Well, cr*p, Nicki had another coughing attack a short time ago

Crappity crap crap crap. Nicki had another "asthma/coughing" attack from his purring, just at 6 PM before I was to give him his evening dose of inhaled Flovent. It's been 11 days since this happened, same time of day, same reason. Before that, it had been 10 months since he'd had an attack that I know of.

I waited till it was over and he seemed okay again before going ahead. I'll have to ask the vet when we see him if we have any options, if I should temporarily add in Prednisolone or something else. (Nicki needs his anal glands expressed soon, so is due to go on in anyway.)

I could post on the Yahoo feline inhaled meds group, and I might, but I really dislike the "know it all" attitude of a few of the long-timers. The group is a good resource, yes, but there are limits. And with this, there's only so much that can be done. Nicki's already at the maximum daily dose of Flovent and has been for a year, there's no where else to go with that. I can't get him to inhale Ventolin for these "emerg" situations, as it apparently has a bitter "taste" to it and he fights it. There ARE other med options, but bronchodilators can make cats spacey and/or nervous, and from my reading and from the experience of others (on the FAIM group), don't work long term even when combined with Flovent.

I'm not sitting here wringing my hands, but it IS a concern.  :-/

I realize no one has any answers or suggestions, I just needed to "talk" it out. Thanks.

Peace.

Comments

Kea said…
Now I'm wondering if there's any correlation between Nicki's coughing and the new litter. Purina stopped making Maxx Scoop a while ago and I had picked up something supposedly 99.9% dust free from Walmart. I've found it to be quite dusty, and the granule too large for the boys, so when Robin and Chuck were up, I was able to pick up something else from a local PetValu, a litter I had used before and stopped (maybe the cost, I don't remember). Anyway, I scrubbed out 2 of the 3 inside boxes and put only the PetValu litter in it. Not sure it will make any difference (seems to be far less dusty), but it won't hurt. Robin, you'll have to tell me if it has a scent - supposedly it is "perfume and chemical" free.
May 1, 2016 at 8:05 PM
John Bellen said…
Blast. I can appreciate your frustration, not just with the coughing returning, but with no options to choose.

As regards litter, I use something called The World's Best Cat Litter (really). It's as free of dust as I've come across and doesn't have a scent. It's organic (made from corn, I think) and flushable, if that matters. I don't know if the boys will like it or if you want to try it. It's found mainly at pet-supply shops but I'm sure Pet Valu would have it.

In any case, I think the litter-dust is a strong possibility. Good luck to Nicki!
May 1, 2016 at 9:42 PM
The Cat Guy said…
Marvin's been having more asthma attacks, he was up to 3-4 per day. And it kills me that I have to sit and watch and can't do a darn thing cuz he fights the mask. Funny you say that about the Asthma Yahoo group, as I had the same experience. The attitudes really bugged me, so I no longer go there. A while back I posted Marvin's background and I got a nasty-gram from an old-timer telling me to keep the posts more concise. From that point on, I kept them super concise by never posting again.
May 1, 2016 at 10:12 PM
meowmeowmans said…
Darn. We're sorry to hear about NIcki's coughing fit, Kim. Zoe and Gracie have asthma, too. We've started using World's Best Cat Litter, too, and it IS a lot less dusty. It seems to have helped, especially for Zoe.

Peace to you.
May 1, 2016 at 10:24 PM
John Bellen said…
You should have asked him if his attention couldn't focus on anything more than a few lines. Who the heck was this guy to tell you that? If you don't like a post, just don't read them.
May 1, 2016 at 11:47 PM
Kea said…
Yes, I know of it, though haven't tried it. I think I'm grasping at straws re: the litter, as he's made it through all the very dusty renos with no issues. Unless it's the litter in combination with spring pollen. I'll see how it goes!
May 2, 2016 at 8:26 AM
Kea said…
There is a long-timer who's quite opinionated and abrupt in her (his?) replies. I think it's a woman, actually. She's an advocate for antibiotics for just about everything, which really puts me off.
May 2, 2016 at 8:27 AM
Kea said…
Well, maybe I'll have to break down and try it if this stuff I just got more recently from PetValu doesn't seem to help. I'm not sure it's the litter in any case, as if it were just dust, you'd think all the renos would have impacted Nicki, yet he made it through the past 4 months just fine, no problems.
May 2, 2016 at 8:29 AM
ANGEL ABBYGRACE said…
Keeping our purrs going for dear Nicki.
May 2, 2016 at 9:08 AM
Cat Lover said…
I will do a sniff test on Sunday!
May 2, 2016 at 9:14 AM
Cat Lover said…
Kim, so sorry about Nicki. We will check out whatever stores you need to on Sunday for the other litter if you want.
Hugs to all.
May 2, 2016 at 9:16 AM
Kea said…
Thanks, we'll take them.
May 2, 2016 at 10:14 AM
Kea said…
I might take you up on that, just to run out to PetValu (there's one closer to my house) for more bags of what I had picked up with you a few weeks ago.

Have a good day!
May 2, 2016 at 10:15 AM
da tabbies o trout towne said…
sorree dood....purr haps sum blessings frum st francis wood help....pleez feel free ta take a few, him haz plentee ta spare & heez willing ta share.....N tell yur mom her can "talk" all her wantz...better that; then gives her self a stress mezz...ya noe ... { maybee itz coz spring winter winter spring iz changin & therz lotz oh pollen & crap floatin round ??? }♥♥♥
May 2, 2016 at 11:10 AM
Kea said…
Blessings are always valued. :-)

Could be a combo of that litter I've gotten rid of plus pollen...I just would have expected that the max. dose of Flovent would do the trick. But obviously not. I'm not pressing the panic button, because there's only so much I can do, but I would like to identify the trigger, to deal with it. Or if it's that the Flovent is no longer working properly for him, then look to other options.
May 2, 2016 at 11:25 AM
CATachresis said…
We are really sorry that Nicki is coughing still! Yes, knowing the trigger would help you at least to know your options better! Sending purrs and POTP xoxox
May 3, 2016 at 5:00 AM
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