My new cat has cat flu, is hiding, and not using the litter box.

HI, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! My guess is that Claire is just very scared in her new home and needs time to get comfortable. Put a littler box and food near the bed and close the door. Go in multiple times per day to sit with her. She will get more comfortable with time. Good luck!

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Mickey. Congrats on your new cat! Moving into a new home is stressful, so it takes time and patience. Move him into a small room in your home, and put in there a litter box, food, and water. Visit him a couple of times a day, praising him and giving him treats when he comes out to see you. As he comes out more and more, you can play with him and give him love. Then after a couple of days, open the door to his room to let him explore. Initially, keep the amount of time he explores short, then gradually increase the time as he becomes more comfortable in your home. Eventually, he can be out of his room full time. In the beginning, keep him in his room when you go out so he feels safe. I hope this helps!

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. If Snowy is dealing with a respiratory infection, this could be due to a bacterial or viral infection. To start, you can put her near a humidifier and start her on Lysine to see if this helps. Lysine will help lessen the severity and duration of a herpes infection and the humidifier will help moisten the air possibly improving any congestion. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and if these symptoms persist or she worsens, then I would have a veterinarian take a look at her so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made.

Hello and thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Upper respiratory infection in cats is often a chronic disease, it can flare up for example because of stress or concurrent disease process. As long as Scooter is bright, has good appetite and does not have any breathing problems, you should monitor him at home. You should clean the discharge from the nose (and the eyes if necessary) with baby wipes. Offer him warm, tasty food as with runny nose cats can not smell very well. Typically, uncomplicated cat flu symptoms go away after 7-10 days However, if Scooter starts breathing heavily, goes off his food or the discharge from the nose turn green or yellow, you should take him to your local vets for an appointment.

It is most likely that he has a viral form of cat flu, this is really common especially in cats who have been in shelters. There is no treatment for the virus as such, if he seems particularly unwell it may have become bacterial so a trip to the vet and sone antibiotics may be required. The diarrohea could be infection or just inflammation from stress/ intolerance etc. If it is intermittent I would try a gadtroitestinal food and you could give a pribiotic. If it becomes regular you should go to the vet.

Hi there. Thank you for using PetCoach. You are doing fine. Just give them some time to feel comfortable. Avoid stress and loud noises. Don't put their food/litter box in any place where there is a lot of traffic/noise. Don't force them to do anything as this will make it worse. I suggest you try some Feliway diffusers in your house. These diffusers release pheromones that help to calm cats. It works great! https://www.feliway.com/us#redirected https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/comfort-zone-diffuser-with-feliway-for-cats Be sure to get enough diffusers to cover the square footage of your house. The other thing you can do is try to entice them to come out by using toys, especially ones with catnip. Hope this helps. Best wishes!

Hello. Many kittens will harbor this virus, a form of herpes virus. Not all will have problems their entire lives & many go on to have normal, healthy lives. Good care, a stable home, routine veterinary care & appropriate vaccinations, & the best quality food you can feed Momo will keep him as healthy as possible. Most of these viruses will take several weeks to a month to completely clear, so I would not be worried that he is still doing some sneezing. As long as he seems playful & is eating well, he should continue to do just fine. I can not tell you to rehome Momo, but if you love him, then he will probably do best to stay with you. There are other things that can affect the health of a cat as they age, so as long as you are aware of that, & can set aside some funds for future care, you will be in a good position to continue caring for him. If not, then this is a good time to rehome him, as he is still very young. I hope you can keep him, but it is good that you are thinking more about him than yourself. Good luck with whatever you decide & thanks for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.