Feline Asthma Help Needed

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chriscleo

chriscleo

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hi. harry has asthma and is having more frequent attacks. his internal med vet gave me a prescription for an inhaler but i don't know where to get the apparatus you put it into so he can breathe it in. is there a reasonably priced place you could recommend, and what is it called?

i've watched the demonstrations on youtube and it looks pretty easy. i just have to get the equipment. the vet hasn't been in a rush to get him started -- he only gave me the inhaler because i was worried about emergencies -- but it doesn't seem right to leave him untreated when he's getting more frequent attacks.

thanks.
 
chriscleo said:
hi. harry has asthma and is having more frequent attacks. his internal med vet gave me a prescription for an inhaler but i don't know where to get the apparatus you put it into so he can breathe it in. is there a reasonably priced place you could recommend, and what is it called?

i've watched the demonstrations on youtube and it looks pretty easy. i just have to get the equipment. the vet hasn't been in a rush to get him started -- he only gave me the inhaler because i was worried about emergencies -- but it doesn't seem right to leave him untreated when he's getting more frequent attacks.

thanks.
Click to expand...

You need the Aerokat. I got mine from www.aerokat.com, not sure if they sell them elsewhere. In the meantime, you can substitute a toilet paper roll until you get one. LOL, one time Abbey had an asthma attack at the vet clinic and I pulled my own inhaler and a brochure out of my purse and dosed her that way.
 
Here is a link to the new version of the aerokat which has a flap that flutters as kitty breathes: http://www.vetrxdirect.com/product/view/aerokat

The cheapest place to get the inhalers is the 4 corners pharmacy. It takes about 1 to 2 weeks to arrive, but the price is unbeatable. It is the most popular place to get the inhalers from.
http://www.4cnrs-asthma-allergy.com/flovent.html

What strength did your vet prescribe? Most kitties need at least 1 puff of the 220mcg Flovent (250mcg flixotide)

There is a great yahoo group for asthmatic kitties called Feline Asthma Relief. I am a member and so is Hilary and Maui on here.
 
thanks, guys.
toilet paper roll -- great idea! i always love finding other uses for things. :)
(don't have prescription in front of me so i don't remember strength.)
 
chriscleo said:
(don't have prescription in front of me so i don't remember strength.)
Click to expand...

Actually, you should have 2 prescriptions---one for Flovent and one for Albuterol. If his asthma is mild, staring off on the 100 dose of Flovent wuold probably be ok too. That's what Abbey used. (ok, mainly because it's my dose too and we shared inhalers) If he has severe asthma, you'll definitely need the 220.

There are actually multiple feline asthma groups on Yahoo, one of which is specifically for inhaled meds.
 
i think he gave a prescription for albuterol as a rescue inhaler. no other prescription. gotta go find it, tho -- it's in the cat carrier in the car.
i found the aerokat on that site at $55 (other site charged in the $60s), so i'll order it from there.

i don't want to wait for the vet to decide this is finally important enough to start full treatment. harry shouldn't have to have those attacks. so i'll figure out something simple to get him started. should i just wait til right after his next attack after i get the stuff, during an attack, or did others start treatment at a certain time (day or night better)?

thanks everybody.
 
I think you should start treatment immediately. My favorite website was the Fritzthebrave.com -- look for the doctor padrid protocol . You can use that to determine what level Harry is at. It sounds like he is at the intermediate level, so fax your vet a copy of the protocol and ask a short course of pred as per the protocol. That will help bring down the inflammation, until the inhaled steroid has a chance to start working. A short course of pred would work wonders for Mini if he started to worsen. You can also read more about the other available medicines, like terbutaline.

If Mini was anything to go by, this hot weather with pollen is the worst time for a cat to have untreated asthma. If Harry is an indoor-outdoor cat, keep him inside for the A/C. Make sure you are using a top quality A/C filter - change it frequently.

From http://fritzthebrave.com/meds/inhaled_protocol.pdf :
Moderate Daily Symptoms. These cats have daily symptoms that have a negative effect on their quality of
life, but their cough, wheeze, or dyspnea is not constant. For these cases, I prescribe 1 actuation of FloventÔ
110 mcg into the AeroKat™ twice daily. I also prescribe 1 mg/kg of prednisone administered orally twice daily
for 5 days and then once daily for 5 additional days. After 10 days of combined oral and inhaled steroids, the cat has generally shown great improvement and the oral prednisone can be discontinued without further taper. Oral
prednisone is used in this setting because significant daily symptoms suggest the presence of a more aggressive
inflammatory component that should be more aggressively treated. Albuterol administered as needed.

laur
 
Yes there is another site that sells it for $55 but check the shipping price. The total for me was going to be around $75 whereas the other site offered free shipping, which equated to only the $69.99. :-D

Also, 4 corners pharmacy doesn't require a prescription to order from them. If your cat is having regular asthma attacks, he really needs to be on flovent to prevent the inflammation. The albuterol is a fast acting inhaler for emergency situations only.
 
You can get the albuterol anywhere its on the 10 drug list that most pharmacies now have.

The big expense is the flovent or flixotide from 4 corners about 25 per. I fb you with more info on that too.
 
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