LYSINE supplementation for cats and dogs:
When I was a formulator/process engineer at Nature’s Bounty Vitamins, one of the products we routinely made were 500mg tablets and capsules of Lysine Hydrochloride (HCl) as well as the 1000mg tablet.
I researched what these were for, and learned it was to suppress the Herpes Viruses. This virus is a common cause of cold sores on lips of people, but also respiratory pathways.
It wasn’t until last month that I learned animals have a variant of the herpes virus. In fact, it is so common in cats, I was shocked that as much as 90% of cats have the virus! The virus is passed to newborn kittens from their mothers at birth.
Dogs, for whatever, reason, suffer less frequent bouts with
herpes, although specific breeds with natural breathing challenges such as bulldogs and pugs can suffer greatly.
What are signs your pet has a herpes flare up?
1. Respiratory Symptoms:
- Sneezing (often frequent or in bouts).
- Nasal discharge (clear, mucoid, or purulent if secondary bacterial infection occurs).
- Congestion or noisy breathing.
- Coughing (less common but possible).
2. Ocular Symptoms:
- Conjunctivitis (red, inflamed conjunctiva, often in
both eyes). - Watery or purulent eye discharge.
- Squinting or excessive blinking (due to pain or light sensitivity).
- Corneal ulcers or keratitis (cloudy or painful eyes, severe cases).
- Eyelid swelling or crusting.
3. General Signs:
- Lethargy or reduced activity.
- Decreased appetite, often due to nasal congestion affecting smell.
- Fever (mild to moderate, detectable by a vet).
- Drooling or oral ulcers (less common but possible in severe flare-ups).
- Hiding or reduced social interaction (stress-related).
- Increased grooming around eyes or nose due to irritation.
What can you do?
IT IS SO EASY! Add / dissolve Lysine HCl in their water bowl. Expensive supplements are not necessary. The supplements, such as chews or pills, will likely not be eaten by your pet, especially if your pet has such a bad case that they won’t eat. My cat would not even drink water because he was in such pain, so I used an eye dropper to squirt the lysine-water around his mouth, and he would lick the water off his face. The situation was very bad.
Luckily, the solution (no pun intended) was extremely simple.
How much lysine to dissolve:
1 cup of water = about 240mL. 12g / 240mL = “5% solution”
This higher concentration is meant to provide greater
results for very bad cases.
To prevent flare ups, I provide a 1% solution (approximately
200mL per 2 grams of Lysine HCl) for an on-going basis.
Note: I am not a veterinarian, so take my advice with caution
and consult your veterinarian. My veterinarian said that if the lysine was working, then continue. It is theoretically possible to consume too much lysine, mainly because lysine interferes with arginine metabolism, but this risk is primarily for kittens and puppies are they are still in development. However, Herpes at its most severe can cause blindness or even death from asphyxiation, so arginine deficiency is a minor concern by comparison.
If your pet is suffering from a herpes flare up, it is important to address the issue since your pet might not eat or drink sufficiently due to the pain, resulting in other health issues from dehydration or undernourishment.
This is the lysine I used: