Cat Cold Medications: What to Give Your Feline

What Medications Can Cats Take for the Cold?

When it comes to treating a cat's cold, antiinflammatory medications are typically the goto. Commonly prescribed drugs include Amoxicillin and Clavulanate Potassium, Doxycycline, Enrofloxacin, and Mefenamic Acid. These can be purchased at a veterinary clinic for petspecific use, but it's crucial to administer them according to the dosage instructions provided. A vital note: after giving the medication, make sure to give your cat 3 to 5 ml of water to drink to prevent the drug from staying in the esophagus and causing esophagitis.

How to Handle a Cat's Cold?

Cats can catch a cold when their immune system is weakened. A cat cold is an acute feverish disease caused by rhinitis of the upper respiratory tract, which is different from the flu humans experience. Unlike the flu, cat colds are generally not caused by the flu virus but are a syndrome.

Typically, if a cat is sneezing, has a runny nose, or watery eyes, pet owners can first observe the situation and take steps to keep the cat warm. This might include placing the cat in a cozy bed, turning on the room's air conditioning, and ensuring the cat stays indoors at night to avoid drafts through open windows.

Cats with a strong immune system often see significant improvement in their symptoms within one to two days. If the above warming measures don't improve the symptoms, but the cat is eating, drinking, and defecating well, an oral antibiotic treatment with Amoxicillin and Clavulanate Potassium can be administered.

However, if symptoms persist for 3 to 5 days or worsen, with signs like excessive eye watering, yellowish discharge, eyes that won't open, drooling, bad breath, or red gums, it's essential to take the cat to a veterinarian.

The vet will check to determine if the cause is the feline herpesvirus or the feline calicivirus (commonly known as feline rhinitis). The early stages of these viral infections can present with similar symptoms. In the later stages, cats may exhibit symptoms like closed eyes, corneal ulcers, drooling, ulcers in the mouth or tongue, and even coughing and pneumonia due to difficulty breathing.

For these types of viral infections, it's necessary to add antiviral medications to the treatment plan. The most common approach is a combination of antibiotics, nutritional support, and antiviral therapy.