Cat sneezing bloody mucus

Colten

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So, I have an orange tabby cat with a very rough past. We got her with an upper respiratory infection, with her left eye always being a little watery, and slowly nursed her back to decent health with multiple treatments, after 6 months. She had a vet visit, to which they gave her a shot, and told us that she should be free of any infection that she had. Well, 4 months go by and she had little sneezing fits here and there, but nothing that seemed too concerning, since the vet said that that will happen from time to time while the infection is working it’s way out. Now we are here at 6 months. One day ago she had a very bad sneezing fit, to where I walk out of the bedroom with her flailing around sneezing, having blood around her mouth. The boogers that came out were green, with blood trailed through it. After her fit, we got her cleaned up, and she was good the rest of the day like nothing happened. She still eats, plays, and full of energy. But again, yesterday when I woke up, around the same time as the last fit, she had another. Not as bad As last time, but still none the less, I’m still concerned. I’m sitting on break at work right now, just so concerned about what I’m going to come home to. Sansa, my kitty cat, has me wrapped around her paw. To lose her would be very hard for me. If anyone has dealt with this, or knows what’s going on, I’d appreciate the feedback. I need to help her anyway I can.
 

Furballsmom

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Hello - I'm so sorry you didn't receive any replies to your concerns.

How is she today? Are you able to clean your house as much as possible of dust, to try and help against any further irritation of her airways? Does putting her in a bathroom with a steaming shower, or even obtaining a humidifier, vaporizer or mister help?

Are you able to talk with a cat-only veterinarian? This quote is from Mamanyt1953 Mamanyt1953

Should you decide to find a feline specialist, go here:
Find a Veterinarian and Practice | The Cat Community fill out the questionnaire and select "Cat Friendly". That will get you a list in your area.

The alternative, if it is possible for you, might be a University with a Veterinary Medicine school. This will NOT be cheap, in fact, it will probably be more costly than a regular vet, but they are practicing cutting edge medicine with the most up-to-date equipment and diagnostic tools.
 

FeebysOwner

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Hi. Blood and green mucous would seem to me to be signs of a pretty bad infection. I would use the link above to find another vet - and it doesn't necessarily have to be feline only if you find another you would want to try. You could also ask family, friends, neighbors, co-workers for vet referrals as well.

You need to know what the shot was and why the vet seemed to think it would take so long to 'work the infection out' - I have never heard of that. If you have any records for Sansa at the current vet's office, get copies to give to a new vet - it will help reduce costs and redundant testing.

Sansa could actually have a virus such as feline herpes, which when it flares up can cause respiratory issues, as well as URIs which need to be properly treated with antibiotics. That is what crossed my mind with what the vet said - as sometimes a flare up will resolve itself without leading to an infection - but, it by no means takes over 4 months for that to happen, and surely after this long, she likely has an infection. There are ongoing supplements that many members on this site use to help their herpes kitties reduce flare ups.
 

jen

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Sounds like a herpes flare up to me. Just something that needs managed and maintained so then when she has flare ups it won't be as bad.
 

fionasmom

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I am sort of okay with the first half of what you were told. Fiona was rescued with a severe URI and the vet told me that she might have mild residual symptoms ongoing which she did...one eye always ran a little bit and had to be treated and cleaned but it was never like what you are describing in the second part of the post. This sounds like a bad infection and you need to proceed further with this to help Sansa. This is more involved than something that comes and goes; cats especially will remain stoic about illnesses, so the fact that she seems to be herself is not entirely an indication of where she is with this.
 

stephanietx

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I have a kitty who was very ill with kitty pneumonia and herpes when we adopted her 15 years ago. She is the cat that brought me to TCS. She has had life-long upper respiratory issues, mainly snotty sneezing and discharge. What helped us was getting a culture and sensitivity test done. The culture tells the vet if there is an underlying infection and if it's bacterial or viral. The sensitivity test shows which antibiotic best treats the infection, if found. We found out my girl had an underlying psuedomonas infection which could have ultimately killed her if left untreated. We did 2 rounds of Zenequin, 1 for about 30 days and 1 for about 21 days to get her numbers within range. Now, we do a lot of maintenance stuff to keep her healthy, but about twice a year she will get an upper respiratory infection related to seasonal allergens and require antibiotics and sometimes a very short (3 day) round of prednisone. We give her 1/2 of a plain Claritin (loratadine) once a day as well as colloidal silver and a probiotic.
 
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Colten

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Hi. Blood and green mucous would seem to me to be signs of a pretty bad infection. I would use the link above to find another vet - and it doesn't necessarily have to be feline only if you find another you would want to try. You could also ask family, friends, neighbors, co-workers for vet referrals as well.

You need to know what the shot was and why the vet seemed to think it would take so long to 'work the infection out' - I have never heard of that. If you have any records for Sansa at the current vet's office, get copies to give to a new vet - it will help reduce costs and redundant testing.

Sansa could actually have a virus such as feline herpes, which when it flares up can cause respiratory issues, as well as URIs which need to be properly treated with antibiotics. That is what crossed my mind with what the vet said - as sometimes a flare up will resolve itself without leading to an infection - but, it by no means takes over 4 months for that to happen, and surely after this long, she likely has an infection. There are ongoing supplements that many members on this site use to help their herpes kitties reduce flare ups.
Hi! Thank you so much for the reply! She has actually been very good the last few days. I did some research and started giving her 2.5 mg of Zyrtec a day, which seems to be helping. Also, she was tested for feline herpes before we got her, due to the fact that we got her to keep our other tabby company while we are at work. She is herpes free. Samson on the other hand, our other cat, is very healthy. And they have bonded very well the last 6 months they have been together. We are trying to follow up with a vet, but due to the current circumstances in the world, we are having a difficult time reaching out. But we are doing the best we can given the obstacles.
 
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Colten

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Hi. Blood and green mucous would seem to me to be signs of a pretty bad infection. I would use the link above to find another vet - and it doesn't necessarily have to be feline only if you find another you would want to try. You could also ask family, friends, neighbors, co-workers for vet referrals as well.

You need to know what the shot was and why the vet seemed to think it would take so long to 'work the infection out' - I have never heard of that. If you have any records for Sansa at the current vet's office, get copies to give to a new vet - it will help reduce costs and redundant testing.

Sansa could actually have a virus such as feline herpes, which when it flares up can cause respiratory issues, as well as URIs which need to be properly treated with antibiotics. That is what crossed my mind with what the vet said - as sometimes a flare up will resolve itself without leading to an infection - but, it by no means takes over 4 months for that to happen, and surely after this long, she likely has an infection. There are ongoing supplements that many members on this site use to help their herpes kitties reduce flare ups.
Hi! Thank you for the reply! Could you direct me toward these supplements? I’d like to do some research and order them as fast as I can if I need them.
 

FeebysOwner

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Hi! Thank you for the reply! Could you direct me toward these supplements? I’d like to do some research and order them as fast as I can if I need them.
The big one is lysine, but that is to help ward off herpes flare ups. If she is herpes free, then I would think there is something else going on.
I would look into the info that stephanietx stephanietx suggested, tbh.
We found out my girl had an underlying psuedomonas infection which could have ultimately killed her if left untreated. We did 2 rounds of Zenequin, 1 for about 30 days and 1 for about 21 days to get her numbers within range. Now, we do a lot of maintenance stuff to keep her healthy, but about twice a year she will get an upper respiratory infection related to seasonal allergens and require antibiotics and sometimes a very short (3 day) round of prednisone. We give her 1/2 of a plain Claritin (loratadine) once a day as well as colloidal silver and a probiotic.
Keep us posted, please!
 
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Colten

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The big one is lysine, but that is to help ward off herpes flare ups. If she is herpes free, then I would think there is something else going on.
I would look into the info that stephanietx stephanietx suggested, tbh.

Keep us posted, please!
Hi Stepanietx. Were the symptoms of your cat close to what I described about Sansa? Also, are these medications over the counter? Or would a vet have to diagnose and prescribe them?
 

stephanietx

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Colten Colten Hannah had repetitive sneezes with discolored discharge of various colors, green, yellow, and mixed with blood or brownish. She went to the vet and would get an antibiotic, get well for a little while, then start all over again. She was diagnosed with feline herpes using the PCR URD test. We finally got a second opinion from a cat only vet and she suggested the culture & sensitivity test. The antibiotic Zenequin and prednisone is rx only. Everything else we give her is over the counter.

You can get Loratadine (generic Claritin) over the counter from Walmart. L-Lysine is available from many sources. We get the 1 pound jar of powdered Lysine from Vitacost. It dissolves easily in water that we add to wet food and mix in. We also worked very hard to get her as healthy as possible. We chose a grain free, mainly wet food diet for her. We added a supplement called Missing Link to help her overall health. We add in colloidal silver twice a day, but when we started we were giving it to her 4-5 times a day. You want to use a colloidal silver that is 10ppm (parts per million).
 
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