Wheezing cat. Is it a hairball? Coughing?

[Susanna72]

Vet is on board with trying inhaler! I’m so glad. I don’t like arguing with doctors and switching is even more stressful.

 

[BeccaCat]

Hi there! My Tessa has severe asthma. She gets her inhaler at least twice a day. (When those wildfires were making our air quality so awful, she was so bad she needed several doses of her albuterol as well). I’m thankful she uses her inhaler, I’m sure it saved her life.
It took Tessa about 3 weeks to get used to the inhaler. There are good YouTube videos that talk about training your cat on the inhaler.
Don’t give up if your kitty takes a while to get used to it, once they get the hang of it it’s actually pretty easy.
Oh! And my Walgreens accepts GoodRx for my cat, so that saves me about $200.

 

[Susanna72]

Liam has taken two pills a day for a week and only had one little asthma attack the second day. Yesterday we reduced it to once a day (morning) and he had a small one last night. I just ordered an AeroKat chamber and the vet is leaving me a script for Fluticasone. Is that what everyone else is taking? He warned me it's expensive and said I should shop around. Any suggestions? I'm in the US. I looked at GoodRX.com and the cheapest is Walgreens for $117 for one inhaler. How long do they last? Is Fluticasone propionate HFA the right thing to search for? Is this just a regular inhaler or does it have to be for cats?

I've been watching videos on how to get him used to it and he is definitely food motivated. I think his weight is aggravating the situation so we are working on that.

 

[BeccaCat]

Yes, Tessa takes Fluticasone. It is expensive but it helps her so much. If she takes 2 puffs a day twice a day, it lasts a month. But when she’s doing well she often takes 1 puff twice a day, and it lasts me 2 months.
Fluticasone proponiate HFA is the right thing. It’s the same for cats

 

[lisahe]

Coming in late here but so glad to hear the vet is going for the inhaler, too! Our vet is big on them for prevention even in minor cases, which is what Ireland has. She has been on fluticasone (aka flixotide) since early 2020. She doesn't love it (some cats allegedly do) but she accepts it. And it works. We, too, had to use it more with wildfire smoke, both more flixotide (preventive) and more albuterol (rescue inhaler).

Fingers crossed that Liam takes to the inhaler and AeroKat quickly!

P.S. Just ask if you need ideas for training him to use the inhaler. Every cat is different so you'll need to figure out what he prefers but they usually make themselves understood!

 

[BeccaCat]

To get started with training, I showed the AeroKat to Tessa, and let her smell it, then told her “good girl” and gave her a treat. That was it. Next day I did that and then put it on her face (no medicine) for just a couple seconds til she pulled away, told her “good girl” and gave her a treat. I did that for several days until she was comfortable. It’s still easier if someone is here to hold the inhaler while I hold Tessa, but at this point I can do it by myself if nobody’s home.

 

[lisahe]

To get started with training, I showed the AeroKat to Tessa, and let her smell it, then told her “good girl” and gave her a treat. That was it. Next day I did that and then put it on her face (no medicine) for just a couple seconds til she pulled away, told her “good girl” and gave her a treat. I did that for several days until she was comfortable. It’s still easier if someone is here to hold the inhaler while I hold Tessa, but at this point I can do it by myself if nobody’s home.

Yes, starting slowly can be really important! That said, I did puff Ireland on the first or second day: she was so interested in the AeroKat that she was scenting it so I figured I might as well give it a go. She only had a breath or two but she didn't freak out. We gradually worked her up to more. What took the most time is one of the most unavoidable things: pressing the inhaler itself to release the puff. It took her months to get used to that sound; I often pressed the inhaler behind my back. Now she's fine with it.

 

[Susanna72]

Coming in late here but so glad to hear the vet is going for the inhaler, too! Our vet is big on them for prevention even in minor cases, which is what Ireland has. She has been on fluticasone (aka flixotide) since early 2020. She doesn't love it (some cats allegedly do) but she accepts it. And it works. We, too, had to use it more with wildfire smoke, both more flixotide (preventive) and more albuterol (rescue inhaler).

Fingers crossed that Liam takes to the inhaler and AeroKat quickly!

P.S. Just ask if you need ideas for training him to use the inhaler. Every cat is different so you'll need to figure out what he prefers but they usually make themselves understood!

Thanks! I put some Churu on the mask and he licked it off. He is very food motivated. I figure I'll just keep doing that. Do you push the inhaler when it's on his face? I saw a lady on youtube put her hand up against the mask to block it, spray it, then put it on the cat's face. Does that work? Do you use the small mask or the large one? I got two.

 

[lisahe]

Thanks! I put some Churu on the mask and he licked it off. He is very food motivated. I figure I'll just keep doing that. Do you push the inhaler when it's on his face? I saw a lady on youtube put her hand up against the mask to block it, spray it, then put it on the cat's face. Does that work? Do you use the small mask or the large one? I got two.

Question: Do you push the inhaler when it's on his face?
Answer: Never! I put Ireland on the bathroom counter, where she settles in on her own. I take the AeroKat, shake it with the inhaler (which I hold down so it won't fly), and press the inhaler with my right hand, which is further from Ireland.

Question: I saw a lady on youtube put her hand up against the mask to block it, spray it, then put it on the cat's face. Does that work?
Answer: Yes, that would work. I don't block the mask (never thought to!) but I move the whole contraption over to Ireland's face pretty quickly.

Question: Do you use the small mask or the large one? I got two.
Answer: The smaller one since she's not a flat-faced cat. I asked someone else the same question when I first got Ireland started on the inhaler!

A favorite tip: If Liam gets mildly squirmy, you can try letting your hand (the one holding the inhaler) slowly and gently follow Liam's head motion. You may be able to save the puff by gently pressing the mask back on his face. If he gets very squirmy, you may be done with that puff even if he hasn't taken enough breaths. My other favorite tip (this is for your own morale) is to remember that not every puff and not every session will go well. That's okay. It takes time to get them used to the whole thing. And some, like Ireland, will never love it. This reminds me of another favorite tip, which She's a witch (I think?) told me when I was getting started with Ireland: sleepy cats are almost always easier to puff. Sometimes Ireland will just keep breathing and breathing if she's sleepy enough!

Good luck!

 

[BeccaCat]

Thanks! I put some Churu on the mask and he licked it off. He is very food motivated. I figure I'll just keep doing that. Do you push the inhaler when it's on his face? I saw a lady on youtube put her hand up against the mask to block it, spray it, then put it on the cat's face. Does that work? Do you use the small mask or the large one? I got two.

No don’t push the mask, that’ll probably just upset your kitty. You don’t have to block the puff with your hand. Not much medicine will leak out, if any. That being said, don’t puff it on his face. I shake the inhaler, put it in the end of the AeroKat, puff it, then put it on her face. I use the small mask but Tessa is a teeny tiny kitty.

 

[lisahe]

No don’t push the mask, that’ll probably just upset your kitty. You don’t have to block the puff with your hand. Not much medicine will leak out, if any. That being said, don’t puff it on his face. I shake the inhaler, put it in the end of the AeroKat, puff it, then put it on her face. I use the small mask but Tessa is a teeny tiny kitty.

It's interesting: I thought Susanna72 meant pushing the inhaler to release the medicine! But your interpretation is totally valid, too. In any case, I agree: don't press/push the mask. I like to hold it right at Ireland's nose, supporting it so I don't have to press it into her nose. I basically do all the same as you, though I always leave the inhaler inserted in the AeroKat.

 

[Susanna72]

Hello all. Well, we're getting there! I stopped the pill this week and started the inhaler fulltime on Tuesday. So far, so good. He's starting to get squirmy, so I've been giving treats (which I have to watch because I need him to lose weight.) It must be working because no wheezing attacks this week. I've been doing one in the morning and one at night. I count the flap moving 7-10 times. Thanks everyone for your advice!