How long does cat flu treatment take to work?

Hi there, I see these posts are from a year ago but maybe you've found a solution... I found a little kitten, about a month old, in an abandoned car; she was in a right state. I took her to the vet – cat flu and parasites. Anyway, she gave her a week’s course of Doxyval antibiotics, an injection and wormed her. It’s been 15 days since the treatment ended and she’s doing much better, but I can see it’s coming back as her eyes are starting to water again. I’ve still got 15 days of antibiotics left – do you think I could give her another week’s worth? Or is it too soon since she’s only been off them for 15 days? Thanks in advance. I’m going to try and book another appointment with the vet, but she warned me it was a one-off as she isn’t taking on any new clients, and the other vets in my town don't seem to like animals. I don’t want to take my little girl there; they’ll just tell me to have her put down, just like they "advised" with my dog who then went on to live 11 happy years!! Thanks in advance.

My Dobby’s got cat flu for the fourth time now. As I’ve still got the antibiotics at home, I’m starting the treatment already and we’ll see, but the vet told me it’ll come back whenever he’s stressed. If it hasn't cleared up in 3 days, it's off to the vet. :(

This is the 4th time I've taken my little Chipi in. I brought her home and I already had 4 cats who’d had cat flu before, but they were treated and vaccinated. I took her to get her jabs, and then the day after that rubbish vaccine, I saw her left eye was watering. That was it, she’d caught cat flu. So, Meloxydil (anti-inflammatories), Doxyval 20 (antibiotics), saline to clean the eyes, plus Ophtalon ointment which does nothing. I’m using Lysathel now which is much stronger and worked with all my other cats. The next day there was a bit of an improvement and I was so happy, thinking she was getting better. But then evening comes and we’re back to square one—the eye is even more swollen than before and she was sneezing so much I thought she was going to choke, with a runny nose and everything. I took her back to the vet who told me it takes time etc. etc. I’ve just taken her back again today and saw a different vet who prescribed a Lysine supplement plus an antiviral called Oravir, on top of the Doxyval she was already on, plus some antibiotic eye drops and the Meloxydil from before. I’m praying she gets better. But tonight I can see my other cats are gulping and their ears are burning hot; they must have caught whatever she has. I’ve had enough, I’m so scared of losing my Chipi and my other babies. To me they are like my children, I love them more than anything. I’m praying they get well. Hello, A vaccine takes about 15 days to kick in while the immune system produces and stores antibodies. You made a mistake by exposing the kitten directly to your other cats, because even when treated and vaccinated, cat flu remains contagious for life. Before criticising vaccinations which save many human and feline lives every day, please try to consider whether the problem might lie with your own actions. Good evening.

This is the 4th time I’ve taken my little Chipi to the vet. I brought her home to join my 4 other cats who’d had cat flu in the past but were all treated and vaccinated. I took her to get her jabs, and then the very next day after that useless vaccine, I noticed her left eye was watering. Typical, she’s caught cat flu. She was put on Meloxidyl (anti-inflammatories), Doxyval 20 (antibiotics), and saline to clean the eyes, plus Ophtalon ointment which did absolutely nothing. I’ve been using Lysatal instead, which is much stronger and worked for all my other cats. The next day there was a bit of an improvement; I was so happy, thinking she was finally on the mend. But then evening came and we were back to square one—her eye was even more swollen than before and she was sneezing so hard I thought she was going to choke, plus her nose was streaming. I took her back to the vet who just told me it takes time etc. etc. I took her in again today and saw a different vet who prescribed Lysine supplements, an anti-viral called Oravir, more of the Doxyval she was already on, plus antibiotic eye drops and the Meloxidyl. I’m praying she gets better, but now this evening I’ve noticed my other cats are gulping and their ears are burning hot. They must have caught whatever she has. I’ve had enough, I’m so scared of losing my Chipi and my other babies. To me, they are like my children, I love them more than anything. I’m just praying they all pull through.

Hi, I’ve also got a little kitten that was abandoned in a cellar and has cat flu. I’ve been treating him for six days now and he’s already doing much better. Don’t lose hope, or like other people have said, go and see a different vet.

Apparently, no blood tests were done at the first vet. He’s had antibiotics and weekly injections, but he just wasn’t getting any better. He’s been poorly since 21st April and he’s not out of the woods yet, but he’s eating better and on his own now, which is a real relief.

Hi, I have a cat who was being treated for quite a severe case of cat flu and after a month he still wasn't better. I changed vets recently, to a clinic, and they took such wonderful care of my Beethoven. Some people really have a love for animals, while with others you just seem to be constantly shelling out; regardless, I have no regrets because my cat's health is finally improving. It's really encouraging, best of luck!

Hi there, How cat flu progresses varies from one cat to another, depending on their overall health, age... and also the specific virus involved (some are more aggressive than others!). Being three days into the treatment isn't quite long enough to get over the worst of it, which can last for a few more days yet. However, if you don't see any improvement, you'll need to get back in touch with the vet. Hang in there and keep us posted, thanks!