Well, it’s been a month since he had his antibiotics, which largely cleared his cold up, but little Edison is still sneezing sometimes, and sometimes his eyes run. He’s going in to the vet tomorrow just to make sure he’s okay, so don’t worry. And he’s eating and crapping and running around like a maniac (except right now when he’s asleep with his head on my leg) so his behavior doesn’t suggest he feels particularly rotten.
A few weeks ago I called to ask if I should worry, and the lady at the Cat Clinic suggested I try putting lysine in his food. (Which, FYI, would mean I’d have to also put it in Dewey’s food, since they cry and cry if seperated. Dewey is almost 2 and perfectly healthy.) She suggested crushing tablets from the drugstore and sprinkling them in wet food. Aside from the fact that I hadn’t even been giving them much wet food, crushing the tablets is harder than I expected. I’ve read that vets have some sort of powder or gel, which sounds easier, and I’m going to ask tomorrow when I take him in.
Will it work, however? Is it safe? (I mean, I’m sure they wouldn’t have suggested it if it wasn’t safe, but still, reassure me.) Is this crystal-waving ooga booga stuff, or is it proven to work in most kittens? Is it supposed to be a preventative or a curative? Did it work for your cats?
Oh, and don’t let it be said that I don’t follow the rules
I hate giving medications when it looks like things are getting better on their own. Every kitten I’ve had has gotten seriously plugged-up (sinus-wise) during the first month or so I had them, then everything cleared up after about a month.
I wonder if kittens just have to go through that initial period of getting used to your dust mites or whatever, while their immune system is maturing.
L-lysine is often recommended for cats with herpes eye infections (which is apparently pretty common for cats). Don’t think it’s harmful. I was giving it to my last cat – I think I might have gotten some powdered stuff, or had a pharmacist grind it up for me.
You could always use this as an excuse to buy a mortar and pestle.
It is not harmful and you can give it to the other cat as well, it’s just an amino acid that has some effect in suppressing the herpes virus. Cats that have the herpes related URI’s always have the virus nd often get recurrances of the infection or continue to have minor signs and it does help prevent those.
The problem with crushing a pill in food is that pills are often meant to be swallowed and can be bitter if eaten. By putting it in food you also can’t be sure they are getting the proper dosage. There are now lysine compounds developed just for kitties that come in a flavored gel, like hairball medicines, and if you’re really lucky they will actually like the taste of it and lick it up all on their own. It may cost a little more to get it this way but I think it makes up for it in ease of use.
L-lysine supplements help reduce viral shedding and symptomatic outbreaks of herpes infections, so it can make a huge difference in herpes kitties. It does not help heal up any other sort of eye/upper respiratory infections, so it won’t do him a speck of good if he’s got something other than herpes going on. Either way, it won’t hurt him. Usually, if a vet suspects herpes is all or most of the problem with recurrent infections, you try them on the supplement for a couple weeks and see if it helps. And yes, there is a flavored gel that looks and smells like CatLax, and you give it exactly the same way.