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My cat has asthma. What are affordable treatment options?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Male | neutered | 11.2 lbs

My five year old male (neutered) cat was just diagnosed with asthma. We live in coastal Georgia and the pollen and allergens are abundant. He is a porch kitty and therefore lives mostly outside but is safe, dry, warm and comfortable on a porch. The medication prescribed will cost nearly $500/month which is not doable for me. Are there herbal medications I can try before I have to make the extremely difficult decision of ending his severe discomfort forever?

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By David Elbeze, DVM, MRCVS

Veterinarian

Published on May 9th, 2018

No, there are no herbal medications that can help with this condition. i don't know what medication your vet prescribed but asthma can be well controlled with prednisolone alone. this treatment will cost you less than 10$ a month (!!), i'm sure you can afford that.

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    Answered By Makenzie Kurth, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on

    Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! While I am a fan of herbal remedies for many conditions, I find they are not very helpful in feline asthma. HOWEVER, before you get discouraged, let me say this. The Inhaled medication (that is definitely very expensive) is an ideal option, but it is definitely NOT the only option in most cases. I have had many clients in your same situation and have had their cats doing really well on an oral steroid and cough suppressant if needed long term. This along with inhaled albuterol often does a great job- at least well enough that Juniper can have several more comfortable years. This comes out to more like $20-50 per month. Long story short, be honest with you vet and discuss alternatives- there might be something else that can give Juniper a great quality of life without breaking the bank. Best of luck to you and Juniper!

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    Answered By Dr. Dayna, DVM, CVA

    Veterinarian, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist

    Published on January 7th, 2018

    I am sorry Gandolf is having a tough time. There are several things to try with asthmatic cats. There is an inhaler called an aerokat. Look on YouTube for videos of how it works. I use inhaled steroids daily to every other day with most of my asthmatic patients, and then I can also send home albuterol inhaler to use in a crisis. This manages most of them well, but occasionally they still need oral or injections of steroids. Best of luck and I hope this gives you a plan to discuss with your veterinarian. Thank you for using Pet Coach.

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