URI with mouth open

[NewKitty18]

Over a week ago one of our three cats developed URI symptoms. She spent a few days sneezing loads and then recovered. Second cat caught it and eventually needed antibiotics and eye drops (and an E collar, poor thing). Now our third cat is sneezing. It started today and he mostly seems pretty normal. Not as energetic as normal, but not lethargic. No discharge from eyes or nose. The only thing that concerns me is the fact that he’s keeping his mouth a bit open sometimes. Open for a few minutes, then closed for a while, then open again. I know this can be a sign of respiratory distress in cats, but he really doesn’t seem to be struggling to breathe. His gums are nice and pink. Only other noteworthy thing is his that his sneezes sound bark-y, but maybe that’s just how he sneezes.

Any idea what might be going on? Does this sound like an emergency?

 

[silent meowlook]

Ow, he looks so uncomfortable. Is he still eating? Is there a way you can get ahold of your vet to send a video or talk?

 

[NewKitty18]

We decided to bring him to the ER vet. My husband is on his way with him. He just doesn’t seem right. Triage nurse on phone agreed.

Very worried. He’s a young, healthy cat. We had hoped he would shrug this off.

 

[NewKitty18]

The triage tech said he’s stable so we’re bringing him home. Vitals are good and lungs are clear. Seems most likely that he’s super congested and just can’t breathe through his nose. He should still be seen but it’s not urgent. The vets where I live are completely overwhelmed and the wait for non-critical animals is close to 24 hours right now.

Ozzy always has sort of a weird expression, so he may not be as uncomfortable as he looks in the photos.

This is what he normally looks like.

 

[silent meowlook]

Well, he is adorable. I am so glad you took him to the ER. Any open mouth breathing in a cat can be life threatening and there is just no way to know without seeing him.

 

[NewKitty18]

Well, he is adorable. I am so glad you took him to the ER. Any open mouth breathing in a cat can be life threatening and there is just no way to know without seeing him.

yeah, I’m glad we did also. I’m just hoping he recovers on his own and we can put all this behind us. It’s been a rough two weeks. Whole family got COVID and then all three cats got sick. Makes it extra complicated to take them to the vet. Extra weird because the cats are indoors only so I don’t even know where they caught it. Vet says cats catching COVID is incredibly rare, but I have to wonder.