Still Recovering from URI

[stephanietx]

We've had little Hannah Grace since the Sunday after Thanksgiving (4 weeks now) and she's yet to leave her room! She's been recovering from an upper respiratory infection. She is getting better, but it seems like it's slow going and one step forward, two steps back. She has gained a pound since she's been with us and I can tell she's grown taller and longer since she's been with us. (She's now about 7 months old.)

Her eyes have stopped watering and if she's got any eye goop, it's clear. However, she's STILL sneezing and suffering from nasal congestion. She's still on Clavamox and 500mg Lysine-L a day. She also gets drops in her eyes and her nose. (Something that starts with a "T") I've been running a vaporizer in her room for 4 weeks straight and trying to keep the room warm. Is there anything else I can do for the nasal decongestion to get it cleared up?

I don't want to rush her recovery, but I'm ready for this sickness to be gone!

Stephanie

 

[menagerie mama]

We always put some Vicks on the vaporizer, but be careful so she doesn't lick it. They also make those Vicks plug-ins now. I don't know what the "T" stuff is, but we recommend Neosinephrine (sp?) drops, or "Little Noses" that you can get at the pharmacy. Ask your vet what he/she thinks of this...

 

[stephanietx]

It's Tobramycin. She gets 2 drops in each eye and 1 drop in each nostril once a day. I put Vick's on her little nose (per the vet's instructions) and I also have eucalyptus drops (about 4 or so) on a cloth near the vaporizor. (The vet also said this was okay). She goes back for another re-check on Tuesday.

Stephanie

 

[menagerie mama]

I don't know that I'd put Vicks ON her nose. I don't know, but it tells us not to put it on OUR noses....?

 

[stlgrl5]

You know what meds I think are GREAT for URI. Doxycycline. It has worked wonders for my kitties URI. The doc had them on Amoxi first then Clavamox, then Doxycycline. And they are alll better now! You should ask your vet about that.

 

[coaster]

You could bump up the Lysine to 1000 mg a day for a week. Larger doses sometimes cause G-I upset (loose stools), so if that happens, then you'll have to cut back. I know of a vet that prescribed as much as 1500 mg.

 

[yosemite]

Originally Posted by coaster

You could bump up the Lysine to 1000 mg a day for a week. Larger doses sometimes cause G-I upset (loose stools), so if that happens, then you'll have to cut back. I know of a vet that prescribed as much as 1500 mg.

Please DO NOT bump up any meds without first speaking to your vet. Although you may receive suggestions from this site, it is always best to consult with your vet before you do anything as we are not vets and we cannot see your cat to diagnose it.

 

[familytimerags]

We were dealing with a very resistant URI recently. Our vet had us on Amoxi, clavamox, and then recently the Doxy, and the Doxy worked wonders. Our vet also recommended L-lysine, 500mg twice a day.
Your best bet is to talk to your vet again, and explain that the medicine isn't working and what symptoms you are still seeing, and he/she can then prescribe what would be best in the next step of treatment.

 

[hissy]

Also talk to your vet about those new sudafed tablets you put in your shower? I had a rescue litter that was fighting a URI and my vet told me how to use these tablets safely. I ended up breaking up the tablets into small pieces (according to the vet's recommendation) and sitting in the bathroom with the litter while the shower was running.

URI can really sap a cat's strength and if they can't smell, they really just want to just lie there and recover. If they can't smell, they won't eat- how is her appetite doing?

 

[coaster]

Originally Posted by Yosemite

Please DO NOT bump up any meds without first speaking to your vet. Although you may receive suggestions from this site, it is always best to consult with your vet before you do anything as we are not vets and we cannot see your cat to diagnose it.

Well, Lysine isn't exactly a med....it's a dietary supplement. I get mine from the health food store, and yes, I've used 1000 mg will no ill effects. But, that being said, Yosemite's advice to consult with your vet before changing the dosage is correct and wise.....as said, we aren't vets and we can't prescribe. Any advice and suggestions received from other cat caretakers online or otherwise are just that....advice and suggestions.

What I've observed is that if and how much Lysine a vet prescribes depends on their acceptance of alternative remedies and also how up to date they are on currently accepted methods and practices. It doesn't really do much good to give just a little Lysine. Enough to surpress the herpes virus needs to be given, otherwise it's just wasted. I've seen vet-prescribed daily doses ranging from 500 mg to 1500 mg. Quite a range. So what's the correct dose? Whatever works, I guess.

 

[familytimerags]

Hi Hissy,

You are right the lack of smell will really hinder their appetite, and in kittens it can really affect them quickly. Our vet has us use over the counter pediatric nose drops, one drop per nostril to help clear up the nasal passage. If the URI is very bad, we will steam up the bathroom and bring the cat/kitten in with us, that also helps temporarily.
I believe Interferon was something else our vet has prescribed in the past that can be used as an antihistamine.

 

[stephanietx]

The good news is her appetite is normal and she's eating well. My concern is that she's still congested and sneezing. I know she's at the tail end of this crud, but it's just that it's been 4 weeks now and I know she's got to be tired of it all. Also, it's a possibility that with as sick as she was that she could've had pneumonia or some other very, very serious illness.

Stephanie

 

[purr]

My heart goes out to you! I've never had a URI take that long to go away.

It has only lasted about a week at most. Poor little kitty! She must have had a really BAD one!

I hope hope hope she will start recovering quicker!

It's been my experience that the sneezes/sniffles is the last to go, but they usually start eating right as those are the last symptoms left. The food might make her start recovering faster also.

Best wishes.

Oh, and I read about "cat flu" when I was researching online for more info about my cat's URI. I thought she might have had it and called the vet back and he said that it would take a couple days for the medicine to work if that was the case, but it would still work. So it's very possible you are right about it being something worse. I'm glad the little doll is starting to feel better.

 

[tom w]

My stray cat Tuffy was really sick with a bad URI and lots of other problems. He started his first round of meds in the begining of August and it took til now for him to hopefully have this stuff all cleared up. The vet finally had to put him on Zithromax for 6 weeks to kill the infection. The clavamox and some other med didn't get rid of the infection, he would do better on these meds but when the med ran out he would get worse again.

I think it took a good 3 months before his sence of smell came all the way back. When he first found me at our camper I had to put little bits of food in his mouth to feed him. His eyes were so bad I think he could only see out of his left eye. After I got him home he ate and drank fine as long as his food and water were always in the same place so he didn't have to use his nose to find it. I don't know how old he is but he is not a kitten or young cat plus he had a bad case of worms/parasites and diarea so he was in real bad shape, he was only 5.4 lbs the first time the vet weighed him, he is now back to about 11 lbs and still getting bigger.

My point is this URI stuff can be real hard to beat sometimes from what my vet tells me. Tuffy would sneeze to the point of sneezing blood and have these horrible coughing attacks but now that the zithromax has done its job I have not heard him cough and maybe a little sneeze once in a while.

I hope your little kitty is not as bad as Tuffy was and it don't take months to get him healthy again. It was so hard to watch Tuffy with all this stuff going on with him. Even being close to death when he found me he never "gave up" fighting to get better.

 

[snosrap5]

I hate to put a damper on the time it takes to clear a URI, but it took 3 months for us to clear up the two kittens I adopted two years ago. I still have nightmares about URI's.
I wish you the best of luck!!

 

[stephanietx]

Thanks! It's nice to know that it can take a long time to clear it up. The impression I got from the vet was that it should take a week or so! (Yeah, right!)

Stephanie

 

[coaster]

A "simple" URI caused by just a virus should take a week to two weeks to clear up. However, when secondary bacterial infections are involved, recovery becomes much more complicated and lengthy.