HELP! Cat gasping / coughing / gagging?

[frazzfox]

Before anyone asks, we're planning to take her into the vet as soon as possible. I'm just wondering if this is worth an emergency vet trip today or if anyone's had experience with this sort of coughing / wheezing.

She just started doing this today, for the first time, about 11:30 AM. I thought she was throwing up at first but nothing came out. She's been doing it sort of intermittently since, maybe every 20 or so minutes. In between her coughs she seems fine if a little sleepy. Licking her lips /swallowing a bit more than usual. She's still looking for birds in the window, cuddling with us, etc. She ate fine this morning. I counted her breathing and she's in the normal range, she's not panting or wheezing between these little episodes.

I thought she might have a hairball stuck but I'm not so sure about those gasping sounds. If anyone can help let me know, I'm so worried for her. I can provide more info if needed.

 

[Furballsmom]

She's been doing it sort of intermittently since, maybe every 20 or so minutes

Due to this recurring pattern, I think I'd try and take her in (along with the video) today.

 

[frazzfox]

I'll definitely be showing the video to the vet. As of now, it hasn't happened again since my post, and she seemed hungry (begging) so I gave her a small bowl of food, which she ate and was fine. No further gasping / coughing, her appetite was good.

I'm still monitoring her closely. If it happens again I'll take her in.

Could this have been reverse sneezing? If so, maybe the food pushed down whatever was irritating her throat?

 

[Azazel]

It could be a number of things. It will take time and diagnostics to figure out what the potential underlying problem is. You’ll need to monitor, get as many videos as possible, and see a vet to perform other diagnostics.

 

[Jem]

I don't THINK this is reverse sneezing. It's tricky to figure out but with reverse sneezing the force of the air flow heard is usually greater/harder/louder with the INtake, due to the nature of the muscle spasms. In your video, it sounds more like the force of the air flow is greater with the output.
Just my take. Other than that, I can't offer anything else, sorry.

 

[furmonster mom]

My first impression was that she seemed to have something stuck in her throat, and when you scratched her back, it caused a muscular reaction that traveled up and caused the cough. It's possible that the food helped dislodge whatever it was.

My curiosity now would be what was it? if it was just a bit of food, no biggie. If it was a bit of plastic or string, might need to keep an eye out for other issues (poop/pee/appetite).

 

[lisahe]

She just started doing this today, for the first time, about 11:30 AM. I thought she was throwing up at first but nothing came out. She's been doing it sort of intermittently since, maybe every 20 or so minutes. In between her coughs she seems fine if a little sleepy. Licking her lips /swallowing a bit more than usual. She's still looking for birds in the window, cuddling with us, etc. She ate fine this morning. I counted her breathing and she's in the normal range, she's not panting or wheezing between these little episodes.

I'll definitely be showing the video to the vet. As of now, it hasn't happened again since my post, and she seemed hungry (begging) so I gave her a small bowl of food, which she ate and was fine. No further gasping / coughing, her appetite was good.

I'm still monitoring her closely. If it happens again I'll take her in.

Could this have been reverse sneezing? If so, maybe the food pushed down whatever was irritating her throat?

It's hard to say what, exactly, that was. Since respiratory disease is really a "better safe than sorry" thing, I'm glad you're going to show this to the vet no matter what happens next. This video reminds me a fair bit of what one of our cats has done a couple times -- while also seeming to be absolutely fine overall, both in terms of behavior and breathing, with no panting or wheezing -- before being diagnosed in December with some form of asthma. Asthma can apparently be fairly light (at least most of the time!), not interfering much with a cat's lifestyle. That's certainly how it was with Ireland who very rarely showed any obvious symptoms. She's now on an inhaler, as a preventive measure.

 

[FeebysOwner]

You could still try a hairball remedy to see if that helps any. Even something as simple as a dab of butter or margarine on your finger or her paw for her to lick off. Feeby will behave similarly when she has a hairball, but only for a round or two before it is over. She never throws up a hairball, so I am guessing that she dislodges it with the coughing/gagging/hacking, and then swallows it back down, and then it makes its way through her digestive system. She has done this for years and years. I do give her hairball treats on a daily basis.

 

[Hannah518]

Good call to take to her in to the vet. Any new environment changes? Air fresheners and such? My cat had allergies at one of our past apartments and would do things like this. We did xrays and he has some inflammation. It’s hard to say without diagnostics but if she keeps doing it the remainder of the day, I wouldn’t wait especially if it’s a foreign object.

 

[frazzfox]

Thanks dearly for the advice everyone. Kila is curled up sleeping now and seems tired but no longer coughing/wheezing. I'll be keeping a close eye on her until her vet appointment.

My first impression was that she seemed to have something stuck in her throat, and when you scratched her back, it caused a muscular reaction that traveled up and caused the cough. It's possible that the food helped dislodge whatever it was.

This crossed my mind as well. I tried to look into her mouth a bit with a light but I couldn't see anything. I've never seen her eat anything but food before but we've only had her for a short amount of time.

Asthma can apparently be fairly light (at least most of the time!), not interfering much with a cat's lifestyle. That's certainly how it was with Ireland who very rarely showed any obvious symptoms. She's now on an inhaler, as a preventive measure.

I also thought about this as well and was wondering if she was possibly having an asthma attack. I have a childhood cat with asthma, though his symptoms sound a good deal different than these.

You could still try a hairball remedy to see if that helps any. Even something as simple as a dab of butter or margarine on your finger or her paw for her to lick off.

I'm sure she'd love any excuse for a little butter. We'll try it. She's a pretty zealous groomer which is why hairball was my first thought. But it sounded more like gasping to me, at least after listening for a while, than the gagging noises my other cats have made prior to horking furballs.

 

[frazzfox]

Good call to take to her in to the vet. Any new environment changes? Air fresheners and such? My cat had allergies at one of our past apartments and would do things like this. We did xrays and he has some inflammation. It’s hard to say without diagnostics but if she keeps doing it the remainder of the day, I wouldn’t wait especially if it’s a foreign object.

She's had a lot of environment changes in a short amount of time -- we just adopted her so she's in a totally new place. She's been overgrooming and scratching a lot since we brought her home so I've been wondering if she has allergies or if it was anxiety related. The scratching/grooming has been subsiding but now this. I'm hoping the vet can try to pinpoint what the issue is.

 

[Hannah518]

She's had a lot of environment changes in a short amount of time -- we just adopted her so she's in a totally new place. She's been overgrooming and scratching a lot since we brought her home so I've been wondering if she has allergies or if it was anxiety related. The scratching/grooming has been subsiding but now this. I'm hoping the vet can try to pinpoint what the issue is.

This could be possible. Hairball remedy would be a good idea too. I have another cat with anxiety and overgrooms when he’s stressed. It causes a lot of hair in his poo more than hairbakks but this could also be a factor. Let us know what you find out!! I got a coughing baby right now too (due to terminal illness) but it’s is never fun to watch! It’s so painful to see our cats struggling.

 

[lisahe]

Good call to take to her in to the vet. Any new environment changes? Air fresheners and such? My cat had allergies at one of our past apartments and would do things like this. We did xrays and he has some inflammation.

Yes about environment changes, whether they're due to chemicals (paint, flooring, etc.) work on a house or a new set of potential allergens (dust, down, etc.)!

Ireland's xrays also showed inflammation. Apparently not a lot (I saw the xray but can't really assess much!) but enough for the vet to prescribe the inhaler. The vet said Ireland's breathing also started to sound a bit off in the last year.

Since you mention that you just adopted the cat, frazzfox -- what's her name, by the way? -- yes, maybe it's partly stress that's causing this.

In a "for what it's worth" mode... Also (since this is what first clued me in to Ireland's "issues" shortly after we adopted her!) what kind of kitty litter are you using? Right after adopting our cats, when we were using Fresh Step, which is both very dusty and highly perfumed, Ireland had two big cough attacks; we switched to Dr. Elsey's Respiratory Relief (oddly, I just happened to have an unopened package) and she hasn't had a full-blown cough attack since, just small incidents, like your cat's. It's been about six years now. Another kitty litter twist: Dr. Pierson of catinfo.org, says, "We see more feline asthma with the corn and wheat litters when compared to the clay litters." It's possible that none of that is relevant but there it is!

For now, I hope your cat enjoys a little butter!

 

[frazzfox]

In a "for what it's worth" mode... Also (since this is what first clued me in to Ireland's "issues" shortly after we adopted her!) what kind of kitty litter are you using?

Her name is Kila! And actually strangely enough we literally just switched litters today -- from Scoop Away (scented, she seemed not to be a fan of it) to Fresh Step Simply Unscented. She had sneezed once or twice in the box with the Scoop Away which is what prompted me to make the switch, but I wonder if I just made things worse... hmm.

 

[lisahe]

Her name is Kila! And actually strangely enough we literally just switched litters today -- from Scoop Away (scented, she seemed not to be a fan of it) to Fresh Step Simply Unscented. She had sneezed once or twice in the box with the Scoop Away which is what prompted me to make the switch, but I wonder if I just made things worse... hmm.

Hm, yes, that's interesting. Both that the Scoop Away made her sneeze and that you just switched to the unscented Fresh Step. (And of course it's difficult to know what bothers a cat, the scent or the dust.)

 

[Hannah518]

I wish I would have known about The Respiratory Relief litter when my cat had allergies. I’ve tried it this year and while it didn’t really help my cat since his coughing is due to other factors, I still used it just in case. I think it’s pretty quality litter to use, especially for kitties with allergies. Ive heard great things with cats that suffer from asthma. You may try it.

 

[Furballsmom]

Another, quick note about litter and dust, I've been using tidy cats free and clean unscented, and mixing it with Littermaids walnut or corncob. The littermaid seems to absorb dust

 

[Jemima Lucca]

I also use Tidy Cat Free and Clean unscented because when we got Jemima she would sneeze and sneeze after using the litter box. She also began avoiding the litter box. Interesting ...

 

[stephanietx]

My cat does this when her asthma is acting up. I'm not sure it's reverse sneezing, but it could be. Reducing litter dust or removing any scent in the litter than might irritate her is a good step, but I would ask the vet to do an x-ray to check her lungs to rule out asthma.

 

[frazzfox]

She used the box again about an hour ago and didn’t seem to have any respiratory issues. However, she does seem EXTREMELY tired. Poor thing has been in on and off deep sleep all afternoon and evening. Like so deep I have to keep waking her to make sure she’s okay. She’s also been making little grumbling, squeaking, and sighing noises as she settles down, which she’s done since we got her, but it’s definitely more frequent today. She still has an appetite which is a good sign, ate her dinner fine. No more coughing since her last little episode at 2 PM.

I made a vet appt online for Tuesday morning but I’m going to call tomorrow morning to see if they can get her in earlier, especially with this apparent exhaustion and all the little noises she’s been making.