URTI in diabetic cat.

Dr. Marie replied:

Oh, I am sorry to hear that you and Buster are going through these tough times!

Diabetes is tough to deal with in any animal...and that much harder in a cat who does not want to eat.

You've asked some good questions, so hopefully I can give you some good answers!

How long can a cat go without eating before he develops fatty liver disease?

There is no black and white answer for this. For some cats, especially overweight cats, 2-3 days of not eating can cause the liver to start to mobilize fats in order to produce some energy for the cat to live off of. Then, as this happens, the cat feels a little unwell because of the extra work that the liver is doing. And so, he does not want to eat, and then he ends up mobilizing more fat in the liver...and the cycle continues.

However, not all cats that go without eating will develop fatty liver.

I do get concerned though whenever a cat goes more than 24 hours with no food at all.

How long can it take a respiratory infection to clear up?

Again, this is a tough one to answer! Some cats can get over a respiratory infection in 2-3 days. Others can have one that lingers on for a month or more.

Can a respiratory tract infection be both viral and bacterial?

If this is an upper respiratory tract infection then it most likely started off as a virus. The virus can then do some mild damage to the upper respiratory tract and we can get a secondary bacterial infection. So, you are right in saying that the antibiotics will help with the bacterial portion, but not the viral portion.

My other concern though is that this may be something other than a viral infection. I get really concerned when older cats get upper respiratory signs as sometimes this can be a sign of something more serious such as a nasal tumor.

However, it is encouraging that Buster has made some progress with the antibiotics. If it seems like he is getting better, and then worse, it may be that he needs yet another antibiotic change. Sometimes when I have a really bad URTI I will switch to an antibiotic called doxycycline.

Some other things that you can do to encourage him to eat are to put him in a bathroom next to a steamy shower. The steam will help to open up his airways. You can also try heating up some canned cat food which may encourage him to eat. Additionally, sometimes placing a small amount of food in the mouth will help too.

I really hope he turns the corner soon!

Dr. Marie.


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Dr. Marie replied:

If Buster is still not wanting to eat by the morning, then yes, he should see the vet again.

Sometimes in cases like this, if we can support him with some fluids, and possibly give an appetite stimulant such as Remeron this can really help.

If this were my case I would also be recommending some further blood tests. I would be doing a complete blood panel to look for clues for other conditions that may be going on.

Sometimes, when we have a diabetic cat with serious issues, there can be a serious problem with the pancreas such as pancreatitis or even pancreatic cancer. While some cats with pancreatitis will vomit a lot, not all of them do.