Making horrible loud sound during gag reflex, and hoarse meowing

[NadiaRey]

Sorry, it feels like I only come here for health questions, but, I could use your help again.

It's Gremlin this time. The sound made (1st symptom) is like a scream while heaving, but no vomiting. Gremlin and the stray Clari are both doing it (saw it happen once for each). Also, both are bloated (2nd symptom) - I thought they might be fat from eating food somewhere I'm not seeing and that's why trying to put them on a diet isn't working... but now I'm wondering if whatever Clari caught (she got very fat in a very short period of time, first), now Gremlin got it as well - like it's fluid retention rather than fat and a symptom of something else.

Blood test came out okay, though (white blood cells count normal), so the vet is discarding infection. But. The hoarse meowing is another thing (3rd symptom). Vet thought it might be just stress but honesly, not even at the most stressful situation has Gremlin been this weird-sounding. And now that I've heard Clari hoarse and make loud noises when gagging too, it's three things they are both doing.

(Extra note: I caught Clari having some trouble breathing one time, but Gremlin hasn't had nothing this obvious. At least not yet. EDIT: I forgot to mention Gremlin's test did reveal one issue: he's very close to having kidney problems (yeah, again the kidneys). Also, Gremlin has always had bad breath, but it might be worse lately. And most importantly, he is less active than normal, that's what worried me initially. He has never been a very active cat, mind, but something about how he acts nowadays bothers me. He eats, though, neither he nor Clari stopped eating... though I swear, for their perceived weight, I feel they are hardly eating all that much...)

Tomorrow I'm going to the vet again but so far they are clueless, and so am I. Could there be a contagious infection or bacteria that doesn't trigger the immune system response? (My god don't let it be cancer again...) If anybody has had any experience with something this odd, please -please- contact me. I'm scared out of my mind.

 

[Furballsmom]

I don't know, ...are you absolutely sure they aren't coming into contact with something?

Have you been able to get a video of the sounds so the vet can hear it?

 

[NadiaRey]

Honestly, it's something that happens out of the blue - and just once, thank god. Also, the first time it happened WHILE at the vet's. I was at the waiting room (after the checkup) and by the time the attending vet came, Gremlin had stopped making the noise (and she didn't hear it, even though it was very loud. It was like he was screaming...)

Extra note: I forgot to mention Gremlin's test did reveal one issue: he's very close to having kidney problems (yeah, again the kidneys). I also wanted to add that Gremlin has always had bad breath, but it might be worse lately. And most importantly, he is less active than normal, that's what worried me initially. He has never been a very active cat, mind, but something about how he acts nowadays bothers me. He eats, though, neither he nor Clari stopped eating... though I swear, for their perceived weight, I feel they are hardly eating all that much...

EDIT: Is there a thread, or one of those convenient links you have that lists possible cat diseases/symptoms that I could rumage through? I don't want to be caught with my pants down again, so to speak. So far, I've only read that heaving with no vomiting could be indicative of something being "stuck" on the esofagus/stomach/kidney/liver. It seems like there's a motif here... but what issues causes all these?

 

[Furballsmom]

Is there a university veterinary medical department you could contact?

 

[She's a witch]

Have any parasites have been ruled out?

 

[NadiaRey]

Have any parasites have been ruled out?

Can there be parasites and no high white blood cells count? I'm honestly asking, I'm kind of lost here.

We did x-rays on Gremlin, nothing there (mild artrosis at most). Vets felt him constipated so we are giving him laxatives. His energy does ups and downs. I went to the doctor myself and got diagnosed flu-like virus (voice been rather hoarse myself, and I've zero energy... no fever though) so now I'm thinking it might be some sort of zoonosis, but no symptoms fit the description of any zoonosis I know, and there's the thing with the low white blood cells count...

Is there a university veterinary medical department you could contact?

I think I heard someone mention this before. Is this a thing? I'm gonna ask around. My cousin is studying to be a vet no less, she should know, right?

 

[Meowmee]

Sorry, it feels like I only come here for health questions, but, I could use your help again.

It's Gremlin this time. The sound made (1st symptom) is like a scream while heaving, but no vomiting. Gremlin and the stray Clari are both doing it (saw it happen once for each). Also, both are bloated (2nd symptom) - I thought they might be fat from eating food somewhere I'm not seeing and that's why trying to put them on a diet isn't working... but now I'm wondering if whatever Clari caught (she got very fat in a very short period of time, first), now Gremlin got it as well - like it's fluid retention rather than fat and a symptom of something else.

Blood test came out okay, though (white blood cells count normal), so the vet is discarding infection. But. The hoarse meowing is another thing (3rd symptom). Vet thought it might be just stress but honesly, not even at the most stressful situation has Gremlin been this weird-sounding. And now that I've heard Clari hoarse and make loud noises when gagging too, it's three things they are both doing.

(Extra note: I caught Clari having some trouble breathing one time, but Gremlin hasn't had nothing this obvious. At least not yet. EDIT: I forgot to mention Gremlin's test did reveal one issue: he's very close to having kidney problems (yeah, again the kidneys). Also, Gremlin has always had bad breath, but it might be worse lately. And most importantly, he is less active than normal, that's what worried me initially. He has never been a very active cat, mind, but something about how he acts nowadays bothers me. He eats, though, neither he nor Clari stopped eating... though I swear, for their perceived weight, I feel they are hardly eating all that much...)

Tomorrow I'm going to the vet again but so far they are clueless, and so am I. Could there be a contagious infection or bacteria that doesn't trigger the immune system response? (My god don't let it be cancer again...) If anybody has had any experience with something this odd, please -please- contact me. I'm scared out of my mind.

Merlin did that a couple of times. I was going to post about it but didn’t- it happened after I gave him his medication, at first I thought he was in pain but after a few times it stopped. I think he swallowed something the wrong way or something I have never heard a cat do that before, very frightening.

 

[di and bob]

Have you thought of allergies from their food? It's strange they both have had it. The hoarseness might be from allergies.I would change their food just to see, and maybe add DMG, or Lysine with immune support to build up their immune systems. All my cats are on it now since one was diagnosed with leukemia, or FeLV, and it has been a couple of months and so far so good. Two have had a LOT of upper respiratory troubles, almost dying, and since the DMG have had none. Just a thought.....PS are you giving any supplements, or treats they might have a reaction to?

 

[Furballsmom]

My cousin is studying to be a vet no less, she should know, right?

If there is one, it could be a way to have your vet consult with them, or for you to converse directly.

 

[NadiaRey]

Appologies for not answering earlier. So, I ruled out most common zoonosis (I ran the tests on myself, to spare the cats). On the plus side, all negative, and both mine and my cat's throats do seem to be better, in the 'hoarse voice' deparment.

Gremlin has been very moody, more than he has ever been. I'm still grieving Sueño so I thought that might be partly why. But he's also been hiding, another bad sign. Luckily, he rarely does it to me, but he hides from other normal household occupants, something he didn't do before. His weight isn't better either (whenever I think he lost weight he's back to putting it, even if I didn't see him eat anything!). I think he looks more energetic than before at least. Angrier, but at least not lethargic. What bothers me especially is that Gremlin keeps making this motion, as if swallowing or licking the interior of his mouth. I keep trying to get a look inside (his mouth) but I haven't seen anything so far...

I don't know, I come here when I run out of ideas, and I haven't had a good idea for a while now. Because I don't know where I'm standing, I'm literally sitting on my butt. On the one hand, I might be making a big thing out of nothing, and in the other, it might be that I'm missing something that is important and I'm not seeing it because I'm in denial -because I do NOT want to go through this again-, and while I do this back and forth, I'm worried if I keep this up, I'm letting whatever this is evolve into something... bad-er.

So, to sum up: continuous swallowing, strangely bloated, moody/hidding (no longer lethargic). I could also add he keeps on breaking nails and the swallowing thing might be another indication of 'something stuck inside digestive track' feeling (like with the loud, painful choking from the original post).

Have you thought of allergies from their food? It's strange they both have had it. The hoarseness might be from allergies.I would change their food just to see, and maybe add DMG, or Lysine with immune support to build up their immune systems. All my cats are on it now since one was diagnosed with leukemia, or FeLV, and it has been a couple of months and so far so good. Two have had a LOT of upper respiratory troubles, almost dying, and since the DMG have had none. Just a thought.....PS are you giving any supplements, or treats they might have a reaction to?

Hey, di and bob. See, at the time he was eating what he always ate: cat food (same brand as always) and ocasional chicken and such, so it shouldn't be allergies, right? Though on a related note, previous to all this, with my other cat Sueño falling ill, they started eating a lot more chicken and alternatives, in an all home-made diet. But, see, this should have made Gremlin better, not worse, specially in the kidneys department (I was trying to help *her* kidneys problem, and I didn't know he had them as well until now).
And it's because of the kidney problem diagnostic I decided to change the diet again: this time he's eating the same brand of cat food, but diet/low sugar, and he's eating a lot more chicken, meat (especially the fatless type), etc, avoiding salt like the devil. I'm even adding vegetables mixed with the meat (celery, carrots, pumkin). I'm avoiding tuna because it usually has a lot of salt... and that's about it. I do think the diet is incredibly important right now... but I'm not sure what diet I'm supposed to resource to. His body is not responding to anything in particular, positively or negatively. I'm open to suggestions, though.

Thanks again for dropping by, everyone. Even if you can't quite replace vet consultation, it's always a big help talking to you.

 

[Jem]

So, to sum up: continuous swallowing, strangely bloated, moody/hidding (no longer lethargic).

So with continuous swallowing I tend to go to nausea / upset tummy and maybe some sort of acid reflux.
With the bloating I would think parasite/worms or severe constipation or blockage.
Moody and hiding = pain.

This may have been covered but I'll still ask.

How is the poop? How often does he go? What is the consistency (hard? soft? both? watery? etc...)

Are you still making his food? You mention it's a low fat meat with added veggies. Do you add the supplements to his food (it's a supplement that is needed when people make their own pet food)? He may not be getting proper nutrition if he's only eating the chicken meat and veggies. Although, pumpkin is very useful for tummy issues in cats, veggies are not part of a cats natural diet. And specifically, celery is very hard to digest.
Perhaps start a thread in the Feeding Raw / Homemade forum if you wish to continue to make home made food to get information from experienced members on homemade feeding (I am not one of them! lol!)