Can I give three week old kittens lysine directly?

Ava_falynn · Nov 7, 2023

I’m currently fostering a 6 month old mama cat and her seven three week old kittens (there was 8 but the runt didn’t make it rip Peanut). Apparently the mom had a bit of a cold/ upper respiratory infection when she was at the pound but seemed fine when we got her and is still not showing any symptoms after giving birth. Anyhow one day one of the kittens sounded very congested and not breathing right so for a few days we would take him to a steamy bathroom for about 20 minutes maybe twice a day, then we took him to the vet, he got fluids but no antibiotics, we got a humidifier for the room they’re in and he stopped sounding quite so sick. The problem is that now all of the kittens are sneezing and one of them is as sick as the first one was originally. We do give the mom a pinch of lysine powder with her food once a day so it will go to the kittens through her milk but since shes so skinny and young and has so many kittens we have been bottle feeding them to help her out and they now get a lot of their food from the formula now. I’m wondering if it is safe to add any amount of the powder to their formula and if so how much and how often?

StefanZ · Nov 7, 2023

I do not have any idea, but my guess is, it should be OK to give lysine in the milk, or possibly even, put on some on the gum. its after all a natural remedy, one of the aminosynes which we do get anyway in food, although in small amounts.

What kmr do you give?

Can you get RAW goats milk? It would be my suggestion, it comes after all from an alive momma, and thus, may have some antibiotic properties.

Another antibiotic may be raw honey. (non pasteurized honey, bought from a local small producer). Have a little in the milk or even a droplet on the gum.
You may warm it up a shade so it become more fluid...
Raw honey too contains some antibiotics.

for humans there is also garlic, but its harming for cats and dogs.

di and bob · Nov 7, 2023

It is most likely the feline herpes virus, VERY common in kittens. NOT transferrable to humans. Common kitty cold. My cats used to get it several times a year and lysine did nothing. I switched to DMG, an immune builder, and they haven't had it since. You can give it to birds too, so it is good for small animals. You can get it on Amazon, Target, Walmart, online. It says up to 20 pounds .5ml but definitely ersearch it and give a smaller amount. you might even go by the bird dosing. call your vet and see what they say. Antibiotics do not work on viruses, but watch for signs of it turning bacterial, any eye or nose discharge turning cloudy, yellow, white, or green., Then an antibiotic may be used. i pray everything goes alright!