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My cat has a high fever, what can I do at home if the vet is closed?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Persian | Female | unspayed | 5 months and 8 days old | 1.1 lbs

Hova is about 5 months old now. She just finished her antibiotics course 2 days ago after having a very serious bacterial infection. Her wbs are back to normal and everything was ok. Today i noticed she was sleeping all the time and not being active at all. I held her and i was shocked with her extreme fever. She's so hot (excuse the pun). I took her to the vet but unfortunately the were closed for new years. What can i do at home to reduce her temperature?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Dr. Strydom, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on December 31st, 2018

Firstly, please be sure she actually has a fever. You cannot tell just by touching her. A rectal temperature is needed. I suggest you get an accurate temperature before starting any treatment. If she does have a fever, anything over 103.0F, you can use rubbing alcohol (70%) and wipe it on her paw pads and then recheck her temperature about 15 minutes later. If the fever is due to underlying infection this is not likely to help. You can make her temperature drop too low so be careful you don't cause the opposite problem. Absolutely DO NOT give her any over the counter medications. Many are extremely toxic to cats. Honestly, it is best to find an emergency vet open if possible.

1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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