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    antmania's Avatar
    antmania Posts: 3, Reputation: 1
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    #1

    Mar 28, 2011, 12:09 PM
    My Cat keeps swallowing slime and has lost voice
    Hello.
    I have a 6 yr old Balinese cat who for the last 2 years on and off has been having problems with breathing.
    Sometimes her nose seems blocked and has watery eyes and she keeps swallowing a lot.
    Now recently her voice has gone.
    Her lungs have been checked and are fine, she has had antibiotics which worked the first couple of times but have no effect this time.
    Tried everything possible like treating for asthma and feline herpes (which may still be the cause) but still she doesn't fully get better.
    She normally still plays and eats OK but seems tired and thin at the moment, probably due to the drugs she had injected 3 times the last week or so.
    Any help appreciated.
    Craig, Germany
    grammadidi's Avatar
    grammadidi Posts: 1,182, Reputation: 468
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    #2

    Mar 28, 2011, 12:52 PM

    Sorry that your cat is having these problems. I was wondering, what has she been vaccinated against and when did she receive her last vaccinations?
    antmania's Avatar
    antmania Posts: 3, Reputation: 1
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    #3

    Mar 29, 2011, 08:50 AM
    Thanks for reply
    She has had all the common vaccinations and for the first 4 years, was in relatively good health.
    Just the last 2 on and off she has beeen having these problems. It reminds me of people when they have sinusitis, blocked nasal ways with horrible yellow fluid, which I have had before.
    It is definitely an upper respitory problem with her as lungs have been checked by 3 different vets.
    Nobody has pinpointed the reason for her always gagging and trying to clear her airways.
    Asthma, herpes and allergy are possibilities but just put this out there for anyone who has had similar problems.
    Thanks anyway
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    grammadidi Posts: 1,182, Reputation: 468
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    #4

    Mar 29, 2011, 10:22 AM

    Yes, I understand what you are saying. That's why I wanted to know exactly what vaccines she had and when.

    I had 4 cats, a mother, 2 of her adult "kittens" and a stray. (I now only have 3.) Anyhow, one of the "kittens" would be almost exactly the same as your cat. It seemed to start when she was 2 years old and I realized that it was happening about a week or so after she was vaccinated every year. At first I had thought she had swallowed something and was choking, then realized it was like she had the flu. She would suffer for several weeks, then it would gradually clear up. Testing for an exact cause can be quite costly, but we eliminated all vaccines created by a live virus one year and she didn't have a reaction that year. Sadly, we moved about 2 months after that and she escaped from the new home the second day by sneaking out the door quickly (totally uncharacteristic of her) and we never saw her again, so we were unable to gradually introduce vaccines back into her system to determine which one it was. The theory was that she MAY have been triggered either by something IN one of her vaccines OR by the FVR vaccine itself.

    Anyhow, it very much sounds like feline viral rhinotracheitis (caused by the herpesvirus) to me. I believe that the vaccine is not 100% effective in preventing the disease but it does tend to lessen the effects. Also note that some cats are carriers so I don't know if your cat is ever around other cats, but if so, one of them may be a carrier. It is a relatively newly discovered disease (I think it was discovered in the late 50's) and I think we have a lot to learn about it yet.

    My suggestion would be that if you see a correlation between the onset of her symptoms with her regular course of vaccines then when it comes time for her next set of vaccines that you eliminate the FVR vaccine and have that given a week or two after her other vaccines. I break my Bernese Mountain Dogs vaccines up for a similar reason and it works great.

    If it doesn't seem related to her regular vaccines, could there be something else triggering it? For example, could the onset of spring, a flea medication, a shampoo, etc. potentially be a trigger? Is she inside all winter then when she begins to go outside in the nicer weather does she come down with these symptoms? If so, then you might have found a solution.

    Let me know your thoughts. I hope with my input you might be able to figure out what is triggering these symptoms.

    Hugs, Didi
    grammadidi's Avatar
    grammadidi Posts: 1,182, Reputation: 468
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    #5

    Mar 29, 2011, 10:40 AM

    Oh! Sorry, I forgot the most important thing! Ask your vet which type of vaccine they use for FVR! One is made of the killed virus and is likely safer for your cat if she seems to be having a reaction. There are 2 other vaccines. Both are from a modified live virus (one is injected the other is given intra-nasally. Your cat could be having a reaction due to a change in the type she has been given! That would be the first consideration in my opinion!

    Hope this helps get to the bottom of this!

    Hugs, Didi
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    antmania Posts: 3, Reputation: 1
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    #6

    Mar 30, 2011, 10:53 AM
    Comment on grammadidi's post
    Thanks again Didi
    She had all her vaccinations when she was a kitten and staying with her previous owner and there were no effects visible until 2 years ago when this illness started.
    My Girlfriend is convinced it is an allergy but that could be absolutely anything, we do live in a basement apartment which has had signs of mildew which we have done our best to clean up, changed her toilet litter and used other washing powder etc etc
    We are looking for another place anyway so maybe we will get the answers soon.
    I should point out she has a brother who is our other cat but he shows no signs of this illness what she has.
    My feeling was also herpes which cannot be cured I know but she only shows some of those symptoms I have read about.
    No vet seems to have any idea what is wrong, none of them can see anything and her lungs are clear, but she still has trouble breathing, and always swallowing, and recently bringing up her food 3 or 4 times a day.
    I am at a loss to be honest.

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