Question:
Posting to see if anyone has seen this combination of symptoms ever. My vet describes my cat as an enigma... Anyway, it started off last week when my new 5 mo old pup chased her and possibly stepped on her front paw. Afterwards she was limping slightly, and by the next day not using it at all. There was little if any swelling, but she was sleeping a lot and not her usual obnoxious self. Alarmed, I brought her to the vet who gave her a shot of ketoprofen to reduce pain. In the exam nothing unusual was detected, except for a slight fever, nor was the source of pain found. A couple hours later my cat started making these awful noises, like maybe coughing up a hairball but it was very loud and nothing came up. I have never seen her cough up a hairball, unlike my other cat who does it all the time. Her nose was very wet and she also seemed to have hiccups. I called the vet and asked if it could be a reaction to the shot, but she'd never heard of this before. My cat did not eat her dinner that night and only half portions of her meals the next day. Sometimes she would make those strange noises, always accompanied by hiccups and sometimes clear fluid coming out of her nose. One time I did notice some mucus dripping out also. Since she didn't seem to be getting any worse and was mostly just resting, I waited 'til the vet was open again to bring her back (this happened on a Sat and I brought her in on Monday morning). They did x-rays of her chest and her heart and lungs looked normal, but the bronchial tubes appeared inflammed. Her CBC test came back normal. It has been almost a week and she is hardly using her leg at all, although can move it and get around. She is not herself still, but seems to be getting better and is eating all her meals now. The leg has not yet been x-rayed and the vet is out of town, but did suggest trying a cortisone injection to see if that helps, as it could be a pinched nerve. Seems like all this is a strange combo of symptoms, so was wondering if anyone recognized anything in this email and had suggestions? Could she have caught my new dog's URI perhaps? Has anyone heard of ketoprofen allergy in cats?

Answer:
I would def take her back to the vets, better to be safe than sorry, if your regular vet is closed I would suggest a different one.

Answer:
Yes, thanks, I most likely will do that later this week. She is using her leg more today, but still seems 'off', either from pain or because she's getting over a cold or something, still not sure what that was. Certainly she is tons better than she has been, though, as she has that 'devil' look back in her eyes (in a good way). I sure miss her running around getting into trouble! I decided to wait a day or two, to give her a break from the stress of going to the vets, and to see if she would improve on her own, but I'm worried about her leg enough to bring her back still. Anyone ever have a cat with a pinched nerve in a leg? Was wondering if that is common and how long it takes to recover full leg function?

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I've been doing some research, and think my cat (Annie) possibly caught Bordetella bronchiseptica (kennel cough) from my new dog (Guinness). They both have had the same symptoms (sort of a cough or gag in which they both appear to be hacking up a hairball but produce nothing). He was sick, but on doxycycline when I brought him home and appears fine now. However, Annie did not show the symptoms until a couple weeks after that. She is doing much better without any treatment, but I did read that it can be passed between cats, and cats can be carriers for weeks after showing symptoms, so I'm worried about my other cat coming down with this. Tonight Annie is going to a new vet, and I'll try and get them to check for it. Has anyone had a cat with 'kennel cough' or even heard of this? Any insight?

Answer:
The vet was unconcerned about Annie's hacking noises as he could not hear anything in her chest unusual, so she remains untreated for that. The x-ray machine was down.. but she did get some good painkillers and is doing great now. Anyway, for the purpose of reference, I did find literature on Bordetella in cats, it can and does happen and is particularily dangerous for kittens as it can progress quickly to pneumonia. Although my cat was not tested, I do believe from her symptoms that she did contract it from my dog, so just a warning to those who bring home a dog with an upper respiratory infection and you also have cats, and esp kittens.

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