Sick kitty with an open sore on his back.

Question
I have a one year old male cat named Fluffy. As of recent he has been sneezing a lot, now our other seven cats have also been sneezing so we think they might have an URI, I can't be sure because I don't have the money to take any of them to the Vet. He seems to be getting over the URI a bit, though he keeps sneezing, and he sounds like hes in pain when I pick him up.

The other day I was petting him and I noticed a rather large lump that seems to be under the skin, on his back just to the left of his spine. I was a little worried but it seemed no to cause him any sort of pain. So I ignored it. The next day it had gotten bigger, and then a few hours later it became very sensitive to the touch. Then just today it started bleeding. It was easy to notice because he is pure white. He seems to be keeping it clean, but I don't know what it is or what to do for him. I was thinking it might be an abscess, but I'm no expert. What can I do for him, regarding both the possible URI and Abscess?

Answer
Hi Linsey.  It sounds like he could be in real trouble if he doesn't get to a vet.  The fact that he's in pain when you pick him up is disconcerting.  It could be caused by a number of things including internal injury, any sort of infection or inflammation of any of the organs, including the lungs.  One of the things that is always a concern when upper respiratory infections are present is pneumonia.  And since he appears to have an abscess, sepsis (a potentially deadly blood infection) can be an issue.  These things may not be involved, but then again, they may.  If there's any possibility of scraping up the cash, this sounds like a situation that would warrant it.

As for now, all of your kitties may benefit from some lysine.  This is an amino acid that can help inhibit the replication of the herpes virus, and feline herpes in one of the two most common causes of upper respiratory infections in cats.  The effective dose in adult cats is 500mg daily as long as symptoms persist.  Pharmacies carry 1000mg tablets, so you can split these in half, grind them up and mix them into canned food.  You could also quarter them and try to give them two quarters daily rather than mixing them into food, but even the quarters might be too monstrous!  Personally, rather than go through all this trouble, I order a lysine gel online that's made just for cats.  It's called Viralys, and I get mine here: http://www.calvetsupply.com/product/Viralys_Gel_5oz/Veterinary_Nutritional_Suppl...    Viralys will help with the viral aspect only, though (if this is herpes related), and it won't cure any bacterial infections.  Antibiotics would be needed for that.

And for the abscess, the best you can do for that from home is probably to hold a warm, wet compress to it to soften any scabs that may be closing it.  Peel off any scabs and crust.  The cat will object, as it's painful, but the wound must be kept open.  Reapply the compress to draw out pus and blood and wipe away anything that drains.  Once it stops gushing, gentle but firm pressure should be applied to the area surrounding the abscess to encourage anything that's left to exit the wound.  Once the wound appears entirely clear of any discharge, you should try to flush it with water mixed with antibacterial soap, if possible, and then rinse and dry.  I don't recommend using alcohol or peroxide, as these can cause tissue damage.  Do not use Bactine - this poses a toxicity risk to cats.  The abscess should be drained and cleaned 2-3 times daily.  Again, antibiotics are always needed to treat a cat with an abscess if this is what he has).  A vet would have to diagnose it, but no matter what it is, keeping it clean and dry is a good idea.

None of this is meant to replace the advice of a vet but to hold you over until you can get him to one.  Hope he's feeling better soon!