Behaviour in a quirky cat, strange or normal?

[tassie]

Hi Everyone

we have a very quirky old lady cat that we took in when a friend found a man about to throw her in a river.  We have had her two years, she is totally bonkers but she has come on a lot, she can jump now, she purrs and this summer, she has started to play again!

She does do a few things I am curious by and wondered if anyone else had experienced them in their cat:

1) occasionally she howls in the night, in her sleep. That distressed yowl type sound

2) she coughs, and it has a phlegmy sound. Normally nothing appears, occasionally foaming saliva

3) sometimes she seems to be convinced something is stuck in her mouth and even uses her paw to get it out, but there is nothing there

Taking her to a vet is not an option unless she is totally sick. We have done it once and she turns into a demon to the point even the vet said it is counter productive and too stressful for her

Any thoughts? Or is she just bonkers?!

Thanks!

 

[kirathecat]

Thanks for saving this cat!

I don't know about howling thing but the last two + her being old makes me think dental problem or dental problem+something else which makes her cough. Coughing is never a good sign in cats. And she could be in pain is she has something going on in her mouth. I really don't  think she is bonkers, something is bothering her.

Is there a vet that makes house calls in your area? Or maybe there's a light sedative you can get from the vet to calm her before taking her there? 

Maybe somebody else here will have other suggestions for you.

 

[nimeowma]

depending on how old, she may be going deaf! i've read that deaf cats can sometimes vocalize quite loudly as they can't (or struggle to) hear the sound of their own meow (i know my one-year-old does). if she only does it in her sleep though I'd say she's just quirky, unless she seems to be in some sort of pain while asleep - perhaps kira is onto something there with the dental issue? good luck to you and your baby either way!