyone seems to have something wrong with them either sinus or lung or stomach bug or flu! So I can see the cats feeling off too....but he seems to be on the mend. And I wonder perhaps this is just how he gets when he gets an URI, I was thinking of calling his previous owner and asking her, but she didn't see him all the time because he was outdoors as well as indoors, plus she'd probably call me 88 times to see how he feels lol, she really did love him and does care for him still.

But he seems to be on the mend, and I stopped the Lysine and Transfer Factor, seemed to actually make him worse the last few days.