My cat has coronavirus. Can probiotics help, and what else can I do?

You can give Charlie 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.

The jury is still undecided if Vitamin C really helps pets or not. Cats synthesize their own vitamin C naturally. Likely the best measures you can take are to support over-all health. Make sure they are eating a high quality cat food. Deworm them if possible. Many cats respond well to Lysine for herpes infections. Adults take 500mg twice daily. This can be found in a fish flavored powder, gel and treat form. Also giving them an omega 3 fatty acid supplement for cats will help with natural inflammation control. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

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.

Unfortunately, there is no known cure or effective treatment for feline coronavirus. Treatment is aimed at supportive care, such as good nursing care and nutrition, and alleviating the inflammatory response of the virus. This supportive care may include fluid therapy, draining any accumulated fluids, blood transfusions, cytotoxic drugs, and corticosteroids in addition to antibiotics. The decision as to which antibiotic to use is based upon the current symptoms the animal is showing, and can be determined by the vet treating Baby. Unfortunately, the experts cannot say which antibiotic would be best for her because we cannot see her in person which make it illegal for us to prescribe or recommend a drug. I would discuss with your vet which drugs would be best to use on Baby based on her current symptoms, and the vet can prescribe them for her.

I would have to respectfully disagree with that statement. I have used Lysine for years and many cats have improved with it. The limitations are that it probably only works for Herpes infection (not other upper respiratory viruses in cats, and we don't often do testing to know for sure that it is Herpes virus causing the clinical signs), and it only works to slow down the replication of the virus (not eliminate the infection). I have attached 2 handouts below which discuss using Lysine in feline Herpes virus. (The first one discusses how Lysine works.) https://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=1327 https://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=613 I hope that answers your question and was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

I have to say that I have never heard of a cat dying from FHV. It is normally a very mild disease, producing only a mild upper respiratory infection and occasionally conjunctivitis. Rarely immunocompromised cats (i.e.those that have other illnesses, such as feline leukemia or feline AIDS) can get pneumonia from FHV, but again, that's rare. Most cats that are chronically infected do well with supplementation with the amino acid lysine, which keeps the virus from rapidly reproducing, and keeps most cats symptom-free. In comes in a variety of formulations that cats will readily eat - try the brand Viralys, which makes powder, gel, and treats.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. I am sorry to hear that Hera is not feeling well. Hopefully she can fight this infection and make a speedy recovery! I would recommend using a Lysine supplement for Hera. You can find Lysine for cats online or at a local pet store. One product we use at our clinic is called Duralactin with Lysine paste. I use this in conjunction with an antibiotic but if you are unable to get her to a vet, then starting Lysine is better than nothing. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.