Breathing Funny, Coughing

[dustytiger]

Heya
To kick this off, I just want to make it clear that I have taken both my kitties to three different vets and they didn't see anything wrong with them--so I turn now to the internet.
My cats are breathing funny, and occasionally having weird fits of coughing/wheezing.
By breathing funny I mean their nostrils will whistle or I can audibly hear every single breath they're taking and one of them, not the other, pants pretty much all the time.
All the vets I've taken them to have stated there's nothing they can hear wrong with their heart/lungs and one told me it must be hairballs so I started them on hairball treats and they both coughed up hairballs but their condition remained the same.

They are both eating, pooping and acting fine 99% of the time but I can't stand the 1% of the time when they are coughing/panting/sniffling/snorting.

If anybody has any ideas, please hit me with them 'cos I'm at a loss, my vet is at a losss and I don't like listening to my cat breathing weird while she's in my lap or seeing the other one panting.

One is almost a year old, the other is 8 years old, both are spayed/neutered, have all their vaccines and are strictly indoor.

 

[Noirele]

Hello!
When Merlin had bronchopnemonia, my vet used to say that only a chest x-ray is a reliable method to rule out lower respiratory diseases. Has any of your vets done it?
Anyway, now he's fine, but sometimes he whistles like your cats. Also he snorts a lot and sniffs very loudly. I think these are the consequences of the previous disease, but even a "simple" feline cold could justify such symptoms

 

[Kflowers]

Do you have any scented oils, air fresheners in your house? Scented oil are poisonous to cats. Air fresheners aren't supposed to bother them but I've known a number of cats who reacted badly to them. Since it's turning cold did you just pull out the winter things? Were they stored in moth balls? (used to discourage Toms from spraying they aren't good for cats.)

Anyway, you get the idea, what scents are around your house? Soaps, disinfectants, perfumes, sachets, everything. They may seem mild to you, you might barely notice them, but cats are sensitive to scents. I had a cat who got congested from laundry powder, just sitting in it's box. Another tried to eat the stuff.

Have you changed their litter to a new brand? Did your old brand change it's formula? It may be more dusty than before, not enough for you to notice, but the cats... My cat sneezed every day until I changed her litter to a very low dust brand. Dr. Elsey's.The company makes a hypoallergenic litter as well. There are other brands.

It may not be the dust in the litter but the chemicals the company uses to cover the poop smell, that bothers your kits.

What about mold? It can develop unexpectedly. Check in the backs of closets, behind bookcases (lie down on the floor with a flashlight and look at the underside of shelves), cabinets, behind furniture that's rarely moved, leather bound books, leather shoes, belts, etc. I found some behind a heavy bookcase - white vinegar washed it away, others use bleach. (keep the cats away from bleach it'll irritate their already irritated noses.)

Be patient, search through everything. I hope this was helpful.

 

[dustytiger]

Hello!
When Merlin had bronchopnemonia, my vet used to say that only a chest x-ray is a reliable method to rule out lower respiratory diseases. Has any of your vets done it?
Anyway, now he's fine, but sometimes he whistles like your cats. Also he snorts a lot and sniffs very loudly. I think these are the consequences of the previous disease, but even a "simple" feline cold could justify such symptoms

See, I have asked for x-rays to be done, but the vet has insisted that they are expensive and unnecessary so I find it difficult to tell her "Do them anyway" when she insists there'll be no yield to them and cost me $400--which if she seemed to think they would show anything I'd find a way to make that money, but as it is I'm hesitant about it.

What about mold? It can develop unexpectedly. Check in the backs of closets, behind bookcases (lie down on the floor with a flashlight and look at the underside of shelves), cabinets, behind furniture that's rarely moved, leather bound books, leather shoes, belts, etc. I found some behind a heavy bookcase - white vinegar washed it away, others use bleach. (keep the cats away from bleach it'll irritate their already irritated noses.)

Honestly, of everything listed, this is the only one that I can think is a possibility. I haven't changed anything about their litter, or used scented things like oils or mothballs and as far as soap goes I don't let them near the stuff, but I will definitely do a mold sweep and see if that could be something effecting them. I don't actually have a lot of furniture, so I feel like I'd have noticed it, though.

 

[Kflowers]

Not having much furniture is in the kitties favor. Upholstered furniture gets dusty and it's hard to clean. Says the woman who has vacuumed then beaten her sofa with a broom then vacuumed it again. (got rid of that one.)

Oh, and the companies can change the litter and the cat food without telling anyone. The pet food people don't have to put changes on the label for six months after it's done.

Mold, as you probably know, comes in white, gray and black. I've used white vinegar on all of it, but sometimes you do have to go to bleach.

Good luck, the search can be maddening.

 

[Pixelated Cat]

Hello dustytiger I'm sorry you have been to three vets already and don't have any answers. Is there anyone else in your area you can call and see? My Pixie has COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) and has similar symptoms without his medicine which is prednisone and an inhaler. The vet did x-rays immediately, and when we first found out about the COPD he also had bacterial pneumonia. All of this was diagnosed after chest x-rays were taken. He was put on two different antibiotics to knock out the infection, and now we maintain his breathing with prednisone and his inhaler. With all of that being said, I'm not a vet and can't diagnose. Our vet did tell us however that a few different conditions mimic and have very similar symptoms so our vet ran a few different tests to rule those conditions out. I know dealing with multiple vets can be frustrating...hubby and I had been to a few vets before finding the one we see now. Pixie was a stray cat living outside, and we noticed the sneezing, coughing, and panting. The other vets just shrugged their shoulders after listening to his chest telling us "he is fine, he is healthy." A friend at work recommended our vet as she takes her dog to the same vet. The vet saved Pixie's life twice. Is there another vet you can see and/or can someone you know and trust refer you to another vet? Please keep us updated on your kitties. I will be thinking of you and your kitties and praying