Ask questions and share about your pet's health to help others.
Hello, I have a 2.5 year old desexed female cat and a 4-month-old male kitten. We moved house 4 months ago, and adopted the new kitten about 3 months ago. In our previous house, we used to let the older cat out during the day to roam the neighborhood, although she never went too far.
Since we’ve moved, we only let her out once or twice a week as there are a lot of cats here and she gets into more fights and has gotten injured once. She seems very stressed out, wanting to go out constantly.
We have tried everything to ease her stress: playing with her a lot, brushing and cuddling her daily, giving her a mix of wet and dry good food (that she likes), putting up Feliway diffuser around the house, and she plays with the kitten daily.
However, she still exhibits signs of stress, ie hiding, minor crouching, hissing or growling from time to time to us or the kitten, sleeps more, meows more, generally less affectionate towards us.
Do we have to let her go outside daily like before, so she can be less stressed, or is there any other way to lessen her stress? It has been 4 months and I am worried it will become chronic stress for her.
Hello! I just discovered this app via a YouTube video, as I now spend my days googling things like “Cat breathing loudly” and “normal cat breathing”…!
Since perhaps June I’ve noticed with increasing regularity my cat, Clover, breathing very loudly, sometimes to the point of waking me up with the sound. In September this progressed and my husband noticed her breathing freakishly fast and we rushed to a vet.
However 5 vets, including a specialist, many xrays, and treatment for gum disease later, no one seems to know what it is, and I can’t take the wait and see method they are prescribing. She is playing and eating and otherwise normal, but her breathing does seem to bother and annoy her and at times she looks very despondent.
The history is that almost two years ago I made the most terrible judgement call of my life and she got out the window of a new apartment and fell 4 floors. She was unable to use her back legs for a few days during which they kept her under observation and she needed stitches in her soft palate. She has made an almost complete recovery.
The accident happened exactly a week after our other cat contracted an unknown disease and died suddenly and shockingly at aged 5. I still haven’t recovered from our other cat’s passing and both my husband and I comfortably acknowledge that Clover is the number one love in my life, and I will do everything to keep her alive and happy. However we have reached our pet insurance limit and I am so concerned about what will be next.
I have done all of the internet researching there is to be done, and I just know looking at her and hearing her stressful breathing that something is very wrong. I don’t know if it’s connected to the fall, but it isn’t bronchitis or asthma both of which treatments did less than nothing.
If anyone has any advice or had a cat with similar symptoms please let me know what you think?!
Good morning-
I am very sorry that even after all of your vet visits and research, you are still at a loss. Other than finding another specialist, my only thought is if there is a teaching veterinary hospital/school that would want to take on your case. Hoping that some other Pawbly friends may be able to share mor advice with you. Very best of luck to you…????????
Thank you so much!
Hello,
In many of these cases I have found that these cats have chronic rhinitis. A friend scan if about the best way to identify this, but, it isn’t usually able to be cured, only somewhat managed with long term use of anti inflammatories and adjunct treatment options like minimizing allergens and managing weight. I have also tried cerenia drips and steroids to some help. Or even an inhaler to see if it helps. Ideally I keep these cats in a clean ventilated moist environment and minimize allergens to include all household cleaners, litter and even their own pet dander. Finding a diagnosis is a challenge as it isn’t infection and if it isn’t it is harder to cure. Some cats just snore no matter what we do.
Thank you so much for taking the time to reply. It it usual for it to come on relatively unprovoked? Or could it be connected to the fall? Also, as it is deteriorating so quickly now, what is the likely time she can live with it?
The whistling is relatively constant now, with every day becoming more extreme.
We have an air purifier running constantly, I have never used harsh cleaning chemicals ever and we are in a small apartment, so her exposure to irritants is as low as I can make them.
She was on cerenia but it did nothing and nor did the steroids.
Thank you so much again.
Also anti inflammatories did nothing I should add!
I have a 14 month old pit mix that has terrible anxiety. He is terrified of being by himself, even if we are just behind the closed door using the bathroom. He cries terribly & will pace the house until we’re done. If I take a shower or bath I leave the door open so he feels a little better, but he then cries & tries to grab my arm to pull me out (not in an aggressive way). When people come into the house he paces, jumps, & whines for them. He also does this outside when he sees people or other dogs. He is told “down” when he jumps & warned with the beeping noise on his training collar. He will sit but it is very hard for him to stay still, as he continues to whine, shakes, & then rolls into the ground. It’s like he knows to listen & tries very hard but literally can not stay still. He also is terrified of thunder & the sound the trash truck makes. When those sounds are occurring he runs right under the table & won’t come out. We are in the process of training & we were told by them that they also think he has anxiety. They think he would be able to comprehend better if it was under control. I have been researching non stop for things to help with this major issue. I don’t want him on prescription anxiety meds that cause him to seem “sedated” & not like himself (that happened with my family dog). I have come across a tablet to help with separation anxiety & the behaviors that come with it. It is called clomicalm & every review or story I have read about it was positive. I really do think this could be a successful choice for him IF I know this is something that is not harmful. There are possible side effects that could occur but that could happen with pretty much any medication humans or pets. This tablet does not cause dogs to seem drowsy from what I’ve read from people’s experiences & has a high success rate to treat anxiety. We have tried natural treats, oils, thunder vests, etc. & nothing has helped him in the slightest bit. I just want to know if this something that would be okay for him to take daily or even okay to take at all?
Hello,
It sounds like it is time to get help from a behaviorist. Please ask your vet for a referral and also ask them about medications to help bridge the gap as you start to help him overcome his fears and anxieties. Medications can help but they should not be used without also implementing training, socialization and behavior modification therapy. I hope this helps and I hope your pup gets help soon.
I agree with Dr. Magnifico. A behaviorist will be money very well spent and will benefit ALL of you. Very best of luck. Don’t give up!!????????
I agree with the others – find a behaviorist. I’d also invest time in a sport of some sort. This can help build the confidence it sounds like he lacks.
My 18 month old pit mix woke up with this nodule type bump on her face. It was hard and crusty and now it’s open. I dint think it’s painful but she doesn’t like me to mess with it. I got the best pic I could. No other symptoms at all.
Trying to get info from a photo is very difficult. If it were me, I would make an appointment for the vet and ask them to do a biopsy. It could just be a small injury, but it could be worse too. I hope it is nothing- best of luck!!!
.
Have a 16 year old cat that has been very sick with so much mucus coming out of his nose. Been sick for for a while now. Gave him 10 days of amoxicilin from vet. He’s having a really hard time breathing from all the mucus so we have Ben doing everything possible to keep him alive cause he is a fighter. He stops breathing a lot cause h’s so clogged it’s heart breaking. We give him warm steam and humidifier along with taking him outside to get more oxegen. He stays up most of the time cause when he puts his head down it blocks his airways. I have been pulling the discharge out with a small eyedropper when the bogies show. Really hoping he can beat the illness and get better soon but vets are taking all our money with doing much. We are on limited income. I think he needs a nasal flush maybe but can’t do it myself cause of lack of knowledge and medical equipment. Please contact me at 619 453 1747 if you have any ideas. Some days he looks like he won’t make it but then other days his eyes look so clear and beautiful. We have been giving him syringes of water and blended food to help him k==p the weight on cause he stopped eating a few days ago from lack of smell. He never did drink much water but maybe cause there was some underling issue. I have a Web cam and could show you or talk to someone if they care to reach out. He is a huge part of the family for many years and I know he wants to live longer but unless he gets better soon we will be at a great losss. He has a vet appointment today but I don’t think they will offer many answers besides sending him to more specialist we can’t afford. He has been sneezing fluid for about a month. He is the sweets cat ever and would do anything to keep him around.
Hello,
It sounds like a nasal flush might be helpful. It also sounds like it is time to try to get a diagnosis to make sure this is just infection and not something more insidious like cancer. Has your cat been tested for FELV or Fiv? Have they checked or talked about a polyp? Can you call around and ask for help from any of the rescues or shelters? Or even for payment plans or billing? For cases like this I try a few antibiotics (usually clavamox, doxy and then azithromycin), and then talk about looking for a polyp. After that I think these guys are either chronic rhinitis or I worry about herpes or cancer. That is my typical work up if people can not afford advanced imaging or cultures and biopsy. Ask your vwt about all of these. Also we are now trying diluted Cerenia nasal drops too. Maybe ask about them? Please keep me posted and very best of luck.
Not any test done cause mom is on ssi limited income and I’m disabled without income either. Will try more antibiotics if u think it might help. Has bad teeth but not sure extent. Was thinking it could be infection of teeth possibly cause he can’t eat dry food very easy. Haven’t tested for much anything really. I don’t think it’s fiv case when I open his mouth his lung’s seem strong and good with no sounds. I sit by him all day and pull boogies out with eye small dropper hoping it helps. Hydrating helps the mucus come out more I think.. will ask around for assistence like you recomend. He might have herpes. Had a lot of fluid come of eyes out when he was more stuffed up. Will discuss polup. Will defiantly look into ceria drops. I feel once the mucus is gone he would breath much better . When I pet him and he purrs sometimes he breeds through his mouth and get way more oxegen to his brain. Love goes a long way with this cat. Weird how just petting him would open his lungs for such a long time. When he stops breathing from weekends I’ll open his mouth at times, don’t want him to go brain dead before he gets help. I been literally with him for 3 days 24h a day to monitor his breathing and help him any way I can. Petting him goes a long way . Thank you so much for the valuable feedback, it is greatly apprecieted. Found your site from a polyp removal video on YouTube and it seemed like you had a lot of compassion to help people with low funds. Very cool of you to help people like that. Your service to the world is immeasurable!!!
Took kitty to vet. Got the cerenia you mentioned. Helped a lot last night but waiting for 24hr to use it again. Hes all dry now with dark green booties. Very thick.. vet said he might have a tumor in his nasal area because his one nostril is larger than the other with slight unevenness. Hes doing mostly mouth breathing today with many sneezes. Gave him a baby saline solution today with minimal effect. Also tryed steam from tea pot. When he falls asleep he stops breathing from being blocked many times through night. Also got more antibiotics . Vets said it’s not fungal. She recomended if he does not get better think about euthinisation. He was a lot better yesterday and showing so much love. Was back in my room all yesterday instead of bathroom but a lot of snorkels. .limited on funds and she said it would be a big workup and more tests before s nasel flush could be considered because at this point she would not put him under anesthesia. Is there a way I could check at home for the back of throat polyp? Not expecting miricals but it is really hard for me to give up on the little guy. Didnt think he would make it this long but I dont know how long sickness takes to run its course. I wish I could try a nasel flush but is cost prohibitive considering all the workup tests required. He slept by me all night for the first time in a week. Syringes with water seem to help the dryness but right now its ultra dry. Can I give him the carina drops before 24 hours is up?
Best regards
Cerenia works well but it weres off. At night he gets stopped up bad. Can I use Cerenia more than once every 24h? I’m sure the answer in no but its hard to sleep knowing hes not getting oxygen at time..
I wish I could try the nasel flush but cant afford it with all the added tests beforehand. Do nasel flushes always make cats nose blead and how harmful is it for there nose to blead with tubes that are used?
Puffy doing a bit better. When he was barely breathing a few days I noticed him biting the carpet cause he was suffering g so bad. Thought it might be his teeth cause symptoms are almost the same from some research. Cat is much healthier now due to diligent care. nose removing mucus with warm rag when showing discharge. Hes on cerenia, baby saline nasel drops and new antibiotics. We still feed with syringe and hes finally gaining weight. We have been slowing adding more food to his diet. He now drinks more and eats more on his own but he has a hard time breathing while eating and drinking so its limited. We been trying to discontinue humidifier slowly but I feel it helps him breath and loosens mucus. Hes very tired and less social these days but better than he was a few days ago. My main goal is to help him breath better soon. Could be one of three things. Either tumor behind nose cause nostrils are uneven but better a little now. Infected tooth, or possibly nasel polyp. Hes very skinny to the bone from not eating before but food syringes seem to help a lot so far. Mucus is much thicker and stronger making it harder to come out of his nose. Might try a animal safe decongestant I seen another vet use today along with lavender oil in humidifier. How do u feel about vicks?
Hi everyone I’m in desperate need of some help here! I have two cats (one 4YOM and one 1.5YOF both fixed) that keep peeing outside the litter box. Unfortunately it has been confirmed that they both go outside the litter box. The male likes going on things such as the curtains by the front window, the trash can by the back door and in my pretty much anywhere in my niece’s play room. The female likes going on dirty clothes, floor mats, and pretty much anything in both my niece’s playroom and bedroom. Unfortunately this problem has been going on for almost a year with no real improvements.
Some more information about the cats. I’ve had the male cat since birth. He is healthy barring anything showing up at the next vet visit. The female was adopted about a year ago from a local shelter and is also healthy. We have three litter boxes placed throughout the house but for the past 2ish months they’ve only used one of them. We do unfortunately have feral cats outside (caught two and had them neutered.)
I really need some help. I ripped up all the carpet in the house and replaced it with hardwoods. We’ve thrown out hundreds of dollars of clothes and toys. I’ve gone through at least $100 worth of enzyme cleaner. We swapped the litter boxes. We swapped the litter we use. We swapped diets. We close off most of the house during the day. I even attempted (much to my heartbreak) of following other online advice and confining them separately to a big dog crate for a week to retrain them on the litter box.
Nothing has worked and I’m at my wits end. I called my vet today to ask for a behaviorist but they suggested I try this resource first.
The forum says there is a response on my question but it isn’t popping up. Can you please repost it?
Kitten with completely atonic colon, possible causes? (Long text ahead)
So Nov. 3th in the evening we got 2 kittens, estimated 6 weeks old, thin. However due to being cold outside they already had very thick fur, so it wasn’t visible how thin they were. Weight was 550 & 650gr.
The finder said they have been more active before and only now they were able to get those two. They borrowed to live traps to get the mother and another kitten.
Both were seen eating. They were treated against worms (Milbemycinoxim/Praziquantel) and fleas (Lotilaner)
Nov 4th: Overnight everything was eaten, poo was solid. Kittens were responsive and alert. To the evening only half was eaten. Poo was still solid.
Nov 5th: Nothing was eaten over night, the little one seemed a bit weaker. I started to feed them with a syringe. They started with diarrhea, but that sometimes happens when feeding with a syringe.
Nov. 6th: They still don’t eat by themselves. The smaller one still seemed weaker, but otherwise it seemed fine. A bit diarrhea. In the evening I found it the litter box, not being able to stand, barely reacting. It hat vomited (at least it looked like it), and still had poo stuck on it. It was immediately brought to a vet. It received glucose solution s.c., something against vomiting, pain and an antibiotics. Lung sounded free, heart (ultrasound) was fine, too. A test of parvovirosis came back negative. I took both of them home that night, so I could feed it smaller portions more often and to give more fluids. 2 hours later to was able to stand again. I fed them every 3-4 hours, fluids every 6 (only small amounts obviously). It was lying on a warmth mat. The bigger one was fine, but avoided it’s litter mate.
Nov. 7th: No further improvement. None of them was eating on their own. The smaller one was still lying down most of the time, sleeping, but would react when I came to feed them. It would stand up and walk to the litterbox between the feedings, but the poo had a weird consistency. Not really diarrhea, but veeeery sticky, so it always carried it back to it’s sleeping place. So I had to clean it before every feeding. A test on giardia was positive, treatment started with Carnidazol. Continue to feed them with a Syringe and fluids for the smaller one. Fluids were always absorbed to the next feeding, but it still was a bit dehydrated (skin fold test). The bigger one would play in between and seemed fine otherwise.
Nov. 8th: No changes in the smaller one during the day, still weaker, able to walk, sit and stand, but sleeping most of the time. Today there was rarely poo in the toilet. I assumed that the treatment started working and it was a good sign (although I already had the feeling that something was wrong… wish I would have trusted that feeling). In the evening it seemed weaker, but would still accept being fed with a syringe. It felt different, less body tension, but would still walk away/go to the t. 10pm feeding. More calm, didn’t want to eat that much, peed on me. Meowed louder during giving the fluids than usual and tried to get away. 2am clock, the fluids weren’t absorbed completely, it’s abdomen felt like a sponge. I only fed a tiny amount. 6am weaker, would lie down immediately, breathing was shallow and faster, meowing, I didn’t feed it, fluids still not absorbed. Rushed to the vet.
-> Heart had a low frequency, breathing fast and shallow
-> X-Ray lungs were free, only a tiny amount of fluids in the abdomen, however the complete colon and stomach were filled with food. There was no visible blockage or air.
-> Ultrasound: Absolutely no movement in the colon/stomach, no blockage or air seen either. Kidneys and liver seemed fine
-> Punctation of the abdomen: ca. 3-4ml of fluids, lots of proteins, a bit of blood. Didn’t look like FIP. Possible that the fluids came out of the colon.
It was given something against vomiting, pain, antibiotics, something to help the cardiovascular system and something to get the colon moving again. To help with its breathing got a mask with additional oxygen. However in the next hour it got worse, so we decided to let it go. After it was gone food came back out of it’s mouth. And it didn’t even smell like it had started to digest.
It’s littermate is still with me and fine. It started to eat on its own yesterday.
Now I obviously ask myself what i could have done better/different. By now I think I should have started with additional syringe feeding earlier – at least with the smaller one. And I should have reacted when my feeling told me that something was wrong, even when there were no obvious changes yet. I somehow have the feeling that I sis something wrong and killed it. Did I give too much fluids (but lungs were free and only a bit fluid in the abdomen)? Did I feed too much? Other kittens eat even more without problems – and the other one is fine.
And what can be the causes for the complete stop of movement in the colon/stomach?
I know that FIP can cause this and an ileus (but there were no visible blockage, everything was filled with food), are there other causes? Can giardia do this?
Hello,
First it is important to give yourself a very firm and big pet on the back. You have gone above and beyond and saved these kittens from a slow awful death. Next this isn’t a question about the colon this is a question about what is causing all of the clinical signs you are seeing. Ileus (slow or absent moving gi tract) has many many causes but something caused it. Probably has everything to do with the same something causing everything else you are seeing. There is a huge list of possible causes. Infection, congenital disease, malnutrition before they got to you. Infectious disease like rabies, etc etc. my recommendation is to stick with the basics of keeping them warm, fed, and treated for parasites (internal and external). After that (or before your preference often dictated by amount owner can spend) is to keep asking for second opinions and keep running. Diagnostics. I really applaud your dedication and I have to say as much as sometimes we try we just aren’t able to save them all. This is especially true with kittens. Which have been some of the most rewarding and most heart breaking of all the cases I have seen.
Hello,
thanks so much for your answer and the nice words. Malnutrition would be definitly possible, it’s nearly winter here and they were thin when we got them. Maybe it was too much for the gi tract after not getting much for some time.
What additional diagnostics would you have recommended to do? I think bloodworks could have been an option, but what parameters? Just the large profile or other tests (besides FIV/FelV)?
I added the xRay. I was only present at the ultrasound, where I couldn’t see air. The xRay shows air in the stomach and colon. But otherwise everything is just… filled – theres not really something visible. Kidney and Liver could be seen in the ultrasound and looked normal. The “swelling” on it’s belly is the fluid that wasn’t absorbed – altough it felt a bit harder that a fluid bubble under the skin usually does.
The other one is still fine, active and playing, starting to eat on it’s own. Purring and cuddly. Yesterday we got the 3rd littermate, the mother is nowhere to be found until now. I haven’t seen the new one eat yet, but it was hungry when i fed it with a syringe – and it liked it. So I’ll just feed it a bit too, just not as much. That’s also nice for bonding. But it ate what was in the trap – so it knows cat food. It’s still very afraid, so I guess it will mostly come outside when I’m not in the same room.
We also got another one, a little male that the fidners named Nero – same area but not same place – but same age (a bit younger possibly) and also black furred. But this one is in bad shape, too. Very calm and tired. Lying most of the time. It’s just skin and bones, dehydrated. I haven’t seen it eating or using the litter box yet – and since the other two use it and the towel it lays on is wet sometimes I think it doesn’t really go. But it is able to stand and walk – I think it’s just to tired/weak to do so without need. This one is also fed every 3-4 hours and gets fluids. I heard him sneezing, so maybe it’s getting cat flu.
All were treated against internal and external parasites and no diarrhea until now from the new ones.
Thanks again for taking your time to read my wall of text(s) and answering so detailed.
Having difficulty with our new pup and cat.
About two months ago I introduced a new puppy to our family. We have an 8 month old kitten, and a 2 year old German Shepherd, and the new guy, 6 month old Chance, an American Bully.
We rescued Chance from an abusive situation, and he is just a sweet and snuggly boy with us and our German Shepherd. The problem we face now is that we’re worried about our cat. They have been separated by a baby gate. He doesn’t bark or growl at her, but rather whines and stares at her. He does chase her, but we’ve always nabbed him. When she is on the other side of a regular door, she’ll put her paw under as any cat would to play. He hasn’t attacked it at this point. He just gets very still and quiet and just stares at her paw and begins to tremble/shake. He has broken a bar on the baby gate to be near her.
She is unenthused to meet him, after he’s chased her, which makes her run, which makes him chase. We aren’t really sure what to make of all of this behavior or what to do. I feel over saturated in information.
Our german Shepherd was happy to be with her within a week or two. He chases her once in awhile, but all in all they co-exist and like each other. I don’t know if I need to find a new home for bully puppy.
Please help
Good morning???? Don’t give up. Dogs thrive on schedule and repetition. Continue to praise the positive behavior towards your cat that you puppy displays. If he is treat driven, even better. If he sits quietly near her for a short time, treat reward. Gradually increase the time. When you are not busy- perhaps in the evening watching the news or a show, have kitty on your lap or in your sight and puppy in the same room. Quiet may only last a minute or so at first, but that is ok. It will gradually increase. We have a house with three GSD and 1 cat. We make sure that the dogs know kitty is above them in the pack order. She gets fed first, she is allowed on furniture (dogs are not) she is allowed certain places the dogs are not… all of these “other” rules help establish pack order. It takes time and patience, but can definitely be done. Thanks so much for rescuing!!! Don’t give up- it will work out. Best of luck!! ????????
Keep the pup on leash when he and the cat might interact. IMMEDIATE “Leave It” correction any time he so much as looks at the cat to chase. Reward appropriate behavior to ensure there’s direction in what you want.
Not kidding on leaving a leash on him, by the way. It’s the best way to enforce an immediate correction.
5.5 days after bringing our 16 week puppy home (also 5.5 days after her second parvo shot) she tested positive for parvo and giardia. In another 5 days she had a negative ELISA parvo.
Upon bringing her home and following all instructions we can’t get solid poo, unless we feed boiled chicken, white rice and pumpkin. We’ve tried twice a slow transition to Pro Plan Chicken EN as our vet prescribed but once we move to kibble and pumpkin only (Forta Flora too) we are back to liquid poo. If we keep at least a 1/4 cup boiled chicken and rice we get some ok poo and some not great however not liquid.
Added to this her poo has mucus. Breeder is not happy with the kibble our vet has us on. We’d like to try something with nutritional content but are fearful we will setback progress. That said where we are at isn’t all that great.
We’ve had a diarrhea panel in addition to lots of other bloodwork and a urinalysis every thing so far is negative. Vet says there is one more bloodwork we can try or exploratory surgery to see if she has IBS.
Trying to determine do I try other foods or did the parvo and treatment ruin her GI and this will never be solved? Is the 2 months post parvo not enough time for get GI to repair?
Help I’m frustrated and confused.
hello,
this is tough to answer here. Tough because there is a lot more info needed to get a clear picture of your pup. (like what kind of dog is this and where are you?). so,, i will add a few notes based on previous experience. One, I think the parvo is probably a moot point by now. Sure a probiotic to help a recovering gut is helpful (and always on my prescription menu so ask about this!), but i doubt your pup had parvo,, and if she did she recovered by now,, puppies heal fast. Two,, I keep looking for intestinal parasites until I get 3 consecutive negative fecals. So keep checking. Next, if i had a dollar for everytime some breeder meddled in my treatment plan, and some client had the nerve to ask me to consider their advice or opinion! UGH! it drives me batty! Stop asking your breeder,, they have no business practicing medicine. (Sorry, personal sore spot).
lastly I would recommend you talak to your vet about a maldigestion profile and ultrasound.. or ask for a referral to an internal medicine specialist, I would also ask about things like panacur, tylan powder and cobalaquin. I use these and i/d for the puppies like yours, Lastly make sure your pup is protected from intestinal worms by using a good broad spectrum heartworm preventative. I have had a few pups w chronic hookworms so I can mine on Interceptor Plus year around,., just some points to discuss with your vet (not your breeder!).
let us know what happens.
Hi-
If your puppy, from a breeder, had parvo, I would be concerned with the breeder and their situation. I would stick with the advice of my vet- unless your breeder is a DVM as well. I would make another vet appointment and talk about your concerns and other possible conditions to check for in my puppy. In the meantime, If boiled chicken and rice are helping the situation some, I would keep up with that. Best of luck.
Maldigestion profile, I assume this is an EPI test.? If yes this was something we had discussed with our vet in addition to cobalaquin as the next step if diarrhea continued. If EPI negative our vet suggested a GI biopsy to rule out IBS. We also discussed getting her on Interceptor with our vet. You’ll love this…breeder didn’t want us to put her on a heart worm preventative so we hadn’t done that yet.
Based in part by your reply I will schedule the EPI and Cobalaquin test tomorrow. Additionally, will get her going on interceptor.
Yes she is fully recovered from giardia and or parvo. I’d like to know if those two things and or the treatment of them are what has caused all these other issues of which we have no diagnosis yet. If EPI positive wondering if it can be hereditary…will discuss with my vet.
Thank you Krista (and scgreco413) for the time you put into a reply to my post.
I have the sweetest Siamese mix, Goldie, adopted from our local humane society. Unfortunately, she has been a sick kitty and she’s had 4 URIs in her two years of life. She did take the full course of antibiotics for all of them and healed successfully.
Recently, she’s been making low snoring noises periodically when awake and sleeping and it seems to be only when inhaling. She’s a talkative girl and sometimes her voice changes when meowing. She has no other symptoms and is eating, drinking and playing normally and there has been no mouth breathing while making the noises. Her breathing rate has been normal. Sometimes it seems like she is making the noises and then stretches out real long in the first picture to get comfortable.
Below is a link to her video around 24 seconds you can hear it, you might have to put it at full volume:
If this is difficult to hear it sounds very similar to this:
I have a vet appointment next week and am concerned she has stertor from an oropharyngeal polyp from my online research and her symptoms. Is this something that a vet would be able to see without putting them under sedation? Are there any other suggestions you have as to what I could have them test for if it’s not a polyp? I wasn’t sure if she could have asthma or another breathing related issue.
Finally, do you by chance have any recommendations for vets in Phoenix, Arizona? I am just getting myself prepared if needed for a second opinion or if surgery is necessary.
Appreciate it and all your tips and videos online! You are doing incredible work!
hello Amanda!
If you think your kitty has stertor, or what I call upper nasal snoring sounds, I think it is best to start at your vets office. A couple of things are important to discuss early on. One, lots of stertor sounds alike. For the many cases of polyps that I have seen it is important to look at the whole cat, take a very detailed history and do the basics, like ruling out URI (upper respiratory infection) first. Lots of cats get this, as mist have come through rescue/shelter scenarios. So, I always talk to clients about covering the basics first.
URI should look like infection. Lethargy, fever, ocular and nasal discharge are usually present. Antibiotics are our first stop for these cats. I usually use clavamox, doxycycline, or azithromycin (I’ll even try all three before I move out of the infection suspicion scenario).
BUT, some cats are instead chronic rhinitis. These are usually a little older, and a little distanced from the rescuing phase of their lives. They are usually the somewhat older cats (like 2-6 years old) and they were probably exposed to a herpes virus early on. They sort of never get over the snoring and sniffles. These guys are life long snifflers. Usually with some degree of nasal and ocular discharge.
There are also the polyp cats, These are the ones I see often, because, their primary vet doesnt want to go take a look because if they find a polyp they are afraid to remove it. So most of the cats I see are the suspected polyps who cannot afford the $2500 plus estimate the specialists are giving for retroflex endoscopy, and removal with a surgeon.
I know lots of general practitioners who will sedate (yes this is required to get an adequate look) who will look and will remove but the risks are important to discuss before hand. The risks are; regrowth. I have seen it happen in two cases. Both resolved permanently after the second removal. I have also seen significant bleeding after removal. The cat ultimately did fine, but, I was worried for a few days.
If you find yourself with a vet who is reluctant to look ask for a referral. If the referral is to a specialisit and this is not affordable call the local cat specialty clinics, rescues and shelters for a referral you can afford.
I hope this helps. Please let me know what happens.. If you cannot find help let me know and I can reach out to some of the rescue people I know in AZ.
good luck!
krista
If it is in fact a polyp and it goes without removal, does this lead to any suffering for the cat throughout their life? Do these polyps continue to grow to the point of full obstruction?
I really appreciate all your advice and time! Thank you so much and I’ll report out after the appointment either way.
Hello, I just wanted to follow-up on my vet visit. The vet gave Goldie a Kenalog shot and to be honest, the noises she was making went away, but it’s strange as it seems now I’m not hearing her purr as often. Is a steroid shot ok to use on a limited basis? I know that it’s short term use and would not want to continue giving her shots every few months as I know it can suppress her immunity and for a cat that has had several URI’s I’m now second guessing the vet giving it to her.
Thanks!
Have you taken her to the vet? Those are signs of stress, but they’re also signs of injury and illness.
OH, I forgot to mention – you could always build a catio for her to spend time outside, SAFELY, protected from the other cats. There are tons of videos and plans online for this. If she truly wants to be outside, this might be the best option for everyone.
But get her to the vet, first, to make sure something isn’t actually wrong.
Hi Laura, thank you so much for replying.
We actually brought her to the vet a few months ago because of a fight bite she got from one of her outside trips. While the wound was not anything to worry too much about, we talked to the vet about letting her outside and expressed our worry (she’s gotten scratches before but it was the first time she got a bleeding bite wound), and the vet agreed that she should stay inside from then on.
Aside from the wound she was overall fine, thus why I believe these are stress symptoms…
As for the catio option, we are renting, and while we do have a garden, we share it with the landlord, so I don’t think it’s a viable option right now.