Tough Question...

Hello,

   My cat Bartholomew is 6 years old. For the past 6 months, he has dealt with a bloody nose, nasal blockage and excessive sneezing (he's sneezed his whole life).  It has only gotten worse as time goes on. We have taken him to 3 different vets and they all have no idea what is going on. He has been put on multiple antibiotics and steroids and has had blood tests done.  All comes back inconclusive. The vets all say the same thing, they can't do anything and the only other thing they recommend is a CAT scan which is a few thousand dollars ( way out of our price range and just not possible. ) So my question is simply, is there any advice on what to do? We love him SO much and are tired of seeing him miserable every single day. He is losing weight, is barely breathing from his nose, and looks unhappy all the time.  *No vet* has helped us and it is very frustrating. We are unable to keep paying money for them to not know. 

I could go on for hours saying everything we have tried. We have tried it all. The simple fact is, we have a cat that look miserable every day and has trouble breathing. (We have removed the blockage from his nose and it just keeps returning every day)  But heaven forbid, we don't want to put him down just due to a stuffy nose! But if he is suffering, we don't want that either. SUCH a tough spot we are in. What would you do?  If it came to the point of us thinking he needed to be put down, we would feel silly because its "just a stuffy nose". So I feel like the vet would just judge us. But he is literally so sad. He doesn't play, he barely eats and just sleeps. I don't want him suffering.  

Please no judgments, it's impossible to say how much we've been battling over what to do, he's our boy! Thank you for reading and any advice would be great!

I just wish he could tell me if he was okay or if he's suffering greatly

I'm sorry I can't tell from your post if he is eating and responding to you now. Is he?

He is eating very little and has lost 3 pounds in the past two months

Have you had a culture done of any of the nasal or eye discharge? He could have a secondary infection.  Try warming up canned food and/or offering some plain meat baby food to see if that gets him to eat something.

I think the only thing at this point you can do is love on him and he will let you know if it's time. If he can't breathe you will know. It may sound bad but if he's not struggling it's ok. When they can't breath It's a production. I had a cat with lung cancer and it's obvious when they can't breath. If you have been medicating him constantly the appetite loss could be due to all the medications. Has the vet out a scope inside to look around?

I am so sorry to hear about Bartholomew's nose problem.  Having had two cats with chronic nose problems, I know how frustrating this must be for you and for him.  It is frustrating for Vets too as it cannot be easily diagnosed or cured; most times it is chronic, but can be managed if properly diagnosed.

Sometimes using "Baby Saline Spray" can be helpful temporarily...if the cat will let you do it.  Have you had the nose discharge cultured?  This can at least pinpoint the right antibiotic to use.  It could be infected polyps.  This could be diagnosed through X-rays and also using a probe (under anesthesia).  The Vet could also at same time use a saline "flush" of the nasal cavities.  The probe will also discover any obstructions or masses or irregularities.

I had a cat with chronic sinus problems( sneezing, stuffy nose, discharge) following a cold back in 2014.  At first, antibiotics were successful, then as time went on, were less successful with intervals shorter each time they were tried.  The cat lost weight as she couldn't smell her food.  She would often throw up due to blocked nose.  We had her X-rayed and sinuses flushed.  There were no obstructions or polyps.  She felt great afterwards, eating up a storm.  Then suddenly three days later, she stopped eating entirely.  She was hospitalized where endoscopic biopsy was done of GI area and nose.  It was learned that she had small cell Lymphoma in the nose.  Unfortunately, she passed away due to other causes before treatment could begin.

Nasal small cell Lymphoma is very treatable, even curable in some cases, if you get to it in time.

Based on what you have described, I would recommend a nasal biopsy (not too invasive or painful or expensive compared to a CAT scan).  I would look for a good Internal Medicine Specialist Veterinarian.

Have any of the vets ever looked up the nose to see what is up there? Have you tried Clariton or any other allergy medicine at all? Call your vet for the correct dosage, I used to cut one in half and then half again, but that was for a mild condition. You can research it on the internet. I have also had cats with horrible stuffed up noses and they did clear eventually when I gave L-Lysine with an immune builder in it. The picture shows a really painful, raw nose, my heart goes out to him. Please keep us posted if you find a cause. I'll pray for him.

Thank you all so much for your great responses. It has been very helpful.  Poor Bartholomew is currently snoring next to me with his clogged nose. We have asked the vet to take whatever is in his nose, out.. but they never touch it and say they don't want to distress him. They don't want to put him under to get a good look at it because they said it would be very risky. So kinda a lose/lose situation .  I keep scraping out what I can and it's some sort of grey matter that smells terrible and is never ending.  Always wonder if it's a tumor or something?

I would love to try the L-Lysine. Is that something I can get from the store or would he need a prescription? The vets around here don't seem to be any help to our situation unfortunately, so I'd like to get some on my own. 

Thanks so much again

Lpyper11 said:

Thank you all so much for your great responses. It has been very helpful.  Poor Bartholomew is currently snoring next to me with his clogged nose. We have asked the vet to take whatever is in his nose, out.. but they never touch it and say they don't want to distress him. They don't want to put him under to get a good look at it because they said it would be very risky. So kinda a lose/lose situation .  I keep scraping out what I can and it's some sort of grey matter that smells terrible and is never ending.  Always wonder if it's a tumor or something?

I would love to try the L-Lysine. Is that something I can get from the store or would he need a prescription? The vets around here don't seem to be any help to our situation unfortunately, so I'd like to get some on my own. 

Thanks so much again

Click to expand...

I don't see why it would be risky to put him under (or sedate him) to see what is in his nose. Whatever is in his nose needs to be biopsied. Some vets are lazy - they don't want to be bothered.