Why is my old cat's swollen nose bleeding despite antibiotics?

Hello, sorry to hear about your cat. It looks like it may have a sinus infection or nasal and sinus infection that's creating an abscess. Common infections in that area are associated with fungal (Cryptococcus neoformans or Aspergillus) or bacterial. Cancer can also cause this in older cats. A sample of his nose, bloodwork, and urine sampling would aid to differentiate between these diseases. I would recommend consulting with your primary care veterinarian about further diagnosing your cat. Hope this helps and best of luck.

Hi there! Chronic sneezing and bleeding from the nose in a 15 year old cat could be caused by a number of different things, including chronic rhinitis, a severe bacterial respiratory infection, a fungal infection such as cryptococcus, or a nasal tumor. None of these will typically cause any changes on lab work, so usually CT scan/MRI and rhinoscopy are required to get a diagnosis. If this is something you're interested in, then I would ask your veterinarian for a referral to a specialist to have this testing done. Without additional testing, it's likely that you won't be able to find out what the specific problem is, so we're left with treating it symptomatically. Long-term antibiotics such as doxycycline or azithromycin can sometimes be helpful, as there is often a secondary bacterial infection contributing to the pet's symptoms even if this isn't the main problem. Oral or injectable steroids, Cerenia, humidifiers, and even antibiotic/steroid nose drops could all be considered as possible treatment options that may help to relieve symptoms. Your veterinarian should be able to discuss the pros and cons of these various options with you to help determine the best treatment plan for Bailey.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! While I agree with your veterinarian that this can be due to an infection. However, I think a fungal infection like cryptococcus seems more likely and that would only respond to anti-fungal therapy. Another possibility is cancer such as squamous cell carcinoma. I recommend you consider having him reevaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. May be a biopsy could be done at this time since it has not improved. Good luck and have a great day!

I mostly worry about infection and tumors as the cause of the swelling and bleeding. There is a common fungal infection known as cryptococosis that can cause this, which is treatable, but requires long- term therapy. There are also other fungal and bacterial infections that can cause this. Tumors can also be treated with varying success depending on the type of tumor present. It's important to get Spike to a vet sometime soon to exam her and diagnose the specific problem. These types of diseases are often life-threatening and are more treatable earlier in the course of the disease. I hope that helps and Spike gets better soon.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Jake. I would recommend that he goes under anesthesia and has x-rays of his teeth to be sure a dental abscess is not to blame. If this is not the case, it may be warranted to tested for a fungal infection. Finally, you can seek a second opinion with an internal medicine specialist. I hope this information helps!

Without images it is very difficult to assess what may be going on. It would be worthwhile getting a second opinion but a tumour in the mouth or sinuses may well be affecting the drainage from her eyes or nose and may be contributing to the signs you can see, an the smell you describe is likely related to an infection or damaged tissue. A sedated oral exam and xrays or CT scan would help to investigate everything that may be happening, including tear production and drainage which may be contributing to the crusts and blood shot eyes

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Yes, a CT scan would be the next diagnostic for something like this. This is very important as I am afraid this could either be a nasal cancer or possibly a severe nasal fungal infection. A CT scan helps to distinguish these conditions and a biopsy will help confirm it. Rhinoscopy is needed in some cases to better visualize the nasal cavity after the CT scan is done. Good luck and have a great day!