Help! Senior cat labored breathing

[southernpet]

My male cat is 11 years old. Within the last 24 hours I have started to notice heavy breathing. He seems to still be eating normally. Now the back story:
3 weeks ago he was not acting like himself. Not playful, seemed grumpy. When I went to change his litter I noticed what looked like brown urine. After researching I took him to the vet the next day. Presumed urinary tract infection. My cat does not do well with anyone other than myself and transporting him is a nightmare and giving meds is out of the question. So for 6 days I transported him back and forth daily to the vet for antibiotic injections. He had blood work done and everything was normal and he had no fever at any time. The day after his last antibiotic injection he started sneezing. He kept me up the entire night sneezing. I was taking a new rescue dog to the vet the next day so I asked about the sneezing. He said keep an eye on it if it gets worse with discharge etc bring him back. Well the sneezing cleared up and he had no other symptoms. Until yesterday I notice that he is ciao ally breathing heavy and he woke me up last night having trouble. He is so stressed out by just making a trip to the vet that it seems like every time I take him he comes home with another problem. I will be taking him to a different vet tomorrow but I'm asking for any possible ideas on what this could be? Again, I cannot give him meds, it takes at least 2 people and I live alone and he hates anyone but me and will hide and attack. I'm not sure what the vet will do. Taking him to the vet typically results in another illness on top of whatever I'm taking him in for. I am exhausted with worrying just want him to get and stay healthy.

 

[catlover73]

I am sorry your baby is having so many issues.  Have you tried doing steam treatments to see if it helps him breathe better?  You run the shower in your bathroom as hot as you can and allow the bathroom to steam up.  Sit with him in the steamy room for 15-20 minutes a few times tonight.  I am glad you are taking him to the vet though because if the sneezing was the beginning of a URI perhaps the gunk drained into his chest.  I hope you get some answers.  It costs a little more but there are antibiotics that can be given by injection.  I had to do this with my now 9 year old female a few years ago for a URI because she is hell to medicate even with two people.

One thing that you can try that may help put her at ease a little for vet trips is feliway wipes.  My current vet gave me a sample to try.  Hubby used it on our 9 year old Starbuck.  She hates the carrier, car rides and strangers. He wiped down the carrier before he appointment and once he got her in the carrier she was actually much calmer.  Normally we make appointments when both of us can go because it usually requires two of us to get her in the carrier. She fought him a little bit but it was just her being vocal.  No trying to scratch or bite him. She was a lot calmer in the car too.  She only complained a little bit.  She would normally pee on herself and scream like someone was trying to murder her.  She was much calmer during the exam and did not try to make herself invisible or scream at the vet.  On the way home she actually took a nap in her carrier.  When she got home she came out of the carrier and hung out with my hubby instead of spending hours hiding under the bed.  Starbuck was abandoned out a car window when she was a baby and has always been scared of the car.  She also will hide any time we have company. Perhaps the Feliway wipes would help your cat.  Some pet stores carry Feliway products so maybe you could find this locally by tomorrow.  My vet also sprays herself with Feliway between patients.  Good luck getting your baby to get well.

 

[southernpet]

Thank you so much for replying & for the advice catlover73. I had hoped since the sneezing stopped and there was never a nasal discharge that whatever he had cleared itself up since he had just been on 6 days of antibiotic injections. But maybe it has gotten into his lungs. I will definitely be looking for the feliway wipes, sounds like they work miracles! He was a feral kitten from a feral colony, his mother was sick and dying and couldn't care for him & his 2 sisters. So I attribute that for his wild behavior. He was from a long line of undomesticated cats and im the only human he trusts which makes everything difficult. He gets SO stressed with any changes in his life, in the house, with people and vet visits. I hate taking him to the vet so hopefully those wipes will make a big difference! I'll TRY to get him in the bathroom for a steam tonight. Fingers crossed. Thank you again!

 

[catlover73]

I hope the Feliway wipes help your baby like they did for my Starbuck.  Starbuck had what seemed like a mild URI and the next day when I got home from work she sounded like an old room mate used to sound when she was having an Asthma attack.  I had a vet appointment later in the evening but had no way to get there earlier than the appointment. You can not just hail a cab during rush hour where I live and Uber did not exist out here yet.  She scared the hell out of me.  I called the vet's office because I was terrified.  The receptionist was worried enough that she asked the vet to pick up and listen to what I was hearing.  The vet told me to do a steam treatment with her immediately. I did and it helped her a lot.  The coughing and difficulty breathing actually went away.  The vet still gave her an antibiotic injection though for the URI because of what was happening earlier and one of my other cats was recently treated for a URI.  When we adopted 7 week old Casey he shared his URI with all 3 of my cats because it took a week for him to have any actual symptoms that we could see.  You could also try wiping yourself down or spraying yourself with the Feliway too before you try to put him in the carrier.  Perhaps you could ask your vet id they would be willing to try the same technique my vet uses.  You could always pick up the spray to if they are open to using it.

 

[southernpet]

Well, I tried the steam treatment. Of course he completely freaked out and I have bloody bruised claw marks all over my arms and one leg. He crouched terrified in the corner of the bathroom for 20 minutes. And his breathing became worse because he was freaking out. I just let him out and he went straight to the food bowl to eat. I'm hoping it helps until we can get to the vet in the morning. Also hoping I can capture him and get him Ito his carrier in the morning. He has been hiding from me every morning since the week long daily trips to the vet 2 weeks ago. He's still breathing very heavy. I'm so worried.

 

[catlover73]

I am sorry you got beaten up so badly. I was really hoping the steam treatment would help him. I hope you are able to get him to the vet today and get some answers. None of my cats freak out that badly being handled.

 

[southernpet]

Update: got him to the vet and it's bad. His entire chest cavity was filled with fluid. A very rare condition called chylothorax. The nearest vet that will even address it is over an hour & a half away. I'm leaving to transport him there. They said the prognosis is very bad because it requires an open chest cavity surgery to fix a very delicate membrane. This condition is typically seen in cats who have been hit by a car or fallen from a great height. In very rare cases it's just a spontaneous tear which is what his is. I wonder if anyone on this forum has ever dealt with this?

 

[catlover73]

I am sorry to hear about the bad news. I do not have experience with this issue. You are doing a great job handling a difficult situation. I hope someone here can give you some advice.