What should I do if my cat has a cold and fever?

Apr 24,2024
6Min

Problems such as colds and fevers are very common in cats’ lives. If the weather temperature changes slightly, the cat may become lethargic and have a runny nose. Many parents often ask, what should I do if my cat has a fever and won’t eat or drink? Or use drugs indiscriminately during treatment, which is often counterproductive. We all know how to prevent colds, but we lack experience in treating them. Of course, colds and fevers are not considered serious diseases. Generally speaking, symptomatic treatment is Can.

Cat fever is actually their own instinctive defense response to external infections. In other words, when cats’ bodies detect an invading “enemy—virus or bacteria” from the outside, the body will send out “soldiers—white blood cells” to fight, and they will develop a fever. Most of these "enemies" will die in a high-heat environment. Therefore, fever is actually a vital self-defense process of the body.

Fever needs to be judged with a thermometer. This is the most accurate method. Of course, the dryness and wetness of the nose is also a method, which can play a predictive role. However, this is also susceptible to interference from external factors, so it is said , if you suspect that your cat has a fever, the best way is to take the temperature immediately. ​​​​​​

What should I do if my cat has a fever?

1. Check whether the cat is dehydrated

Determine if your cat is dehydrated by simply lifting and pinching the skin to see its elasticity. If you lift the skin and let go, the skin quickly returns to its original shape, indicating that the skin has good elasticity and the cat is not dehydrated. If skin recovery is delayed or slow, subcutaneous rehydration is required under the guidance of an animal doctor.

Please provide your cats with plenty of clean water at home. You can place it in different places at home (where the babies can easily find it) so that they can drink water at any time. If your cat refuses to drink water, you can feed them small amounts of water using an eye drop bottle or a small straw. In addition, when cats are dehydrated, minerals are depleted and we need to replenish them with electrolytes. You can buy Abbott electrolyte supplements or buy electrolyte supplements from pharmacies.

2. Ice compress

Use a special ice pack or towel to wrap ice cubes and place them on the cat’s important parts to cool down. These important areas include the abdomen, paw pads and armpits. In addition, medical alcohol can be used to wipe the paw pads to cool down. However, if the cat has the habit of licking its paws, then when using alcohol ice compress, make sure that the dog cannot lick it, and then wipe it clean after applying cold compress.

 3. Cold water bath

If necessary, you can try to put the cat in cold water (25-27℃) for 5min--10min. This allows the body temperature to drop quickly. Of course, after a cold bath, aMake sure your cat's hair is completely dry. In addition, after taking a cold water bath, animals should avoid sleeping in a ventilated place.

4. Drug treatment

①Amoxicillin is a prescription drug that usually can only be obtained by going to the hospital. If it has been prescribed before, you can bring your medical record card to the pharmacy to register and buy it. Amoxicillin dosage: 15 mg/kg/day, twice a day.

② Cimetidine. Some cats may have an appetite effect after taking antibiotics. Cimetidine can protect the gastric mucosa from damage. You can buy it in general pharmacies. When buying, be careful not to buy Tagamet in a box, which is very expensive (more than 30 yuan). You can buy bottled ones at Lei Yun, and 100 tablets are only 5 or 6 yuan. Cimetidine dosage: 7.5 mg/kg/day.

③ Qingkailing Capsule is also a good antiviral medicine. If your cat has a viral infection (such as infectious rhinotracheitis), you can take this medicine. It is cheaper than Mao'an, but the effect is good, and it can also help detoxify the liver. Function. Same dose as amoxicillin.

Of course, the specific symptoms of colds caused by different causes are different, and some complications will also occur. We need to treat specific symptoms. If there is no facility to treat pet cats at home, then it is better to go to the hospital for treatment as soon as possible.

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