Buddy is my baby boy, he is 11 and has always had some respiratory issues...
breathing loudly, snoring, throwing up food - my old vet was never concerned. I canned that vet after he killed my baby girl, another long story...
Ok, January Buddy was having major trouble with his head, he had the flu. The new vet recommended taking him to the animal hospital for testing. They various tests, gave us a cancer scare that turned out to be negative. And when x-raying his head they found a stricture, a stenosis, behind his little nosey - probably the reason he's been throwing up for 10 years... creating scar tissue there as well with the acid of his vomit.
Buddy had a ketamine reaction in the vet hospital. We were there for 4 or 5 days, I say "we" because I rarely left. He nearly died. It was horrible, but my miracle boy pulled through.
Backtracking - new kitten last summer = probably a rhinovirus that slipped by his current, up-to-date vaccinations. Likely the cause of his flu. Lysine doesn't seem to do crap, in a nutshell.
He has had a terrible summer, and seems to be in line with my rotten allergies as well. He doesn't itch, he gets a headache, he gets stuffed up, he feels like crap, and he hides and wants to be alone. I bought two air purifiers for the house which seemed to help both of us. Recently the farmers have been harvesting their corn, I've been taking more sinus meds, I've been giving Buddy Chlor-Trimeton's equivalent at the dosage the vet set for us. It seems to help. But I get terrified. I'm terrified I will lose him. They took his temp early last week and it was fine... but they gave me clindamycin to have on hand in case I think he has a secondary sinus infection. I'm not sure how to judge that, I'm just not an objective observer I suppose. Steroids cleared this up a couple months ago, but due to some pancreatitis scars and such found during ultrasounds in January, I'm afraid to just keep asking for steroids.
So, ok, here is my real question. He ate well this morning. But then coughed up mucous. Thick mucous can't get through his nosey with the stricture behind it, so it makes sense that he had headaches. (I think many of you just would know if your kitty had a headache, even though it sounds odd that we would know). Ok, he doesn't throw up the food, he throws up mucous, and then normally will swallow the sticky stuff if I'm not there to wipe it. It's clear, not thick and yellow.
Does anyone have any thoughts on this. Feline asthma doesn't seem to fit. He can breathe. He's uncomfortable. He's full of snot. He won't drink hot tea. He can't blow his nose. He can't take Tylenol Sinus like I do. He's now resting underneath the cover of an old litter pan in my bedroom instead of on the bed with me. This is because I pulled him out from beneath my bed table. I'm impatiently waiting for the chlor-trimeton to kick in. I am scared.
He went outside in his enclosure yesterday and hung out. It's not like he's sick all the time. I'm just a very worried mommy who feels completely helpless, as I sit here listening to my little boy breathe.
Gina
breathing loudly, snoring, throwing up food - my old vet was never concerned. I canned that vet after he killed my baby girl, another long story...
Ok, January Buddy was having major trouble with his head, he had the flu. The new vet recommended taking him to the animal hospital for testing. They various tests, gave us a cancer scare that turned out to be negative. And when x-raying his head they found a stricture, a stenosis, behind his little nosey - probably the reason he's been throwing up for 10 years... creating scar tissue there as well with the acid of his vomit.
Buddy had a ketamine reaction in the vet hospital. We were there for 4 or 5 days, I say "we" because I rarely left. He nearly died. It was horrible, but my miracle boy pulled through.
Backtracking - new kitten last summer = probably a rhinovirus that slipped by his current, up-to-date vaccinations. Likely the cause of his flu. Lysine doesn't seem to do crap, in a nutshell.
He has had a terrible summer, and seems to be in line with my rotten allergies as well. He doesn't itch, he gets a headache, he gets stuffed up, he feels like crap, and he hides and wants to be alone. I bought two air purifiers for the house which seemed to help both of us. Recently the farmers have been harvesting their corn, I've been taking more sinus meds, I've been giving Buddy Chlor-Trimeton's equivalent at the dosage the vet set for us. It seems to help. But I get terrified. I'm terrified I will lose him. They took his temp early last week and it was fine... but they gave me clindamycin to have on hand in case I think he has a secondary sinus infection. I'm not sure how to judge that, I'm just not an objective observer I suppose. Steroids cleared this up a couple months ago, but due to some pancreatitis scars and such found during ultrasounds in January, I'm afraid to just keep asking for steroids.
So, ok, here is my real question. He ate well this morning. But then coughed up mucous. Thick mucous can't get through his nosey with the stricture behind it, so it makes sense that he had headaches. (I think many of you just would know if your kitty had a headache, even though it sounds odd that we would know). Ok, he doesn't throw up the food, he throws up mucous, and then normally will swallow the sticky stuff if I'm not there to wipe it. It's clear, not thick and yellow.
Does anyone have any thoughts on this. Feline asthma doesn't seem to fit. He can breathe. He's uncomfortable. He's full of snot. He won't drink hot tea. He can't blow his nose. He can't take Tylenol Sinus like I do. He's now resting underneath the cover of an old litter pan in my bedroom instead of on the bed with me. This is because I pulled him out from beneath my bed table. I'm impatiently waiting for the chlor-trimeton to kick in. I am scared.
He went outside in his enclosure yesterday and hung out. It's not like he's sick all the time. I'm just a very worried mommy who feels completely helpless, as I sit here listening to my little boy breathe.
Gina
