Natural Pet Health

A lot of people would like to know whether their dogs and cats can catch common colds like humans do. The answer is YES and NO!

Symptoms like a runny nose, sneezing and coughing can develop as a result of a viral, bacterial or fungal infection in the canine or feline respiratory system. But while human colds are usually associated with a change in season, cat and dog colds are independent of seasonality and are usually caused by a virus.

Many pet owners bring their dog or cat to a vet, kennel or cattery while traveling. The risk of infection increases greatly. In addition, the holidays are often a time of high-travel, and pets may come along for the journey.

Conditions on an airplane or other places of high traffic are also grounds for germs and illness for pets, just as they are for humans. Even exposure to a family member’s pet, strange food, and disturbed living environment can cause stress and wreak havoc on an animal’s immune system.

Therefore, taking a proactive approach to your pet’s health is just as important as it is for your own.

Protective Care & Symptom Relief for Cats

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Nasal infections in cats may be viral, bacterial or fungal. The primary symptom of all these infections is a nasal discharge which turns from serous (thin and clear) to purulent (thick with yellowish green pus) if the infection continues over a period of time. Other symptoms include sneezing, coughing and gagging. Nasal infections usually lead to refusal to eat as the cat is not able to smell food.

Any feline respiratory disease that originates in the nasal cavity causes irritation and consequently inflammation in the turbinates, the scrolled spongy bones in the nasal passage. These delicate bones are easily twisted and pressed out of shape or even destroyed. This easily allows bacteria that are normally present in the nasal cavity to grow rapidly, leading to secondary infections.

The frontal sinuses that are located just above the eyes are connected to the nasal cavity through a small canal. Cat respiratory infections spread to the sinuses through this canal causing sinusitis.

There is no cure for viral infections but they are self limiting and usually disappear after a week or two. The best that you can do for your cat is to try to alleviate symptoms of viral infection by keeping her in a warm and moist environment. If the symptoms are severe, Interferon, an antiviral protein that inhibits replication of viruses may be used to restrict the duration of the infection.

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Generally a cold is an inflammation of the nose and throat characterized by increased production of mucus. While human colds are associated with a change in season, cat colds are independent of seasonality and are usually caused by a virus.

The most important thing to note is that a virus must run its course and cannot be killed by drugs. Treating viral infections, especially in the feline respiratory tract is futile.

That said, cat owners should remember that although the symptoms of cat colds are similar to those experienced by humans, there is a vast difference in how feline colds should be managed. One of the common viruses that cause cold-like symptoms in cats is feline calicivirus, which belongs to a family of viruses that continually change their compositions. Moreover, feline upper respiratory infection  tends to progress due to a vulnerability to secondary infections.

You will be required to cure cat colds only if the underlying cause has been identified as a bacterial infection. Otherwise cat cold must run its course. Cats are likely to sneeze and sleep a lot during the course of the infection, which can last between 7 to 14 days at the maximum. You can make use of some time tested home remedies, herbal cures and homeopathic remedies to alleviate the symptoms.

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Homeopathic vaccine temporarily relieves feline flu symptoms including sneezing, nasal congestion and fever - natural cat flu remedy

Viral support for your cat

All cats are exposed to different viruses during their lives. Just as for humans, the younger or the older the animal, the greater it’s susceptibility to illness.

When a feline’s immune system is battling a virus, the mouth, nasal passages, sinuses, and upper airways can be affected, breathing can become hampered, and airways can become increasingly blocked and congested.

Conventional vaccines are not recommended for young kittens or for pregnant queens, leaving these cats at a greater risk for ill health. Symptoms may be mild or severe, and are unpleasant for the poor animal.

They are often similar to that of a head cold in humans, such as sneezing, nasal discharge, fever, rhinitis (inflammation of the nasal mucous membranes), runny eyes, and salivation.

Ulceration of the tongue and palate are also regularly seen in cats. Lameness in cats, also known as limping syndrome, can also be a symptom. Feline health can be further hampered by secondary conditions.

Why the vaccine controversy?

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Colds are bothersome both for humans and cats but cat colds are different from common colds, the characteristically seasonal illness that humans experience.

The difference lies in the fact that common colds are not dangerous for humans but they can prove to be the harbinger of serious infections in cats.

If the cold has been caused due to a virus that is producing cold-like symptoms of watery eyes and nose, sneezing and coughing, then the only care that you can provide for your cat is to symptomatic treatment as there is no drug that is effective against viruses.

The infectious viral agent must live its course for the infection to disappear. The rule of the thumb to distinguish between viral and bacterial infections is that the nasal discharge in the latter is thick, opaque and yellowish green in color.

Regardless of the fact that the symptoms are due to a viral or bacterial infection, the cat needs your help in making her comfortable for as long as the symptoms remain.

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The throat is the passage to the stomach and lungs and is closely associated with the cat respiratory system. This is the reason why throat problems are a bit difficult to differentiate from feline respiratory diseases. Generally speaking, the term throat problem is used to define hoarseness and difficulty in swallowing.

In anatomy, the throat is the frontal part of the neck. It consists of the larynx and pharynx. The throat also contains several pharyngeal muscles, blood vessels, esophagus and the windpipe (trachea). One of the important features of the throat is the epiglottis, a cartilaginous flap that covers the trachea while swallowing.

The voice box or the larynx is situated at the top of the trachea through which the air passes on towards the stomach and lungs. A past history of frequent respiratory infection by the herpes virus and reckless use of antibiotics may cause damage to the turbinate bones in the nasal cavity. This allows infection to easily occur in the airways and lead to hoarseness in cats.

Such respiratory infection, irrespective of the agent that causes it, is characterized by sneezing, coughing and nasal discharge. Most of the viral respiratory infections require treatment only for minimizing the risk of secondary infection.

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Cat colds are neither as common nor similar to human colds except for the trouble they cause. Coughing and sneezing can be as problematic as the watery eyes and nose. In as far as human colds are concerned we all know that they are self limiting in nature and that the symptoms disappear after a few days.

All that we need is some home remedies to reduce the severity of the running nose and watery eyes. It is almost similar with cats but cat colds are not always that simple. Cold-like symptoms in cats can also be caused due to a feline upper respiratory infection.

You can safely assume that there is nothing serious if the nasal discharge appears as clear water-like serous fluid. When the runny nose is watery in nature, the cold is likely be due to a simple viral infection.

These viral infections should be allowed to run their course since there is actually no cure for viral infections. You may however, try to cut down on the duration of the diseases with some home remedies.

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Cat flu is a general name given to infectious acute feline respiratory disease caused by a number of organisms. It is commonly seen in cats that have not been vaccinated, especially when they are kept in an over-crowded, dusty environment with poor ventilation and high humidity.

A huge majority (almost 80%) of the infections are caused either by feline calicivirus (FCV) or feline rhinotracheitis virus (FRV or herpes virus). The rest are caused by organisms known as Feline coronavirus, Bordetella bronchiseptica, Pasturella multocida, Mycoplasma (parasitic bacteria) or Chlamydophila felis. Many cases of cat flu are tested positive for infection by more than one of these infectious agents.

Cat flu is a contagious disease and even cats without visible signs of the infection may pass it on to a healthy cat. The symptoms of cat flu include:

- Coughing.
- Sneezing.
- Watery eyes.
- Conjunctivitis, the inflammation of the mucous membrane that covers the eyeball.
- Nasal discharge that is initially serous but later comprises of mucous and pus.
- Tongue and mouth ulcerations.
- Increased secretion of saliva.
- Appetite loss.
- Fever.
- Limping syndrome, seen mostly in infection by the feline calicivirus.

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If your cat is coughing and sneezing or has watery eyes or is expelling serous or opaque discharge from the nose, you are most likely to equate it with common colds that humans normally suffer from.

Although cat colds too are self limiting in nature, cats do not suffer colds the way humans do. Cat colds normally turn out to be one of the feline respiratory diseases and these seemingly harmless symptoms may progress into something serious.

The most common agents that infect cat respiratory tract are feline rhinotracheitis virus (herpes virus) and feline calicivirus. The herpes virus produces more severe symptoms and also tends to recur frequently. In both cases the infection runs it own course and the cat recovers within a couple of weeks. This, however, is no reason for complacency.

Frequent infections are liable to damage to the mucus secreting membrane of the nasal passage and lead to secondary infection of the spongy nasal bones and bone marrow. This is a chronic condition known as post-viral rhinitis (inflammation of the mucous membrane lining the nose usually associated with nasal discharge).

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Sinus infections

The sinuses are bony cavities in the skull that meet up with the nasal cavities and are prone to infection, especially after a cold or other upper respiratory tract infection.

In cats and dogs, sinus infections may be caused by bacteria, fungi or viruses and are sometimes even associated with tooth abscesses.