My cat has a runny nose and eyes. What should I do?

Question

My cat has a runny nose and very watery eyes. I think he has a cold, but I'm not sure. Do you know if there is any over the counter medicine that I can pick up for my cat?

My cat is still eating cat food and drinking water. I just took him to the vet the other day for his first shots. The vet didn't tell me anything except tell my that he had watery eyes and a runny nose. My vet said that my kitten is probably about 6 weeks old.

Answer 1

The symptoms you are describing are telltale signs of an upper respiratory infection. Another sign will be sores or ulcers on the tongue and in the roof of the mouth.

Unfortunately, there is no safe OTC medicines to give your cat, even the children’s formulas are toxic to kitties.

URIs are easily treatable and the sooner the treatment begins the speedier the recovery. Since it is an infection, he will need medications to clear it, it won’t go away on its own.

He needs to be seen by his vet for the appropriate medications, and his illness couldn't have come at a bad time with the holidays around the corner. There is a credit card just for medical expenses, including veterinary, called Care Credit. I will attach the link so you can see if your vet or a vet in your area takes it. You can apply online.

The only safe things you can do for him at home are:

-- be sure he continues to eat. Cats that can't smell usually won't eat. Try a canned food with a strong odor, such as the seafood flavors. Warm it just slightly in the microwave to bring out the aroma and stir to be sure you don't have any hot spots. You can also give him meat flavored baby food, just be sure to get the ones without onion.

-- be sure he continues to drink. Have plenty of fresh water available and also you can put a little water in his canned food to make it soupy or mushy. Give him filtered or bottled water since many tap waters have chemicals in them and have an unpleasant taste. If he won't drink water, offer unflavored Pedialyte or a 1:1 ratio of unflavored Pedialyte and flat 7-Up.

-- put him the bathroom with you when you shower so the steam may help with the congestion and help him breath.

-- use a very warm washcloth to wipe his eyes and nose, especially when the congestion and drainage gets crusty. Dry his face, don’t leave it wet, the wet fur will chill him.

-- you can use a simple saline solution eye wash in his eyes, the same as you would use in your eyes, but not the solutions made for contacts. Don't use any 'tears' formulas unless recommended by his vet.

-- keep watch for fever. Cats normal temperature is 101-102.5 F, slightly higher than ours, so he will feel warm to you, but if he feels extremely warm, he needs to get to the vet quick.

-- keep watch for dehydration. If kitty starts refusing food and water, he can become dehydrated quickly (especially if there is a fever). It is easy to check for dehydration. Pull up the skin on his back at his neck. If that skin snaps back in place all is okay. If the skin goes back slowly, he is becoming dehydrated. But if the skin stays ‘tented’, he is dehydrated and needs to get to the vet quick.

I hope these ideas help until you can get kitty to the vet.

Purrs to you and kitty.

Answer 2

RE:
My cat has a runny nose and eyes. What should I do?
My cat has a runny nose and very watery eyes. I think he has a cold, but I'm not sure. Do you know if there is any over the counter medicine that I can pick up for my cat?

Answer 3

Your cat most likely has an upper respiratory infection. If left untreaded it will get worse. The runny eyes can get worse and get infected as well. Take it to a vet ASAP. Antibiotics are the only thing that will clear it up. DO NOT give it any over the counter medications!!! They are for humans, not cats, and could be fatal.

Answer 4

Don't use any people cold medicine! Cats are very sensitive to a lot of stuff we use without problems.
Likely this is a virus, just feed him wet food so he gets enough water. Sometimes warming the food helps because it brings out the smell. If you can't get him to eat, better head for the vet.
How old is the cat and has he had his vaccines lately? I ask because the "distemper " vaccine is made to cut down on this kind of thing. If he hasn't had any you can't do it when he's sick but might want to get him updated when he's over this.

Answer 5

He might have an allergic reaction to something, I had a cat that did the same thing and we found out that he had an allergic reaction to some food that we fed him. Our vet just told us to stop feeding him the food that we were giving him and to give him some benadryl. But, just as a human, back track anything new that you introduced him to and take those items away and then you'll figure out if it's an allergic reaction. The benadryl worked for my cat.

Answer 6

Erectile Dysfunction can be devastating to men, and unfortunately, millions of men suffer from the condition. Learn how to cure erectile dysfunction https://tr.im/kdb8R

If you go to the doctor to talk about the issue, you’re likely to get put on one or more of the popular medications used to treat the condition. While they can be effective (temporarily), these medications come with a raft of side effects, some of which are decidedly unpleasant. Even worse, these medications aren’t really a cure, they’re more like a temporary workaround.

Worst of all, they tend to be really expensive. Month after month, you’re having to pay to work around your condition. That’s what the Big Pharmaceutical companies want.

Answer 7

Hi, it sounds like a cold or the start of cat flu which can be fatal.Even a cold is serious for a cat particular if it's so young,you must take him to the vets asap before he get worse.

Answer 8

As much as you wont want to hear this, he needs to go to the vet. Colds in cats end up as upper respitory infection, which can be deadly in cats. One of mine got sick 2 wks ago, didnt take her in when I should have, so now in a wks time she lost 1 pound, had to have 200cc's of fluid injected in her, given a double dose of penicillon. Thats just at the vets. At home I have to force feed her 2 times a day with a syringe, and force feed her 2 different kinds of meds. Which just stresses us both out. Please please take her in so she can get better. And oh this whole thing ended up costing my $120. Hard lesson to learn. Wont do it again. Good luck

Answer 9

Upper respiratory infections can get pretty bad for felines. If your cat is still eating, you may be able to nix the problem and heal your cat by feeding your cat canned foods mixed in with crushed cat vitamins, and natural b12 supplements. (crush the vitamins on paper using a spoon and mix in with the canned cat food)

However...as soon as you notice your cat not eating anymore...seek the vet immediately. At that point they need medicine to combat the infection.

Answer 10

1