Why did my cat's bronchitis symptoms return after antibiotics?

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I would recommend making sure he does not have an underlying disease that may be predisposing him to these infections. Test him for feline leukemia (FeLV) and feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) at your veterinarian's clinic to rule these possible causes out. Some cats will have chronic viral infections their entire life and we just treat these as they come. If you are not giving lysine supplementation and not giving Purine Fortiflora, I would definitely recommend doing so as both of these have been shown to lessen the severity and duration of the herpes virus flare ups. I would also consider an upper respiratory culture to make sure that there are no other bacterial causes that may be resistant to the antibiotics currently being given. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

It could be a respiratory infection. Unfortunately in cats, respiratory infections are typically called by a virus, which means antibiotics won't work. There are few things you can try at home for Esther. First, you can try starting her on an L-lysine supplement - this is an amino acid that has been shown to help the immune system fight off respiratory infections more effectively. Enisyl and Viralys are both good brands, and can be purchased over the counter without a prescription - just follow the dosing instructions on the label based on your cat's weight. If she's congested, you can also try using a humidifier or bringing her into the bathroom with the door closed while you take a hot shower - the steam and humidity help to break up congestion and temporarily relieve symptoms associated with respiratory infections.

Since there are still symptoms of the infection then he needs to be rechecked for further treatment. Some cats need pulse therapy medicine to help keep it under control. Also a lot of upper respiratory infections in cats are viral induced and take time to fully resolve. They do make anti virals you can add to the food to help clear the infection also

I'm so sorry that Sally is having this problem. We commonly see viral infections in young cats that have secondary bacterial infection that respond to antibiotics, but it is less common that older cats will develop viral upper respiratory infections unless they are exposed to other cats. I have attached more information on upper respiratory infections in cats below. https://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=613 There are other antibiotics that we will sometimes try for some of the other upper respiratory infections we see, as well as anti-viral or Lysine treatment for Herpes virus. I would recommend discussing with your veterinarian if there are any other testing or treatment options that they would recommend for Sally since she does not seem to be responding to Clavamox. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Given the elevated temperature a pneumonia die to a mixed viral and bacterial infection is highly possible. Cardiac disease should be ideally ruled out as well. Often these diseases require a longer treatment course unfortunately. I do not think we can give you more specific advices at this stage, as a more thorough evaluation it would require more clinical informations including see the radiographs. Please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further

Clavamox and Convenia are not suitable antibiotics for this type of infection, azithromyacin is a very good option and should solve the problem, if it doesn't i would recommend asking your vet to try Doxycycline or Veraflox next.

A lot of times, respiratory infections in cats are caused by a virus, not bacteria, so antibiotics will be ineffective. I would keep giving them to Tofu as directed by your vet, and I can give you some things you can try at home to see if they help her. You can use these methods on your other cat as a well, and I'd take that cat into the vet for a check up this week. First, you can try starting her on an L-lysine supplement - this is an amino acid that has been shown to help the immune system fight off respiratory infections more effectively. Enisyl and Viralys are both good brands, and can be purchased over the counter without a prescription - just follow the dosing instructions on the label based on your cat's weight. If she's congested, you can also try using a humidifier or bringing her into the bathroom with the door closed while you take a hot shower - the steam and humidity help to break up congestion and temporarily relieve symptoms associated with respiratory infections. Best of luck, I hope this helps!