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| Bless you, Lola! |
For the first year after Lola came home we practically lived at the vet. After the umpteenth round of antibiotics, I still had a sneezy, stuffy cat. I got fed up with my local vet practice and decided to trek back into Manhattan to Manhattan Cat Specialists (where Lola was medically cared for after her rescue.) After one visit I finally got an answer to her sneezes, stuffies, and runny nose. And Dr. Plotnick informed me that it was not a good idea to continue to treat her with antibiotics because it could lead to an antibiotic resistant infection.
Lola was diagnosed with Chronic Sinusitis, which is usually the result of having a persistent and/or severe upper respiratory infection (URI) which she did indeed have when she was younger. Many cats contract this "cold" in shelters and the herpes virus is usually the culprit. In cases of severe infection, the turbinate bones (which are very delicate) in the nasal passages are damaged by the virus. What does this mean for your cat? She will most likely have a constant low-level of a runny nose and congestion. Not to mention sneezes! Chronic sinusitis can be treated with an antiviral medication called famciclovir. This had little to no effect on Lola, but that's not to say that it wouldn't be effective for your cat.
Lola shows no signs of an upper respiratory infection (lethargy, loss of appetite, fever, etc.) She just has a chronic runny nose, the stuffies, and sneezes. The poor thing will lick her nose when it's running, and I have on many occasion chased her with a tissue to wipe her nose.
She actually does not appear to be bothered with any of this, either. She just goes on with her daily routine, enjoying life and loving her family. Chronic sinusitis has no effect on life span, and Lola is looking forward to a long and happy life.
Does your cat get the sniffles?
Dawn
References:
Dr. Arnold Plotnick;
Cat Has Sneeze Attacks and Sprays Mucous
Is There Danger in Long-Term Prednisone Use?
Photo Credits:
Tambako The Jaguar via Flickr
Jessy B via Flickr
None of us have sniffles, but Crockett has some allergies and gets boogers.
ReplyDeleteBinga has a very low level case of this - she did have a severe cold when she was rescued from the pound, and she has always been the first to get a cold around here. She gets sneezy for seemingly no reason. She has been living with this for so long that my human had no idea that there was an anti-viral medication for it!
ReplyDeleteThe vet thinks Lita has chronic sinus issues, though hers is more congestion than sneezing. I didn't know about that anti-viral medication - very interesting.
ReplyDeleteOh, this is interesting. Years ago, our grandpeep had a cat who had a very serious URI in kittenhood and had this. Her vet diagnosed her with "allergies to humans" but this sounds more plausible, under the circumstances.
ReplyDeleteYou just described Sophie's issues to a T! When we first adopted her, she was chronically congested and had a runny nose. We treated her for URIs multiple times with no change. We ended up switching all our cats to a raw diet, and that actually made a big difference for her. She is no longer congested or suffers from a crusty nose or even runny nose, but she does sneeze out the most disgusting snot wads I've ever seen in my life. Like you said, there is no predicting them, and they are huge and nasty. I have woken up in the morning with one in my hair before!!! haha. Thankfully she doesn't feel sickly and has no other signs of a URI other than nasty snot boogers.
ReplyDeleteAww that poor baby! At least it doesn't bother her, and that is so cute that you wipe her nose with Kleenex. Cody doesn't have chronic sneezing or things like that but he does have skin allergy flare-ups multiple times per year. Usually when the seasons change. Sending your sweetie (((hugs))) catchatwithcarenandcody
ReplyDeleteDawn, thanks for excellent information. The first paragraph cracked me up, visually imagining snot on windows and walls. I've been sneezed on many times by my kitties and know they can spray lots of "snot." Luckily none have suffered from sinusitis. Hugs, Janet
ReplyDeletelola......we due knot.....thanx full lee....get sneezeez veree often but seemz like when we due...they last a few....
ReplyDeletewe R happee ya due knot seem bothered by them.....N hope full lee sum day sum kinda medisin will be made that
can help kleer em up for good ♥♥♥ ~~~~~ waves two lexy
Oh my yes ! Poor Lulu suffers like a human up here in NE Ohio. In fact, that was how I guessed what was going on with her - we had the same symptoms ! Thanks for this extra info !
ReplyDeleteWe didn't realize that cats can have chronic sinusitis. Fortunately none of us are very sneezy.
ReplyDeleteSweet Lola, we're sorry you have the sniffles and sneezes a lot. Our mom is that way too but we've gotten used to her trumpet sound when she blows her nose (the Canada geese flying by are another story, though). Our oldest sister Ruby sneezes but only when she wants attention, we think, and luckily for us, not for our kind of attention.
ReplyDeleteMy Angel Sashi used to go into crazy sneeze sessions and I wonder if she had chronic sinusitus too!
ReplyDeleteMy old boy has chronic sinusitis too. And the medication you mentioned didn't really work him either. He will start sneezing with no warning at all. I don't mind the sneezes, except when he sneezes in my face and mouth. Oh yuck! It doesn't seem to hamper his breathing, and he'll be 17 next May.
ReplyDeleteAaaaaaaaw Weez so sorry poor Lola has da sneezes. Weez not really have dat. Every once in a while weez'll have a allergy or sumfin' tickles our noses and we sneeze, but nuffin' like Lola fur sure. Weez glad she's gunna be okay and live a long and happy life. And weez sendin' purrayers.
ReplyDeleteLuv ya'
Dezi and Lexi
Honestly, I never knew about this. I'm very glad that Lola doesn't suffer at all. I'll admit to being a bit squeamish about the snot, but it's amazing what we happily put up with when we love them so.
ReplyDeletePoor Lola. I am glad it doesn't bother her. I have one, Polar Bear that has the same problem. Once in a while he needs an antibiotic, but the rest of the time he is just sneezy.
ReplyDeleteAfter TW had me for a week, I woke up in the middle of the night sneezing and I couldn’t stop. She didn’t know what to do. She chased me around the house to wipe my nose or make me drink water in case there was a hair on my nose. Eventually after about 10 minutes I stopped. Every time I sneeze she panics that it’s gonna happen again.
ReplyDeletePoor Lola. My cat, Sweet Pea, had the same issue all his life. It lessened a little as he grew older, but he was always a bit sneezy.
ReplyDeleteMoosey has chronic sinusitus, too. The doctors prescribed him Flonase (Fluticasone) @ one drop per nostril, once per day. He's totally fine with getting his drops, and it has really helped over the years.
ReplyDeleteHelping a sneezing kitty right now... and my oldest Katie Too ws sneezing a few days ago... Thank goodness she stopped. Didn't know cats could take Flonase... thanks for the info, Meowmeowmans!
ReplyDeleteThat was an interesting read!! I have never heard of that in cats though the Staff seems to have the human version of it!!!! I do have a persistently runny eye though!! xxx
ReplyDeleteGreat article. I have had two cats over the years that were chronic snotters and created stalagtites around and about the house. My 10 year old girl came to me as a kitten with this issue. After trying many meds and supplements, our vet indicated she had found short term success with nasal flushes. She researched and found that flushes were being done with a cleansing flush followed with a flush with meds tailored to the bacteria found in her nasal passages. Although it didn't completely fix the issue, it greatly reduced the snot production and audible breathing. Like you, we use a lot of magic erasers and love the furkids, so a little snot decorating is a small price to pay for a sweet baby.
ReplyDeleteI remember when Mommy first brought you home and the struggle to figure out what was wrong with you. I am so glad your sneezes don't bother you. Clove doesn't sneeze so much as she does seem to have some congestion at times. We are not sure what causes it, but I suspect it may be a sensitivity to something in the air i.e.: dust, fragrance, etc.
ReplyDeleteI adore you my niece- sneezies, boogies, and all!
Raven is a sneezy kitty but not nearly as severe as Lola. We're often cleaning the wood floors and windows of sneeze marks.
ReplyDeleteDr. Plotnick has excellent information on his website. You're lucky to be close enough to visit him.
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