Medical Monday: What is Feline Upper Respiratory Infection (URI?)

Feline Upper Respiratory Infection

Written By: Dr. Amber Gooden

Feline upper respiratory infection (URI) is incredibly common in cats in general, but especially a shelter setting. In a shelter setting it is typically considered endemic. At least 60% of cats have the bacteria or viruses that cause URI when they enter the shelter. These diseases are highly contagious.

One of the primary viruses is feline herpes virus. Similar to humans, the herpes virus stays in the cat’s body for life and can flare throughout their life. Flares are especially common during stressful events. It is important to keep in mind a couple of things about stress in cats:

• Stress can be something different like moving to a new home or vet visits, but it can be something good as well like a new cat tree
• Cats can find MANY things stressful that we wouldn’t consider. It could be something like construction a block away.

Many cases of URI progress very similarly to a human cold. This means that it is often mild signs and self-limiting. However, at times they do require medical intervention. One of my own personal cats had chronic herpes. She would flare almost every 6-8 weeks; usually it was self-limiting. However, a couple times a year, she required medication. In the images below, you can see Pint’s nasal and eye discharge that is common with URI.

In addition, cats with URI that take a long time to resolve (some of our cats will be sick for several weeks with repeat treatment). These cats can experience damage to the inside of their nasal passages which can lead to chronic congestion sounds and even more frequent flares of URI.

URI’s are extremely common especially in a shelter setting, and more often than not are easily resolvable and do not leave lasting effects. If a cat you are adopting had a URI during their time at the shelter, it is noted on all medical history you recive when adopting. Please feel free to ask staff for more details if needed upon adoption!

Additional Resources:

https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/feline-upper-respiratory-infection

https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/chronic-upper-respiratory-tract-disease