Anything Good for Failing Lungs?

di and bob

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I am heartbroken. My Dutch, 5 years old, has laboured breathing that at times gets really bad over time. A predinisone injection usually clears it up for months, but I noticed now the episodes are getting closer together. He always breathes rather fast, about twice the normal rate. He survived distemper when he was a kitten. It affected his respiritory system the worst, scarring his lungs seen in x-rays. His diagnosis - COPD and Asthma. He has just been prescribed an inhaler, which I plan to use if he has acute breathing problems, like panting. they told me to put a small cardboard box over him with a small hole, and use the inhaler through the hole so he can breathe it in. We'll see how THAT goes! My question is...has anyone found any homeopathic remedies that help with breathing? Any over the counter meds? He is not congested, I think it is more of a constricting of his airways because Prednisone helps. Anyone find anything that helps?
 

Jem

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I wonder if Himalayan Salt Therapy (Halotherapy) would be something that could help. I'm not quite sure how to apply this to a cat, but in essence, breathing in fine salt particles has shown to help with some lung issues.
As long as Dutch does not eat the salt, which we now some animals are drawn to licking and eating it, it could be beneficial. I've done a quick search and it seems like there are salt caves for pets now...Again I'm not sure of the safety as I don't know how much research was done into the risks of salt poisoning with inhalation vs ingestion (there may be none if inhaled), but just wanted to throw that out there.
If a salt cave is not an option. There is this device, called a salt inhaler, but again, I'm not sure how this application would work for a kitty. Maybe you could put some catnip spray on the opening so Dutch sniffs the catnip, but at the same time, breaths in the salt particles.
 

Twylasmom

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Did they prescribe just the rescue inhaler or the inhaled steroid? Regular use of the inhaled steroid (once or twice a day) might be helpful and has fewer side effects than the oral steroid or shot. It does cost more, though, and training the cat to accept the treatments can be tricky.
 

MissClouseau

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Try to eliminate as much common allergens as possible in the house. Like dust mites (not the same as dust!), pollens, check the litter, etc There isn't enough research on how allergy manifests in cats so I can't speak with certainty but in humans, the first asthma trigger is (airborne) allergies.

An air purifier with HEPA filter also helps.
 

FeebysOwner

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Hi. This isn't answering your question about homeopathic remedies, but I did want to state that my husband has COPD and asthma and has benefitted greatly with the use of a twice-daily inhaled steroid medication. He also has a rescue inhaler, but with using the daily treatment, he has never needed it.

There is a series of threads on this site about use of an inhaler on a cat, one even includes a video on how to learn to do it. The other thing these threads offer are members who have similar issues and might actually include other treatments they have tried. I didn't read through them all, but there was a lot of different information posted in them. You have probably already done this on your own, so sorry if I am giving you a link to threads you've already checked out.

Search Results for Query: inhaler
 

lisahe

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I'm very sorry to hear about Dutch's breathing, di and bob di and bob !

Yes to what others say about the preventive twice-daily steroid inhalers! Our cat was recently diagnosed with asthma and that's what our vet prescribed (Flovent in the US, Flixotide or Floair in some other countries). I ordered Ireland's from an online Canadian pharmacy (much cheaper than from the US!) and bought an AeroKat to administer it. I can't say she loves it (yet!) but she accepts it. It seems like there are quite a few of us on the site whose cats use inhalers with AeroKats. Ireland's symptoms were mostly invisible to us (she rarely coughed) but there are others whose cats' fairly frequent/regular symptoms have been kept to a minimum by using preventive steroid inhalers. I would definitely ask the vet about those: they seem to be the treatment of choice. Just ask if you want links to some helpful articles I've read, di and bob di and bob ! I have to say that I was actually relieved when our vet recommended the preventive inhaler for Ireland: it's what I'd consider the gentlest form of treatment because of minimal side effects and it seems to be very effective.

Try to eliminate as much common allergens as possible in the house. Like dust mites (not the same as dust!), pollens, check the litter, etc There isn't enough research on how allergy manifests in cats so I can't speak with certainty but in humans, the first asthma trigger is (airborne) allergies.

An air purifier with HEPA filter also helps.
And then there's what MissClouseau MissClouseau says! A low-dust litter (we use Dr. Elsey's Respiratory Relief) is pretty much a must, I think; Dr. Pierson on catinfo.org warns against wheat and corn litters since she says cats using those tend to have more asthma than cats with other litters.

We already had a HEPA air filter/purifier but I've been on a big cleaning and decluttering tear for the last six weeks, particularly since Ireland's a sniffer so I suspect sniffing up dust, fuzz, and other stuff is where her problem originates. We got rid of old rugs and chairs and I'm doing more thorough cleanings. Another frequent recommendation is to get rid of household items with fragrance or smoke: candles, scented detergents, etc. I also use exhaust fans more than ever and open the windows a little, even in winter, to clear the air a little. I've found that all this has been good for limiting my year-round allergies!

Our vet also recommended removing all fish from Ireland's diet because fish contains histamines.

As for homeopathic or other non-pharmaceutical treatments, I've seen mentions of krill oil and curcumin but haven't really researched those. Given what our vet and so many Cat Site people have said, I'd really recommend asking your vet (or even another vet, for a second opinion) about a preventive inhaler.

Good luck, I hope Dutch feels better!
 

She's a witch

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Another vote for inhaled steroids apart from rescue one. It can be obtained at reasonable price from overseas pharmacies.

And personally I’d try my very best to use aerocat chamber (around $60 on amazon, I’ve seen some used ones on Craigslist if price is the issue, as well as I’ve seen people offering it on feline asthma support groups) before trying the cardboard method, I’d be worried not enough medication goes directly to his lungs. Personally I find it much easier to administer- if attractive bribe is involved-than any other medication, but luckily my asthmatic cat is pretty cooperative. But I’d hope any cat could learn it sooner or later with patient training. Best of luck and I hope Dutch will be better soon!
 
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di and bob

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Thank you all for the great ideas and advise! I will certainly try all the ideas and definitely check into that preventive steroid inhaler. I'll also try to get a aerocat chamber, he's very treat motivated, so he may in time get used to it. Once again, thanks everyone!
 

lisahe

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Thank you all for the great ideas and advise! I will certainly try all the ideas and definitely check into that preventive steroid inhaler. I'll also try to get a aerocat chamber, he's very treat motivated, so he may in time get used to it. Once again, thanks everyone!
AeroKat has videos on how to use the device but I found that some of the ones on YouTube, made by catmoms and catdads, were even more helpful. Not to mention realistic! And I think "realistic" is especially important because stress can contribute to asthma -- I just let it go when Ireland isn't as good in an inhaler session. There are ups and downs to this, as with anything else. Another thing that might sound odd before you get going with this: I'm very glad I'm doing 2 puffs of lower-dose inhaler per session rather than 1 puff of higher-dose: sometimes Ireland's not so happy about the first puff but far more amenable to the second, meaning I'm getting someting more than half into her. We haven't even been doing this for three weeks, so that doesn't surprise me too much. In the big picture, we're really just getting started and I'm still figuring out what works best.

Good luck! I hope you're able to find a good combination for Dutch!
 
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