Ask questions and share about your pet's health to help others.
Allergies? My American Staffy mix just turned 1 year old. Once we started cutting our grass this season and flowers/trees started blooming he is sneezing while outside and he is getting eye boogers frequently (only in 1 eye). Are there dog allergy medications, or is benadryl a viable remedy for him? This wasn’t something we saw last year when we adopted him in early July.
My cad have abscess on her head what can I do? Which antibiotics will you referring?
Hello,
An abscess is sometimes treated with oral antibiotics and topical medications. In other cases a drain is required. Your vet would have to examine your cat, decide the appropriate treatment plan and then prescribe medication based on all of that information.
What can I do for my cat’s teeth? My cat has yellowed teeth and bad breath. His gumline is also red around some teeth. He’s eating and acting normally, but I’m very concerned about his teeth. It’s difficult to get a veterinary appointment where I live due to the pandemic so I’m only able to take him to the vet a month from now. Until I can take him to the vet, what can I do for a month to help his teeth?
I’m glad you have an appointment scheduled. It does sound like he needs to be seen by a vet and have his teeth looked at and cleaned. Perhaps your vet can push up your appointment?
Wait for your vet. Keep calling and ask them to keep you in mind if they have a cancellation
My cat was diagnosed on Monday with an abscess most likely from dental problems. My cat was given an antibiotic shot at the appointment. The abscess has not gone down. How long does it typically take to go away?
Hello,
Some abscesses can be really difficult to resolve. Especially if in bone or deep in tissue. If I don’t see improvement on an antibiotic within a few days I change the antibiotic. If it still not responding it might be time for a culture or advanced diagnostics. Like X-ray or biopsy. Please keep in touch with your vet especially if you feel like things are not progressing as expected.
I have two cats – Vinny born 2/2020 and adopted 4/2020. In 3/2021, we adopted our second cat, Duke, who was born 9/2020
Vinny has been very healthy until recently. Not long after adopting Duke, Vinny lost his voice, started coughing, deep breathing – we took him to the vet and they treated him for a URI.
He’s been off the antibiotics for about a week and his voice started becoming hoarse on 4/8, which slight coughing starting 4/9.
Duke has apparently always had a thing with sneezing. Usually 1-2 times daily, very random times. The foster care chalked it up to stress. His FELV came back negative when they tested him.
Both cats are set up with vet appointments – Vinny as a sick visit and Duke to get a general check up (new vet for us due to a recent move) and to address the sneezing concern. Both cats are completely up to date on all vaccinations and both neutered. 100% indoor cats.
I’m considering asking the vet to test them both for Feline Herpes Virus and do a retest for FELV.
Anything else that it could be?
Hello,
There are literally dozens if not more possible causes. I think it would be neat to contact your vet for help. It might be time to repeat diagnostics or add blood work or imaging. In some cases it is even appropriate to talk about obtaining samples for pathology or culture. It might also help to find a feline specialist. Good luck.
Hi, I adopted a Snowshoe/Siamese cat from a shelter about 6 weeks ago. They estimate he is about 3 years old but his history is unknown. He had an upper respiratory infection when I adopted him and was on antibiotics. He was very sneezy but that cleared up with the antibiotics the shelter gave me. I then took him to the vet for a wellness check the day after I adopted him and they found a yeast infection in one of his ears. We treated that and it’s been fine. He was also given Bravecto Plus topical just in case and is an indoor only cat.
About a week later he developed a skin issue, he’s been itching and ripping hair out in massive clumps and had some scabs. He was given two steroid injections over the course of a month. Also an antibiotic injection. I also changed his diet to rule out food allergen but after more than a week of diarrhea from the Hills z/d diet we switched to a sensitive skin Blue Buffalo instead which he is tolerating much better.
The skin issue has been getting better so I’m not concerned about that but just want to preface his history with me. Now onto the current issue. I noticed he snores and has trouble breathing when he is sleeping. I chalked this up to the URI but it has not gone away with the URI. His whole body basically flexes as he inhales. It’s only while he is asleep but does not matter what position he lies in. After spending over $1,000 and going to two different vet offices in the last 6 weeks, I would like to reach out to see if anyone has answers about this. We got back from the vet today with his second steroid injection and the itching has reduced significantly after this one (last one didn’t do much) and we are sending in blood work. The vet suggested next we do a full body x-ray which I’m not opposed to but I’m a graduate student and I’ve already spent over $1,000 on him and I have only had him for 6 weeks! I am going to get the x-rays for peace of mind but tonight I was checking his nose while he slept and found this. I’m assuming it’s a polyp? But I’m not a vet and won’t pretend to be one. If it is a polyp, where can I get this taken care of for a reasonable price? I really don’t want to dip into my emergency fund but I’ve already spent so much on him for vet bills, let alone changing food, litter, etc. To rule out allergens. I’ll include a picture of what I presume to be a polyp.
I appreciate anyone willing to help! I live in the New Orleans area so if you have recommendations for clinics, that would be great too! I am also willing to travel a longer distance for less pricey care. He does well in the car.
He is the one thing that’s really keeping me going right now so I really want to help him.
Hello,
It is impossible to diagnose via a photo. I think the best thing to do is have your vet look at your cat. I also think that it might be helpful to ask about cerenia nose drops just in case it is inflammation. I know there is a dr Mike down in NOLA that has been very affordable and helpful to people with financial constraints. See if anyone local knows about him. Let me know. Good luck
Thank you for your response! His blood work came back today and the vet said it is perfect so that was good news. He is getting full body x-rays done tomorrow. It’s another $285 but I am hoping we get some answers about his snoring and breathing. She is going to thoroughly check his nose and what not while he is sedated. He is a squirmy boy! I will definitely be looking into Dr. Mike. Thank you so much! I really appreciate it.
Hi, I got the results from his vet today. She said that his nose looks like just inflamed tissue. She said his lungs were a little foggy on the x-ray but she thinks antibiotics (equivalent of human z-pak) and a diuretic will clear it up so we are doing that. His heart was slightly enlarged but he doesn’t have a detectable murmur. She is sending for a DNT test since they still had his blood for $62 to see if he may have heart disease. His left kidney was very enlarged and his right was atrophied. She said this could be cancer. His blood work and his urine both showed no issues with kidney function so she said this could just be large to compensate for the atrophied one. She said that we could do an ultrasound and biopsy but it will be very expensive and an echocardiogram if the DNT comes back indicating something is off. I am so upset. Should I be really worried about his kidney if it’s functioning fine? Thank you for your time.
My 8 year old cat has had a snorting nose for over half his life. Vets constantly prescribing him antibiotics. They want to check for polyp and every one in my area quotes me at 3-4 k just for the rhinoscopy. I’d hate to have to put him out twice when they do find a polyp. I have been suspecting it for years but nobody wanted to take me seriously. Instead they keep giving him antibiotics and the antibiotics do not help. I have videos of the noises he makes and I have found Dr Magnificos you tube videos a few years back. I am willing to travel for what you do for nasal polyps! I can’t afford 3-4K just for diagnostic and then another few thousand for removal. If you have a recommendation for me, or if you can see my cat I would be so incredibly grateful!! I just want him to be able to breathe better.
Hello,
Based in experience alone I would find it very unlikely a polyp is to blame. They grow over time and worsen clinical signs as they do. It seems like it is more likely to be chronic rhinitis or asthma.
Hello! So i just took home a pup, he’s an 8 week old cane corso. The breeder had his ears cropped a couple weeks ago and slowly started to noticed a small fluid filled “lump” on the back of his neck between his shoulder blades. He had called the ear cropping vet as well as his regular vet whom didn’t seem concerned most likely a seroma. They prescribed an antibiotic just to prevent an abscess as well as sending me home with some dimethyl sulfoxide cream. The first couple days we had him at home we didn’t use the cream because it made his breath smell and now the small lump has grown to the size of an orange. It’s still soft, doesn’t seem to bother his besides some itching, and he’s still very playful. Ugh it’s just making me nervous! I have an appointment with the vet for his final shots in a couple weeks. Just looking for some advice to calm my nerves or if i should go in sooner.
Hello,
I think that in this case I would get a second opinion to help ease your worries. I also think that the best way to identify a mass like this might be to aspirate it so you know what it most likely is. I had a puppy recently who had seen three other vets before he came to see me. He was 12 weeks old and had a large swelling in his neck. The puppy was acting normally he thought. I shaved the area and put a large gauge needle into it. We removed a huge amount of puss. This puppy had also been on an antibiotic. After two weeks he is healed and a fire cracker. He is a lot more lively then when I first met him which goes to show it can be hard to assess true behavior and attitude until after you get the correct diagnosis and treatment plan. Also a seroma happens very near or at the surgical site. So I’m not sure this is that. I hope this helps. Keep us posted.
Thank you for your response! I saw it this AM and took him to the emergency vet. They took a sample to see what it was and it was indeed a seroma. What they’re wondering is why? They think it might be from the micro chip that was placed. They did drain it and said it’s a 50/50 chance it’ll come back- and sure enough it has. So I’ll have to make an appointment with my vet- they talked about possible “surgery” to remove the chip and figure out what’s causing the leak. Seems aggressive – everything i read said seroma stake time to go down. Any thoughts?
I got my cat Leila in December and since she has had runny eyes and lots of sneezing. I took her to a vet and we did a course of clavamox which helped while she was on it. A few days after she finished it she was back to sneezing and having runny eyes. Then we tried azithromycin and famciclovir which did nothing and she began to sound super congested. Then we tried a longer course of the clavamox which worked well while she was on it. A week or so after she finished it she was back at it. She is now sneezing up a lot of snot. Other than those symptoms she eats well and plays like a healthy kitty. We took her to another vet who suggested it may be a polyp. I was looking for quotes for a rhinoscopy and possible surgical removal. I got a quote from a vet for $2000-3000 for the CT, sedation, and rhinoscopy but no quote if they need to do surgery. And a lot of other places refused to give me one unless I pay $150-180 for a consultation first. Any advice on where I should look for reasonable prices would be great! We are in Michigan but are willing to travel out. Thank you!
Hello
How old is your cat? Any other signs of illness or concern? Sounds more like chronic rhinitis then anything else.
She’s 11 months old. The only other symptom I’ve noticed is she’ll sometimes hunch over and cough? I’ll attach a video! Thank you
It’s not letting me attach the video on my phone sorry, I’ll post it when I get home from work.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6O9yFwtiVe8
I uploaded a video of it to youtube, I’d really appreciate your opinion on it, thank you!
We just began an adoption trial with an adorable 4 month old kitten named Georgia. She’s very playful and happy but we instantly realized a few things seemed off with her health.
She’s got a watery eye, sneezes occasionally, scratches a lot, shakes her head occasionally, has a lot of gas, has diarrhea on and off, and is dealing with some mild bowel incontinence. But, most concerningly, seems to be dealing with a recurring anal or rectal prolapse.
We’ve taken her to two vets where she’s been given full examinations and deemed healthy. She has had two fecal tests, which return good results – no parasites are seen. She has prescription eye drops, a prescription antibiotic, prescription canned food, and a probiotic that we’ve just started. But no one seems to be as concerned about this rectal issue as we are.
Throughout the day, we notice a tiny bit of pink tissue poking out of her rectum. It’s very small and comes and goes. She also passes gas when this happens. And sometimes poop leaks out. She licks her butt a lot too.
Sometimes a cylindrical round bit of red tissue protrudes much further and what looks like a piece of poop can be seen poking out too. This tends to happen most often when she wakes up from a nap. It seems that her muscles relax and her bowel starts to come out. It will be out for seconds to a few minutes after she gets up and is moving around and then it pushes itself back in. It’s very disturbing to see!
We already have one special needs cat and, while we absolutely love this kitten and want to keep her, I’m afraid that this is going to be a recurring issue that will become very stressful. The vets we’ve seen are trying to treat the underlying cause, which they assume is diarrhea. But I’ve read that some parasites don’t show up on fecal exams or under microscopes – is this true? I’ve also read that stitches and surgery can help if this doesn’t improve on its own but that, with some cats, this is just a recurring problem throughout their lives.
Help! 
Hello,
I think that almost everything you are worried about it fairly normal for a newly adopted kitten. I always tell clients that we put these guys through a tremendously stressful time when we move them away from their family and into a new home. It’s a huge advisement and with that the immune system gets totally stressed out. Upper respiratory infections are a very common sequela. Also most kittens come with parasites. I send out at least three fecals before I deem them to be parasite free. Also stay on a good kitten food. Between the change in homes, families and diets I see loads of issues like this and they almost all resolve completely within a few weeks. All I really care about for the first few weeks is if they are happy, eating and playful and gaining weight. Stay in touch with your vet and I swear love cures almost all of these new kittens. Best of luck.
Thanks! I hope you’re right. I was feeling the same way until this prolapse thing started. That has overwhelmed me as it seems to be getting worse, not better. And the vet visits and prescription foods are already getting expensive! Just afraid there won’t be a quick fix and we’ll be dealing with two very expensive special needs cats soon.
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I’d talk to the vet – they may have some very specific suggestions. On a more general suggestion I know benadryl is safe for dogs, but I’d discuss that with your vet. They might have something more tailored to your dog’s specific allergy.