# Sick Kitty on Famciclovir for URI



## gibsgirl94 (Aug 5, 2010)

I have 3 female cats Mitsy who is 14, Jasmine 2 and Lucy 1. Mitsy was adopted at 6 weeks old with her sister who we lost 2 years ago to stomach cancer. We decided to adopt Jasmine at 12 weeks a few weeks after the death of our other cat. Jasmine became very ill with a URI just a few days after bringing her home. She went about a year without having any URI illness. We decided to adopt Lucy in May so Jasmine would have a playmate. Jasmine first became sick again towards the end of June with another URI. She was prescribed Zeniquil for 10 days and seemed to have gotten better. Mitsy started to get sick once Jasmine was off her meds just a few day and was also put on Zeniquil. Once Mitsy was done with her meds Jasmine was sick again. Our vet decided to prescribe all the cats with 10 days of Zeniquil so we would get rid of any lingering bacteria if there was any. Jasmine seemed to respond once again but just a few days later she was sick again. Now she has been prescribed Famciclovir an antiviral drug. She has been on it for 3 days with no real signs of improvement. Both Lucy and Jasmine are FELV/FIV negative. We never felt it necessary to test Mitsy as she has always been in a multi-cat household and is in very good health. They are also on 1000mg of Lysine as I know that is supposed to help prevent the URI. I would like to know if anyone has had any positive experience with Famciclovir and how soon it should start working. Any thoughts on what I can do to get rid of this horrible virus would be great. It has been going in circles for over a month and a half. Thanks for any advice that can be given. It is much appreciate.


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## laurief (Jun 22, 2008)

If it's herpesvirus, which is likely, there is no "getting rid" of it. Once infected, a cat is infected for life. In fact, almost all cats are infected with herpesvirus. In most cats, herpes lies dormant most of the time, only flaring up when the cat is stressed or immuno-compromised in some way. It sounds like perhaps Lucy's arrival caused enough stress or excitement in your household to trigger a herpes flare-up in Jasmine, then Mitsy's herpes flared up perhaps just because she's a senior with a weakened immune system.

If it is herpesvirus, of course antibiotics will have no effect on it. I have no experience with or knowledge of Famciclovir, so I don't know if it would be effective against herpes or not. L-lyisne should be helpful since it inhibits herpes ability to replicate and can give your girls' immune systems a chance to suppress the virus more quickly.

Hopefully the Famciclovir will be effective, as will the lysine. Try, also, to keep your girls as calm and happy as possible, since stress is definitely a trigger for herpes flare-ups.

I wish you and your girls a rapid recovery.

Laurie


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## Martina (Aug 4, 2010)

Ive read differnt things about this drug.. it seems too work and not work.. some have success within a few days and others are asking the same as you.. Id definatly get the L-lyisne as it cant hurt and make sure u finish the dosage.. Let us know what happens with it. Id love to know how it works..


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## Loves-her-girls (Jul 29, 2010)

My kitten Majesta is just off 28days of Famciclovir, which is really used for herpes also know as Acyclovir(the brand name). It is used in people with the herpes virus which is why I had to go to my pharmacy to get the pills and make 1/4 tabs for her each day. Majesta's herpes virus came out within 2 days of her arrival. Her eyes became watery with green-yellowish discharge. The Vet put her on an antibiotic eye drops first to see if she would respond with Lyisne. She did respond well to the drops but a week later I saw that her "third" eyelid was out for long periods of time. I went back to the vet and she was placed on Famciclovir, Lyisne, and artificial tears/ointment. Her eye duct production was a 1(normal is 15-20). Herpes virus can be a long road, I've been to 2 Vets for second option's. I just want to make sure it was herpes because her eyes did recover for over a week. But it is the herpes, my baby was only barley 3 Lbs when started on a 14 day of Famciclovir(it's quite expensive). After her 14days she had gained some weight but her eye production was a 3 in her Rt eye and a 2 in her Lt. She was placed on another round for 12 days(thank heavens for pill pockets!), with the Lyisne and artificial drops every 8 hours. During this last period of treatment I saw some improvement and her eyes were more open. I went Wednesday for her check-up and her eye duct production is a 7 in both eyes . I'm frustrated more for my little Majesta who does not like all her eye ointment and medication regimen. The vet wants her to be increased on the Lyisne and continue with the drops & ointment. The vet wants her to take a break from the meds and see if her own immune system will kick in some. I've made sure she is on quality food(Tiki Cat) and her last weight was 3.7 Lbs. As much as I'm frustrated with this for her, I just hope with time her eyes get back to normal. All 3 Vets told me that it could take up to 6 months for her to get over this episode. She will always have the herpes virus but we can do things that will help keep it at bay. I hope Misty has better results than my Majesta. I know how hard it is to be with a sick cat. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to PM me. I hope this helps. Melissa


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## gibsgirl94 (Aug 5, 2010)

Jasmine is showing slight improvement today. I am crossing my fingers! Her cold is in one of her eyes as well as having the nasal congestion and sneezing. I will keep you updated as she get better. Thanks to you all that have given feedback it is much appreciated.


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## gibsgirl94 (Aug 5, 2010)

I am happy to say that Jasmine has shown much improvement! She no long has icky discharge coming from her eye and it is no longer swollen. She does however have quite a bit of nasal congestion left, which I am treating with steam baths. Through this flare up she has gotten better then worse again, so I am crossing my fingers that she doesn't get worse again. If this medication worked I would say it worked very slowly. It was about 6 days before we seen significant improvement.


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