Nasal ocular discharge and sneezing in new kitten

[Hollis'sMom]

We brought our new kitten home on 2/29/2020. He was born on 11/12/2019. A few days after bringing him home, we noticed he was sneezing and had some nasal and ocular discharge. I reached out to the breeder, who said that she would send me some medication for him. She sent Clavamox and Cidofa drops and said to do for 10 days. She mentioned that she had a cat come to her from another country that had a bacterial infection. (This is fairly common as she works with breeders all over the world) We did that and nothing changed, so on day 11, we took him to our vet. Our vet did an exam, and eye stain to make sure there was no damage or corneal ulcers. He felt like it was feline herpes virus and prescribed azithromycin and famcyclovir, as well as an l-lysine supplement. Fast forward to today, antibiotic is finished and three more days of famcyclovir, and no improvement. The weird thing is, it is only in one eye, and kind of comes and goes. It crusts shut when he sleeps. My first thought was allergy to something, but it doesn't make sense that it would only be in one eye. Also, I have checked his eyelashes to be sure that they aren't turned inward and rubbing and I don't see any like that. I have emailed out vet and he will be back in his office in the morning. I am not asking for medical advice, but more just trying to see if anyone has seen something like this and what it ended up being. Whatever it is, it is super resistant to antibiotics. Toby only weighs 3 lbs at 4.5 months old, (normal for his breed) so I would have thought the meds would have worked quickly. I hate having ti pump him full of meds, hes just a baby

 

[gilmargl]

I'm not a vet but I've had a lot of experience with sick kittens - it's always a miracle when we get a healthy baby. Most sick kittens sneeze, have discharges from their eyes or noses and need medical treatment. Some for the rest of their lives. I don't want to put blame where no blame is due, but the breeder may be at fault here. Having contact with breeders from abroad should not result in sick kittens but "working" with them seems to be rather suspicious. Regardless, you have a sick baby and need help.

We would probably call this "cat flu" - which won't help you much because there are lots of different types and finding the right treatment is not always easy. The fact that he only has problems with one eye is not unusual and I would take it to be a positive sign! Your baby will no doubt need eyedrops until things improve (please don't use anything containing cortisone) and that may be sufficient. But, I'm not the vet. I once had a very sick ginger cat - a female. No-one thought she would survive. We spent a lot of time at different vets - it was the holiday season - but eventually I could put her with another litter to socialise. She found a new home with one of her new playmates. Now, three years later, she is still doing well but with occasional nasal discharge. Perhaps I can find a picture of her sorry state, a few days after being found.

Good luck, I'm sure your vet will find a solution to the problem - your baby is in a much better condition than my poor little Ginger, who could scarcely breathe.

 

[Hollis'sMom]

I'm not a vet but I've had a lot of experience with sick kittens - it's always a miracle when we get a healthy baby. Most sick kittens sneeze, have discharges from their eyes or noses and need medical treatment. Some for the rest of their lives. I don't want to put blame where no blame is due, but the breeder may be at fault here. Having contact with breeders from abroad should not result in sick kittens but "working" with them seems to be rather suspicious. Regardless, you have a sick baby and need help.

We would probably call this "cat flu" - which won't help you much because there are lots of different types and finding the right treatment is not always easy. The fact that he only has problems with one eye is not unusual and I would take it to be a positive sign! Your baby will no doubt need eyedrops until things improve (please don't use anything containing cortisone) and that may be sufficient. But, I'm not the vet. I once had a very sick ginger cat - a female. No-one thought she would survive. We spent a lot of time at different vets - it was the holiday season - but eventually I could put her with another litter to socialise. She found a new home with one of her new playmates. Now, three years later, she is still doing well but with occasional nasal discharge. Perhaps I can find a picture of her sorry state, a few days after being found.

Good luck, I'm sure your vet will find a solution to the problem - your baby is in a much better condition than my poor little Ginger, who could scarcely breathe.

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What a precious tiny one you had there! I'm glad you were able to save her life. I am waiting on the vet to call this morning and let me know what we need to do next.

 

[neely]

I'm sorry your little one is having this health problem. Just out of curiosity, besides the breeder sending you Clavamox and Cidofa drops did she have any type of health guarantee in the contract? The reason I asked is because this would help pay for Toby's current veterinary treatment. Here is an Article about eye problems in cats that may have some helpful information for you:
Eye Problems In Cats: What Every Owner Needs To Know – Cat Articles

I'm glad to hear you reached out to your vet again and hope to hear back this morning. Please keep us posted on his progress.

 

[Hollis'sMom]

I'm sorry your little one is having this health problem. Just out of curiosity, besides the breeder sending you Clavamox and Cidofa drops did she have any type of health guarantee in the contract? The reason I asked is because this would help pay for Toby's current veterinary treatment. Here is an Article about eye problems in cats that may have some helpful information for you:
Eye Problems In Cats: What Every Owner Needs To Know – Cat Articles

I'm glad to hear you reached out to your vet again and hope to hear back this morning. Please keep us posted on his progress.

Yes, she has offered to buy him back and has reimbursed us for the visit last week. We already love him, so sending him back would be really hard. Hoping to get a call from my vet soon. Thank you for the article link, I will check it out.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. Since his eye issue seems to be resistant to antibiotics, it is possible it is viral in nature. Was he tested and then vaccinated for viruses like FIV, etc?

 

[Hollis'sMom]

Hi. Since his eye issue seems to be resistant to antibiotics, it is possible it is viral in nature. Was he tested and then vaccinated for viruses like FIV, etc?

Our vet has been treating for Feline Herpes and a URI, but the meds aren't doing much.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Our vet has been treating for Feline Herpes and a URI, but the meds aren't doing much.

Maybe talk to the vet about adding an anti-viral to his regimen - perhaps, even anti-viral eye drops? URIs are generally secondary infections brought on by herpes. While the antibiotics should help eradicate the specific infection, it won't do anything for the herpes itself - which can present with some of the same symptoms as the URI.

I know you were really looking for members with direct experience with what you are facing, so I do hope some of them see your post soon and offer their input. I also found this link to a support group related to feline herpes, just in case you might want to check it out.
Yahoo! Groups

 

[IndyJones]

Indy, the cat in my profile has herpes (in remission) and from my experience it is something that never really goes away entirely. If your cat is stressed you may may see a flare up.

With herpes you really can't do much but treat the symptoms, the immune system has to fight the virus itself.

Indy's left eye is always a bit weepy the vet thinks she has scaring in her tear duct as a result of the herpes infection when she was a kitten. She was born feral so I don't really know how she got infected unless her mother gave it to her.

Your cat is very cute btw. Reminds me of a sheep or lamb.

 

[Hollis'sMom]

Maybe talk to the vet about adding an anti-viral to his regimen - perhaps, even anti-viral eye drops? URIs are generally secondary infections brought on by herpes. While the antibiotics should help eradicate the specific infection, it won't do anything for the herpes itself - which can present with some of the same symptoms as the URI.

I know you were really looking for members with direct experience with what you are facing, so I do hope some of them see your post soon and offer their input. I also found this link to a support group related to feline herpes, just in case you might want to check it out.
Yahoo! Groups

Thank you for your advice. He is on an anti-viral oral med now. I just spoke to our vet and we are going to treat chlamydia now with doxycycline and eyrithromycin eye ointment. I spoke to the breeder and the cat that was infected had chlamydia. Toby was treated for 10 days, but that course is not nearly long enough. Fingers crossed this makes him a well baby again!

 

[Hollis'sMom]

Indy, the cat in my profile has herpes (in remission) and from my experience it is something that never really goes away entirely. If your cat is stressed you may may see a flare up.

With herpes you really can't do much but treat the symptoms, the immune system has to fight the virus itself.

Indy's left eye is always a bit weepy the vet thinks she has scaring in her tear duct as a result of the herpes infection when she was a kitten. She was born feral so I don't really know how she got infected unless her mother gave it to her.

Your cat is very cute btw. Reminds me of a sheep or lamb.

Thank you, he is a sweet boy!

 

[IndyJones]

Eye ointment? I would be very careful with that, you can't allow the tip of the bottle to touch his eyeball. It will contaminate the medication and could really scratch the eye.

Carefully pull the lower eyelid and squirt a minute rice sized amount in the lower lid. If he jerks away stop and let him go.

Swaddling sometimes helps if they are uncooperative.