sniffy kitty

[ginnyinWI]

My daughter in law's cat has had a "stuffy nose" since she adopted her at 7 weeks old. A vet told her that there was a prescription she could be on to help, but at the time it was too expensive and they just decided to live with it. Now Kitty is five years old and I'm cat-sitting with her for a year.

Does anybody know about this chronic stuffy nose thing in cats? She seems normal in every other way. I only notice it when she goes to sniff something like her food dish--then I can hear her snuffling. She also sneezes occasionally, and goo comes out. If there is an easy fix for this problem I'd consider taking her in and seeing what a prescription would do.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. Cats can have allergies like people. That might be the problem

if the cat seems otherwise healthy.

[BrklynLiberal]

2. My friend adopted a cat that had spent some months in the street. Her vet said that

virtually all cats that spend time in the street get upper respiratory problems.
Antibiotics might be the answer if that is the problem.

The allergy option is also a good possibility. Perhaps changing food would make a difference.

[hamsterjill]

3. Vaporizer or humidifier?

Do you have a vaporizer or a humidifier? If so, it would not hurt to try these and see if they help kitty breathe easier. Our vet prefers a vaporizer, but some vets recommend a humidifier.

Our rescue group uses a vaporizer with cats with URI and it seems to help tremendously. Just a suggestion. Knowing whether or not kitty's symptoms are relieved by this might be beneficial in helping your vet determine the underlying cause.

[Sanity Claws]

4. My cat developed this problem last year

He started sneezing more than usual about 1.5 years ago. I brought him to a vet who thought it was allergies because otherwise he seemed healthy. A few months later, he developed an infection and green stuff came out when he sneezed. I brought him to a different vet. After over one thousand dollars, the only explanation was he had an URI. He was given antibiotics for a course of four (?) weeks. He was still sneezing after the antibiotics, so he got two more weeks of antibiotics. After that, he didn't have an infection and he didn't sneeze as much. Now he is sneezing a lot again.
He just seems to be allergic to something.

[ginnyinWI]

5. That's the kind of thing I'm afraid of.

Going in and spending hundreds and still having the same problem. I'm going to have to talk to my daughter in law again about it to see what she thinks about it.

Kitty does have green stuff coming out when she sneezes, which to me seems more like an infection than an allergy, which in people anyway causes a clear discharge.

[tencats]

6. As feline health problems go this could likely be resolved quickly.

I have had several cats with chronic rhinitis(not a like URI) and just last week had another cat clear up very nicely after treatment. Chronic rhinitis has been a condition that currently three of my home cats will suffer with at times. While I have had the condition only occur in my flat faced cats however any cat can have the problem. I recommend that the Vet see the cat and you should be prepared to accurately describe the problem. It will be very helpful to the Vet that you can give a history if the cat has been sneezing. Important are characteristics such as onset, duration, and frequency. Any nasal discharge observed by type (mucoid, purulent, bloody etc.), the amount, is it expelled unilaterally or bilaterally, if the character has changed, and if it is worse at any specific time of the day. Any respiratory sounds? Does the cat make any sound while breathing, with exertion or at rest? Any voice like the meow/purr changes? All this the Vet will need to hear from you since little of this will be exhibited by the cat within the few minutes there are for the examination. The Vet will want to closely look at the cats dental condition and palate, look for facial deformities and any pain that may be indicative of bony involvement often associated with a tumor or fungal infections. My Vet will say it could be possibly be due to recurring feline calici virus or feline herpes virus but we always start up front with a run of antibiotics, any with a good Gram-positive spectrum are good choices. I have had not so good results with Cephalosporin, good results with Clavamox with some cats but my most recent suffering cat needed near 28 days on it. My Vet and likely other Vets will not want to give out Baytril or fluoroquinolone for this problem because its considered "so overkill" but Baytril has worked like a miracle drug here in giving quick and long lasting relief to my cats suffering with chronic rhinitis. Some cats will clear up after just one treatment and others will need the antibiotics pulsed as needed every few months which is perfectly ok with the Vet. My Vet, thankfully, hasn't been too interested in ordering up a radiography of the skull and rhinoscopy especially since we see good results with the antibiotic therapy. From what you describe I think you could do well to have a Vet take a look at your visiting cat.

[ginnyinWI]

7. thanks for the info

I'm going to talk to kitty's real owner and then probably take her in.