"Cazz A" wrote in message
u...

Thanks Matthew, that was very useful.

Swab eye and nose discharges with salt water (one teaspoon of salt to one
pint of water)
I've been using warmed water on a cotton bud from my first aid kit. How
much water's in a pint? Sorry, in Australia, everything's metric!

Try to keep the room well ventilated and not stuffy (you may even want to
place a bowl of steamy water near them to try and help them breath, but
never leave your cat alone with hot water)
I didn't think of the bowl, Lu joined me in the bathroom for a shower(I
left him curled under a towel, but he decided to save me from the awful
wet stuff!

Provide very smelly foods like pilchards because they may have a reduced
sense of smell, and cut them up into small pieces
I give them tinned 'Seafood Delight' food. It doesn't have all the sick
kitties need, but because the flu's not permanent, I don't think it
matters, does it?

A little cream or ice cream may also tempt them to eat, as it may sooth
sore throats.
Would cat milk(the lactose free stuff) accomplish the same goal?

Keep the environment quiet and stress free
Prevent cat Flu in the first place
This bit I really don't understand. Is there any real way to prevent it?
Aren't their viruses like humans, a fact of life? If I have a carrier of
this flu and all my cats have it, wouldn't the non carriers be immune to
catching it again until it mutates and some other cat brings the mutated
virus back to my colony?

Once a cat has cat flu they may become a carrier of the disease which may
either make them sick again in the future even if they have not come in
to contact with another sick cat, or they may infect other cats.
This is one of the main reasons for having your healthy cat vaccinated
against the disease, as you can never be sure which cats they come into
contact with, you may even inadvertently spread the disease yourself by
stroking a seemingly healthy cat who may be carrying the illness.
Isn't it impossible to vaccinate against a virus? All vaccinations do is
stop the virus from being fatal, that doesn't stop a secondary infection
from killing the cat.

Is there a proper name for this illness? "Cat flu" probably not very
accurate.