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#1
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Cats and Colds
So you have a kitten who is sneezing. You figure, just like a person, he
probably has a cold that will run its course and then he will be fine. Why take him to the vet? After all, this is the case with people, so why not cats? Unlike humans, cats have very small nasal passages relative to their bodies, that fill up quickly. Unlike humans, cats lose their appetites easily when they lose their senses of smell. Unlike humans, cats can get into trouble very quickly if they stop eating even for a few days. Why? There are many reasons I will not pretend to know all of them. One is that cats get a lot of their moisture from food---they have different drinking habits than we do. So they can get dehydrated more quickly. When the do, they feel really lousy and the original problem is exacerbated because when they feel really lousy they don't WANT to eat. These are good enough reasons for most people who care about their cats to take them in when they see signs of a cold or "URI" (upper respiratory infection) so that the vet can prescribe something to lessen the congestion, help with other symptoms of the cold, and help make sure that a common cold does not turn into a more serious infection. -- Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com |
#2
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Cats and Colds
cybercat wrote:
Unlike humans, cats lose their appetites easily when they lose their senses of smell. Yes, that happened to a cat of mine and I took her to the vet. She had cryptococcus and after over a year of medicine costing thousands of dollars she is fine. Unlike humans, cats can get into trouble very quickly if they stop eating even for a few days. Yes she did stop eating, I had to syringe feed her for a month. BUT THIS HASN'T HAPPENED TO ANY OF THE CURRENT CATS THAT ARE SNEEZING. These are good enough reasons for most people who care about their cats to take them in when they see signs of a cold or "URI" (upper respiratory infection) so that the vet can prescribe something to lessen the congestion, help with other symptoms of the cold, and help make sure that a common cold does not turn into a more serious infection. Well, most of the vet sites I checked beg to differ. If the cat is eating, active, not depressed and has no thick nasal discharge they can just be watched. ITS ALL ABOUT GOING TO THE VET WHEN APPROPRIATE, NOT EVERY TIME YOUR CAT LOOKS AT YOU CROSSEYED. THATS IT WITH YOU CYBER. PLONK! |
#3
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Cats and Colds
But Cybercat all that would be some what common sense or if some one that
took the time to do a little resaerch instead of comming to the groups and making smart comments Since they have the internet they can easily google feline sneezing and get these results http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=feline+sneezing or they can google feline upper respiratory infection and get these results http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q...& btnG=Search I glad people come and ask for help but when will they realize that we are not vets and the best way to insure the health of their furballs is to take them to a trusted vet; who are trained to evaluate and treat problems. All we can do is give our experience with certain matters like my self who can give experience of having a prodactyl cat, an epileptic cat and a diabetic cat If you own a furball it is you responsibility to make sure to take care of them. I always love the excuse we don't have the money sometimes I can believe that; it is the truth, but sacrifices need to be made how much did you just spend to go out and eat or buy that 6 pack or that pack of smokes. I make a rule even though I have enough money to pay for any vet bill that comes up before this time I always took about $10 a cat per month and put it away in a savings account. If I had to take a daily work daily pay job in between my regular job I did it. I did not use that money for anything just kept adding to it. It came in handy many of times when I needed money and did not have extra to use. I remember many of nights eating a 20 cent rice bag and those 5 cents noodles packs for the fur babies need to eat and be taken care of. Maybe I am just from a different age and was raised to do the right thing. |
#4
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Cats and Colds
Matthew wrote:
But Cybercat all that would be some what common sense or if some one that took the time to do a little resaerch instead of comming to the groups and making smart comments Since they have the internet they can easily google feline sneezing and get these results http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=feline+sneezing or they can google feline upper respiratory infection and get these results http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q...& btnG=Search I glad people come and ask for help but when will they realize that we are not vets and the best way to insure the health of their furballs is to take them to a trusted vet; who are trained to evaluate and treat problems. All we can do is give our experience with certain matters like my self who can give experience of having a prodactyl cat, an epileptic cat and a diabetic cat If you own a furball it is you responsibility to make sure to take care of them. I always love the excuse we don't have the money sometimes I can believe that; it is the truth, but sacrifices need to be made how much did you just spend to go out and eat or buy that 6 pack or that pack of smokes. I make a rule even though I have enough money to pay for any vet bill that comes up before this time I always took about $10 a cat per month and put it away in a savings account. If I had to take a daily work daily pay job in between my regular job I did it. I did not use that money for anything just kept adding to it. It came in handy many of times when I needed money and did not have extra to use. I remember many of nights eating a 20 cent rice bag and those 5 cents noodles packs for the fur babies need to eat and be taken care of. Maybe I am just from a different age and was raised to do the right thing. Before you shove the innuendo around that I was not raised to do the right thing re-read the original post. These are a stray mother and the kittens she had on my back porch. I put them in a room in my house. I have already had them vaccinated and spayed / neutered. So I am doing the right thing. I suppose I should have sprayed the garden hose on them when they were on the porch and scared them off. Then jerks like you wouldn't be implying that I am too cheap to take them to the vet because they wouldn't be here. If I was cheap they would have gone to animal control and been put down the first day I saw them. JERK |
#5
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Cats and Colds
"w" What did I imply? Did I mention your name? or is it just your own guilty conscience getting the best of you. I made a general view of people coming to the group. You are not the first that has complained about money and you won't be the last it was a generalized view but If the truth hurts that is your own conscience winning out And making the last comment that you made! Do you really think anyone will really give care what you think? All we care about id the health and well being of the furballs. If I am jerk for telling the truth than I am a jerk and I will be proud of it. But it looks like my words by your comments already did more good than you will ever let on. |
#6
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Cats and Colds
"w" wrote in message news cybercat wrote: Unlike humans, cats lose their appetites easily when they lose their senses of smell. Yes, that happened to a cat of mine and I took her to the vet. She had cryptococcus and after over a year of medicine costing thousands of dollars she is fine. Unlike humans, cats can get into trouble very quickly if they stop eating even for a few days. Yes she did stop eating, I had to syringe feed her for a month. BUT THIS HASN'T HAPPENED TO ANY OF THE CURRENT CATS THAT ARE SNEEZING. These are good enough reasons for most people who care about their cats to take them in when they see signs of a cold or "URI" (upper respiratory infection) so that the vet can prescribe something to lessen the congestion, help with other symptoms of the cold, and help make sure that a common cold does not turn into a more serious infection. Well, most of the vet sites I checked beg to differ. If the cat is eating, active, not depressed and has no thick nasal discharge they can just be watched. ITS ALL ABOUT GOING TO THE VET WHEN APPROPRIATE, NOT EVERY TIME YOUR CAT LOOKS AT YOU CROSSEYED. THATS IT WITH YOU CYBER. PLONK! ow lol -- Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com |
#7
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Cats and Colds
"Matthew" wrote in message ... "w" What did I imply? Did I mention your name? or is it just your own guilty conscience getting the best of you. I made a general view of people coming to the group. You are not the first that has complained about money and you won't be the last it was a generalized view but If the truth hurts that is your own conscience winning out And making the last comment that you made! Do you really think anyone will really give care what you think? All we care about id the health and well being of the furballs. If I am jerk for telling the truth than I am a jerk and I will be proud of it. But it looks like my words by your comments already did more good than you will ever let on. Have you figured out what kind of help it wants? It clearly said, "HELP" in the original post. That is all I asked it. Sheesh, people are so touchy. -- Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com |
#8
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Cats and Colds
cybercat wrote:
These are good enough reasons for most people who care about their cats to take them in when they see signs of a cold or "URI" (upper respiratory infection) so that the vet can prescribe something to lessen the congestion, help with other symptoms of the cold, and help make sure that a common cold does not turn into a more serious infection. I wish vets could help with the congestion. We've gone through bouts of URI viruses here, and the scariest is when they can hardly breathe and can't eat. The vets (including the emergency vet) have never prescribed a decongestant -- I thought it was because there is not one for cats. They have always told me the virus has to run it's course and we just have to try to strengthen the immune system. We had to buy the stinkiest food imaginable and tackle it that way. For kittens and older cats they have prescribed antibiotics in case it was traveling into their chests, and we have at times done antibiotic eye drops when their eyes get infected. I never know what to do about the congestion. Vets have told me to put them in the bathroom while we shower. When our diabetic cat stopped eating (which nearly gave me heart failure) I spent lots of time with him under a towel, the both of us over a boiling pan of water. I ended up force-feeding him for days. If anyone knows of decongestants for cats, I hope I never have to use them but I would love to know. Rhonda |
#9
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Cats and Colds
"Rhonda" wrote I wish vets could help with the congestion. We've gone through bouts of URI viruses here, and the scariest is when they can hardly breathe and can't eat. The vets (including the emergency vet) have never prescribed a decongestant -- I thought it was because there is not one for cats. They have always told me the virus has to run it's course and we just have to try to strengthen the immune system. We had to buy the stinkiest food imaginable and tackle it that way. For kittens and older cats they have prescribed antibiotics in case it was traveling into their chests, and we have at times done antibiotic eye drops when their eyes get infected. I never know what to do about the congestion. Vets have told me to put them in the bathroom while we shower. When our diabetic cat stopped eating (which nearly gave me heart failure) I spent lots of time with him under a towel, the both of us over a boiling pan of water. I ended up force-feeding him for days. If anyone knows of decongestants for cats, I hope I never have to use them but I would love to know. Maybe Phil--your favorite guy--has some ideas. I know that when I give Gracie Chlortrimeton for her allergies, the "thickness" in her purr decreases--after she wakes up from sleeping 26 hours a day instead of 23! But I am sure it would not work the same for a UTI. It seems to me there must be a down side to using decongestants on cats. Because lungs are lungs, you know? But then, I know cat physiology is very different from human physiology. |
#10
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Cats and Colds
On Sun 01 Jul 2007 01:35:02p, Rhonda wrote in
rec.pets.cats.health+behav : For kittens and older cats they have prescribed antibiotics in case it was traveling into their chests, and we have at times done antibiotic eye drops when their eyes get infected. Same here - Rhett and Scarlett had a couple of rounds of antibiotics but only if the nasal discharge was ? Clear? Yellow? I can't remember which, but I tend to think yellow. Other times, no antibiotics at all, but yes on the eye drops or more commonly for them, ointment. I never know what to do about the congestion. Vets have told me to put them in the bathroom while we shower. When our diabetic cat stopped eating (which nearly gave me heart failure) I spent lots of time with him under a towel, the both of us over a boiling pan of water. I ended up force-feeding him for days. I know how scary that can be and it takes a lot of dedication to get them through that! If anyone knows of decongestants for cats, I hope I never have to use them but I would love to know. Our vet prescribed Chlor-Trimaton several times, even for kittens. Just a very small dose 1x per day until the breathing clears. It worked wonders. For Bonnie, who sometimes gets a runny nose this time of year, she will get an injectable antihistamine from the vet. Fast-acting and seemingly long-lasting for her. It only takes one shot when it happens. -- Cheryl |
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