What are common cat illness symptoms to watch for at home?

I can understand your concern. Cats can hide illness quite well. But typical signs of illness can include: decreased appetite, lethargy, vomiting, diarrhea, and unusual behavior (like hiding or seeking more attention than normal). If you are still concerned that your kitty may be ill then you can request that your vet do a general health check via bloodwork and urine testing as well. A fecal exam is also indicated if Noushmc is having loose stool. Best wishes and take care.

These are difficult situations and unfortunately cats often do not give us much in the way of cues when they are ill. Typically, though, by the time you start to see symptoms like you're seeing they are pretty sick, so I would encourage you to check out carecredit.com for help paying vet bills, or talk to friends and family to discuss a loan to get her the care she needs.

Hello, thank you for your question about Moo Moo. Vomiting can be a sign of many underlying conditions in cats things within the GI tract or systemic problems outside of the GI tract. Problems within the GI tract could include ingestion of foreign material, dietary allergies, inflammatory bowel disease, etc. Problems outside of the GI tract can include liver/kidney disease, or pancreatitis. Since Moo Moo seems to be uncomfortable I would recommend having her seen by a veterinarian so that they can perform an exam and look for an underlying cause of her symptoms. Your veterinarian may recommend systemic bloodwork and abdominal x-rays; they can discuss further treatment options if needed. Hope this helps, good luck!

This sounds like she has an upper respiratory infection that is making her sneeze and vomit from the sneezing, coughing and nasal discharge. Generally cats get over colds in a week or so without treatment. Since Mieko is seventeen I’m more concerned about her since she could become dehydrated if she’s not eating and drinking normally due to having a head cold. I do recommend a veterinary exam and treatment. She may need fluids under the skin to keep her hydrated and perhaps medication to stimulate her appetite. Often dogs and cats vomit when they have a cough so I don’t think the vomiting is the main concern but certainly does need to be addressed if it continues. In the meantime you can use a warm damp cloth to keep her nose and eyes clean of discharge and heat up small meals of wet food with added water to keep her eating. I put it in the microwave for eight seconds which brings out the aroma since cats often stop eating when they can’t smell the food. If she’s not had senior blood work recently they may recommend that also to check her kidney and liver function, and check for anemia and infection. Antibiotics are given only when a viral cold turns into a secondary bacterial infection. You are right to be concerned with an elderly cat so please take her in for treatment so she can get over this quickly. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Mieko.

CJ really needs a vet visit when you can manage it. In older cats hyperthyroidism, kidney disease, diabetes mellitus, inflammatory bowel disease are possibilities and require bloodwork to diagnose. The good news is many of the conditions can be treated or managed but you need a diagnosis in order to determine the best treatment. Some areas may have low cost clinics or many vets accept Care credit http://www.carecredit.com/apply/ I would contact local humane societies to see if they can offer any suggestions. Some have programs that may help with vet bills. Good luck and thank you for using PetCoach.

It's possible Mineva has something ongoing such as a respiratory infection, kitty asthma, a heart or lung issue, etc so it is good you are bringing her to your vet as soon as you can. In the meantime, keeping her nose and eyes clear of any debris can help make breathing easier, as well as limiting her activity if moving and playing causes an episode. Making sure she is still eating and drinking is also a good idea. If she becomes very painful, has trouble breathing and is in distress, or her gums become very pale or blue, this is a sign the issue is more serious and should be seen by an ER vet or your vet sooner.

Gizzy needs to be examined by the veterinarian. The two most common conditions that will cause these clinical signs are kidney disease and hyperthyroidism. Please keep in mind that other causes are also possible. Both of these can be successfully managed with special foods/medications. The key however, is that treatment must start before things get too bad. The longer you wait, the worse things may become. These conditions are not death sentences if caught at an appropriate time. Many cats will live a quality life for a few years after diagnosis. I recommend to have Gizzy examined by the veterinarian within the next few days. Some simple blood and urine tests will be needed for a correct diagnosis. Left untreated, these conditions can cause pets to become more sick and potentially suffer. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.