Cat congested -- very sick -- UPDATE -- she is improving, I think!

[Shiloh Acres]

Thanks everyone, so much!

I'll call my other vet in the morning. Hopefully he'll look at her and be able to tell me something.

By way of update, I think she's taken a good turn. I took her in the bathroom for a steam treatment. By the time I was done, she was standing on her back legs begging. She went straight to the dog's water bowl for a drink, asked for an ice cube to play with, and has twice settled to the tuna and is just now finishing it up. She's been running and jumping with no further coughing breathlessness. I do see she's breathing just slightly harder than normal, but I can tell she FEELS good and is comfortable, from the way she just stretched out.

If I have to, I'll gladly keep steaming her. I'm not giving any more garlic oil, but she's going to have to keep getting the probios.

THANK YOU all for your kindness and information. It has been very helpful and encouraging.

 

[Shiloh Acres]

Well, I thought I'd post a final update.

You all were right. Since the large animal vet was"my vet" he said he'd take a look but let me know he wasn't set up with some if the diagnostic equipment a cat vet might be. He left it up to me if I wanted an office visit. She was so vastly improved (episodes were 14 hours apart, once two hours, when they had been minutes apart before the steaming, plus she was eating and drinking) so I decided to chance not going. It made me nervous with the weekend coming up, by my small animal vet was due back on Monday.

By Monday she was almost 100%. Just based on symptoms (the red eye rims are considered diagnostic) she likely had the herpes form of "cat flu". Which can be treated with L-lysine (which I have) but I don't know the dose for.

I doubt anyone will have the exact same situation but apparently steaming can work wonders for kitty congestion, which in turn helps them eat/drink.

I'm glad it wasn't her heart. Especially since I opted out if heartworm preventative for her because she's always inside (which I NEVER go without in my dogs, even the indoor ones. It's too prevalent where I've lived.).

But overall she's just a very delicate kitty. I knew that. I wish she wasn't, but all I can do is take the best care possible of her.

And a couple of days ago she killed a giant bug and ate it. She's usually good about killing them, but doesn't normally eat them. I'm glad I only use boric acid and peppermint oil to kill bugs!

I'm so glad she's better. Thank you to everyone who posted!

 

[fancy]

I'm so glad to hear your kitty is better, I wish I had seen this post before and could have told you an old time vet told me NEVER to give cats garlic as it is toxic to them. He was my horse vet when I was a kid and 80 years old and still there when I needed him. I trust everything he ever told me.

Good luck in the future with your delicate kitty.

Oh, forgot to also say that hookworms can migrate to the lungs also.

 

[Garp94]

Glad she's better, and i hope you'll never need it, but here it is:

for cats over 10 pounds, they get 500 mg lysine twice daily.
half that if they're under 10.

 

[Shiloh Acres]

Thanks, Fancy. I go back and forth with the garlic, having heard from some sources that it's toxic for them and some that it's great. I'm not even sure if it helped her improve since I pretty much did all I could for her at the same time. The particular oil I was using made me nervous though, since it is so potent.

Now at least i know what to look for, and how to treat it. Thanks for the dosage, Garp. I usually keep L-lysine on hand. And either or both of my cats can be carriers. I don't know what stressor could have activated it in her, but at least I know what to do. The steamingis great for supportive health too. I think for talking to the vet that my kitty got hit unusually hard with it.

Thanks again. She's back in fine shape now, two weeks later.