Sneezing

[tessblack]

Hoping someone can give me some advice here. Twitch is still sneezing a bit but it is dry and mostly when she sticks her nose somewhere. I took her to the vet and she could not find anything wrong. She suggested an antihistamine or antibiotic. I don't want to put her on either when I don't really know what it is. The antihistamine will make here drowsy so I am trying to figure out another options.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
tess

 

[Mews2much]

It could be allergy.

 

[susi794]

Try some L Lysine.

 

[kalliee129]

When I first got Meecho she had a cold that just never went away. She was always sneezing and it was a mixture of lots of snot to totally dry depending on the weather. We had tried everything and it would cure it for two weeks max and then come back. It almost felt like she would grow an immunity to the anitbotics and it wouldn't help anymore. For almost a year she had this sneeze and I was actually getting used to the fact that I was just going to have to live with a cat that sneezed all the time. Then we put her on Lysine powder that I just sprinkle over her dry food. Her sneezing has practically been gone for about two months now. She does sneeze occasionally but it's so random I can't really say she's a sneezer anymore. What ever you do don't give up hope.

 

[Sam lewis]

Oh dear poor little Twitch hope it gets better and you find a solution soon.

 

[sydkat7]

I wish I had a good answer for you, but I'm having that problem with Piglet lately too. Lately Piglet has been sneezing more than normal, but today she sneezed so hard, she sneezed out blood as well as snot. She shot out several large droplets of blood that ended up on my kitchen floor.

I wanted to take her to the vet but the vet's office is closed today and I'm not sure if this is serious enough to take her to the animal ER. She seems fine now; she's sneezed a couple of times afterwards with no blood coming from her nose. She's eating and drinking like she usually does and is acting pretty normal.

Does anybody here have any idea what would cause her to sneeze blood that one time? Or any advice on what I should do with her now? The weather here in Colorado is extremely dry, which sometimes affects the nasal passages. I sometimes get a bloody nose too when I have bad nasal congestion. Maybe lysine would be a good idea for Piglet as well?

 

[PitRottMommy]

I agree with a lot of the recommendations here. You could be dealing with a few problems. L-lysine is going to be one of the most beneficial if this is secondary to a herpes infection. It cannot hurt to give lysine to your companion and there are a variety of ways to give it: powder, gel, treats, etc.

If you haven't seen improvements within 7 days with the lysine, I would recommend trying antihistamines. The changing of seasons, increased amounts of floating debris, bringing new items into the home, decorations, family, etc can ALL lead to increases in air-borne irritants that can cause sneezing. Sleepiness is about the only downfall to antihistamines and they don't always cause this symptom. For this reason, the safety level on a trial of antihistamines is rather high.

If neither the lysine nor the antihistamines work, I'd recommend going with a course of antibiotics. At such a point, you've already attempted to eliminate a viral source and an atopic allergy source...the next step is to try and eliminate a bacterial problem.

In an side note, you're leaving the recommendation of a doctor for the assistance of those of us who are hobby owners. The person you just paid to advise you spent 7+ years in school to help you with your companion's health care...why not take their recommendations? There are many, many places on the internet that will lead you in the wrong direction and can actually cause more harm to your pet than it will help. Keep your eyes pealed for anything that doesn't sound right before trying it on your pet. Above all, if you're not certain...call your vet.

 

[PitRottMommy]

Sydkat, I'd recommend getting a humidifier for your home. It sounds like Piglet is having respiratory problems that are causing such irritation that its damaging the lining of her mucus membranes along her respiratory tract. When you say that you also get a bloody nose, this practically confirms just how dry the air is in your home. If this happens again, take Piglet into the bathroom, close the door and run the water on hot to get the bathroom steamy. Leave her there (and stay yourself, if the problems continue to persist on your end) with consistent monitoring for 30 minutes. This should add enough moisture to stop the problem for a short period of time. Longer lasting effects should be achieved through the humidifier.

If it does continue to be a problem for her, definitely take her to the vet. If no benefit is achieved through their recommendation, consider rhinoscopy (viewing the inside of the nose with a camera while she's sedated) to determine if she has any polyps or respiratory lining complications that are causing her to sneeze blood. Generally, if there are any real problems with the nose, the pet has continual issues with profuse bloody sneezing and they will paw their face with some regularity. That being said, it wouldn't hurt one bit to put her on lysine.

 

[Brooke]

Sydkat, I'd recommend getting a humidifier for your home. It sounds like Piglet is having respiratory problems that are causing such irritation that its damaging the lining of her mucus membranes along her respiratory tract. When you say that you also get a bloody nose, this practically confirms just how dry the air is in your home. If this happens again, take Piglet into the bathroom, close the door and run the water on hot to get the bathroom steamy. Leave her there (and stay yourself, if the problems continue to persist on your end) with consistent monitoring for 30 minutes. This should add enough moisture to stop the problem for a short period of time. Longer lasting effects should be achieved through the humidifier.

If it does continue to be a problem for her, definitely take her to the vet. If no benefit is achieved through their recommendation, consider rhinoscopy (viewing the inside of the nose with a camera while she's sedated) to determine if she has any polyps or respiratory lining complications that are causing her to sneeze blood. Generally, if there are any real problems with the nose, the pet has continual issues with profuse bloody sneezing and they will paw their face with some regularity. That being said, it wouldn't hurt one bit to put her on lysine.

Yes, I was going to recommend taking Piglet in the bathroom with you when you take a hot shower. The moist air will probably make her feel better!

 

[PitRottMommy]

Yes, I was going to recommend taking Piglet in the bathroom with you when you take a hot shower. The moist air will probably make her feel better!

Maybe she'll want a bubble bath too. That always makes me feel better.

 

[sydkat7]

Maybe she'll want a bubble bath too. That always makes me feel better.

Yeah, that'll probably help me, too.

PitRottMommy, thanks much for the advice. Unfortunately I don't have a humidifier for the entire house nor can I afford to have one installed right now. However, I did find an old room humidifer that I ran last night to help Piglet's and my sinuses. I'm breathing a little better this morning and Piglet seems to be feeling better as well. Hopefully this'll do the trick. I'll also look into getting some lysine treats for Piglet very soon.

 

[kalliee129]

Yeah, that'll probably help me, too.

PitRottMommy, thanks much for the advice. Unfortunately I don't have a humidifier for the entire house nor can I afford to have one installed right now. However, I did find an old room humidifer that I ran last night to help Piglet's and my sinuses. I'm breathing a little better this morning and Piglet seems to be feeling better as well. Hopefully this'll do the trick. I'll also look into getting some lysine treats for Piglet very soon.

The hot shower will work wonders too. I can't stand the sound of a humidifer no matter how silent some of them claim to be. Rarely- but it does happen you can see a little blood in Meecho's snot when it does come out and my vet recommended the hot shower. It works because she gets her air ways cleaned and I get a hot,relaxing shower. It's a win win situation. It would be a better one if she would stop yowling though Jeeze give a cat a shower once a week and they get paranoid :Laugh:

 

[PitRottMommy]

Yeah, that'll probably help me, too.

PitRottMommy, thanks much for the advice. Unfortunately I don't have a humidifier for the entire house nor can I afford to have one installed right now. However, I did find an old room humidifer that I ran last night to help Piglet's and my sinuses. I'm breathing a little better this morning and Piglet seems to be feeling better as well. Hopefully this'll do the trick. I'll also look into getting some lysine treats for Piglet very soon.

You can essentially make your own by boiling a very large pot of water each day until the pan has run dry.

Another option is to use a smaller humidifier in a room you both spend a great deal of time in. For our home, that's our bedroom.

 

[sydkat7]

You can essentially make your own by boiling a very large pot of water each day until the pan has run dry.

Another option is to use a smaller humidifier in a room you both spend a great deal of time in. For our home, that's our bedroom.

Fortunately the room humidifier I have is a good, well-made German model, so it's still running great. I use it in my bedroom because that's where the cats hang out at most.