Hybrid Cats and Antibiotics

Durring the kitten process. We were blasted with vet visits. The little buggers were not feeling well. One kitten became lethargic and was diagnosed with a respitory infection. Antibiotic therepy put her right back on her feet. The second kitten after an emergency visit in the late evening was diagnosed with a respitory infection and antibiotic therepy was again administered. The kitten was brought to thier primary vet the next day because she was loosing use of her hind legs. The head veternarian took the case and offerd little explanation but said to keep an eye on her. He called me back several days later with a treasuretrove of possibilitys. None had promising futures except for the theory that the kitten had a reaction to the antibiotic. He said she would get most of her legs back in a couple of months if that were the case. Kitten could have thrown a clot from her heart or lungs durring a fever spike. Kitten's nervouse system could have fallen victom to an invasive infection.
We returned the seemingly failing cat to the breeder. She gave us another kitten in return.
Durring the second round of shots a kitten sneezed and green goo went everywhere. Back on antibiotic.
Durring conversation with the breeder she was against the use of antibiotic and was hellbent on L-Lysine, In an effort to try anything at this point we dropped the antibiotic and now give the kittens a dose of L-Lisine in the morning. Lets hope this works. Anybody know of the dangers of antibiotic and Hybrid cats. Any thoughts about the L-Lisine? I was relieved to hear durring conversation with the breeder that the sick kitten made a full recovery.
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which hybrid are you talking about... I have never heard this

We have a Serengeti that is a cross between a bengal and an oriental shorthair and a bengal that is a breed down cross between an asian leapord cat and a domestic cat. I'm not sure if the breeder refered to hybrid cats as any purebred cat. But the vet mentioned "the more wild" cats. He did mention Savanah's wich I can understand as a more wild strian. The Leg thing put the fear of god in us. It's my want to stay away from anything at this point that could jeapordise the welfare of our kittens. I'm going with the recomendation of breeder and use the L-Lysine at this point and hope this is not hocus pocus. We've had such a hard time with the new kittens and our two year old that refuses to eat. We gave him back his "fat food" for now and feed the kittens elsewhere and he seems to be eating again. Whew!

What are your kittens supposed to be? I'm assuming by hybrid you mean like a Bengal right?

And all L-Lysine is is something to boost the immune system. Which can help cats fight colds and what not, but it isn't a cure all. I don't know about whether antibiotics cause problems in "hybrid cats". And no offense, but talk about good breeding... kittens with respiratory infections that bad is quit peculiar.

The kittens are really adorable by the way.

Yes we have a Bengal and a Serengeti. The reason for the post was in hope that somebody knew about the threat of antibiotics and these cats. I'm in no way holding "breeders" responsible for the current condition of our kittens. I'm sure there are some snags along the way producing such magnificient animals.
We just fell into the situation and are trying to deal with it day by day as safe as possible. I didn't diagnose the kitten with a respitory infection, A vet did. My curiosity about the antibiotics and purebreds is simply to better understand the reponsibilitys of owning such cats.

I wasn't trying to attack you, so I'm sorry if you took offense. It's common for kittens to get slight respiratory infections, but what you're describing sounded pretty dang bad.

I called my vets office, and according to dr. as far as he knows there isn't a problem with a Bengal being on antibiotics. However, Bengals usually have sensative digestive tracts, so you might see some diarrhea or something along those lines. But they can be treated with antibiotics and they will be effective. It isn't like the whole "you can't give rabbits amoxicillin" thing.

I personally give each of my cats 500mg of L-Lysine every day. I get the capsule's and mix it with their soft food, but as Plebayo pointed out, it is not a medication. L-Lysine is usedto boost their immune system so they they can fight off infection. URI's are common in kittens and can be passed from kitten to kitten very easy.
Best of luck to you and your babies, they are adorable!!

I've had my bengals on antibiotics before and it didn't affect them like that. Hybreds or not you shouldn't have gotten a sick kitten. It sounds like your second cat had a URI. I don't know what the deal with the first cat is-that sounds bad! L-Lysine is good for herpies in the eyes but it is not a cure all. You need to start with a healthy cat in the first place.
I don't know that I would take a cat with an infection (URI) off of antibiotics! A URI can kill a kitten! Please talk to your vet before you take your kitten off of antibiotics!!
BTW-How old were these kittens when you got them? How long were they with you when they got sick? Were they showing signs of illness when you first got them?

We chose the cat because of the vivid spots. But at that time I asked if the kitten was allright. It seemed a little lethargic. She assured me it was just tired. Six weeks later I picked it up (I also bought another one as a companion that night). When I brought it home something did not seem right. After a day or so it was evident the kitten needed a vet. The poor thing had a temp aproaching 104. We finished the antibiotic therepy and that kitten seemed allright. Then the second kitten fell ill days later and I had to find a vet 11:00 at night because it couldn't breath. Thats the cat that was loosing the use of it's hind legs. I returned that kitten. She gave me a replacement. Today they just got gooy-eye and they sneeze. I'll put the kitten back on the Amoxycilin. But I must admit, I'm scared at the posibility it was the antibiotic that caused the leg problems. I never thought I'd wish a kitten would get bigger fast.

I seriously doubt that the antibiotic caused the paresis of the kitten. I would question how your breeder maintains her cattery- the kittens she sells are awfully sick!
L-lysine inhibits the reproduction of the herpes virus (a common upper respiratory virus in cats) by binding with one of the amino acids it needs to reproduce. This can certainly help a cat fight the virus, and does help mainy cats that have become chronic herpes carriers. It should not be given all the time however because theoretically it could cause a nutritional deficiency in the cat.
Antibiotics are prescribed for secondary bacterial infections. From the sounds of things (copious green nasal and ocular discharge) your kittens have one! This is what the vet prescribed the drugs for. L-lysine will not help with that. Keep your kittens on their meds- you can add Lysine, it certainly won't hurt. There are a couple of veterinary Lysine products now on the market, they a little easier to give than breaking up the human form.

Is there someone that this breeder can be reported to? If she was really responsible she wouldn't have sold you the cats at all and would have taken them straight to the vet. You should talk to the vet she goes to and see hwat he thinks about the kittens and her breeding in general. Is she an actual registered breeder and not just some backyard breeder?

I totally agree with the others. Green nasal discharge is absolutely a sign of a bacterial or mycoplasma infetion.

A breeder who does not seek vet care for her kittens and who sells them when they are obviously sick is definitely not doing what should be done for these cats. Yes, there are "snags" in breeding but when one chooses to breed animals, one necessarily chooses to accept responsibility for the lives and health of the offspring. By the sound of it, this breeder is failing in this responsibility. The kittens didn't necessarily get sick because of anything the breeder did or didn't do, but selling sick kittens and refusing to provide proper vet care is simply not right.

What antibiotic was the kitten on?

The Kitten was... now is again on amoxycilin. I'm so scared of the leg thing but I feel better about it now. They must be getting better because they're rocketing through the house smashing into things.

Amoxicillin may not be strong enough. There are many, many organisms that are not susceptible to amoxicillin.

If she does not show significant improvement within a few days, it would be a good idea to ask to have her antibiotic changed. Clavamox is a much broader spectrum drug that is a good choice. Zithromax and Doxycycline are also good choices, either instead of Clavamox or if Clavamox does not work.

Clavamox is amoxicillin with clavulinic acid added. Yes it does sometimes work better than plain amoxil, however it gets the same spectrum of bacteria. It is a very common first choice for URI in cats.
For persistant or resistant infections my vets have had a lot of success with Zithromax.

Personally, I like Baytril but that's just me.

Originally Posted by Dr. Doolittle

Clavamox is amoxicillin with clavulinic acid added. Yes it does sometimes work better than plain amoxil, however it gets the same spectrum of bacteria. It is a very common first choice for URI in cats.
For persistant or resistant infections my vets have had a lot of success with Zithromax.

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According to the Clavamox package insert, it accounts for a specific resistance that some bacteria have to plain amoxicillin and therefore is more likely to work. But if the bacteria in question is already susceptible to amoxicillin, then it will work just as well.