That is exactly how our kitten sounded, turns out it was asthma. Google “feline asthma” and watch the videos. It looks exactly like that. We thought it was hairballs too, but no hair ever came up and he only vomited a bit of bile once. Ours has been on prednisone for a week ad he hasn’t had a single flare up.
It could be something else, but it’s better to be safe than sorry because feline asthma can be fatal. With meds, though, they live otherwise normal lives (just like people with asthma). Not trying to scare you, nust giving the info I wish I could find while searching for months.
owner of a cat with asthma here, there is tell tale posture (low to the ground, extended neck) with an asthma attack that this kitten is not displaying.
I’m familiar with the posture you are describing. This kitten does look like it is in that posture imo, but his short legs dont really poke as much as a bigger cat would. The head turning back and forth and that particular cough with no discharge whatsoever before settling back down to resume normal breathing all match the exact same pattern as my cat and others I’ve read about - and asthma attacks often follow a meal, as OP specified. Again, better to safe rather than sorry with potential respiratory stuff.
Regardless, OP, get them checked asap and be sure to show them this video or any other vid you have like this.
this also could simply be a kitten eating too quickly and getting the hiccups, a hairball, etc. don’t diagnose other peoples cats, it doesn’t look “exactly” like asthma. these attacks do NOT often happen after a meal. my and many other cats (mines been on an inhaler for 2 years) have attacks at particular times of year or times of day when their meds are wearing off. your comment is full of misinformation and fear mongering
It’s not a diagnosis and saying something looks “exactly” any way is subjective. Your experience doesn’t match mine or that of the other people’s reports that I’ve read. None of that is misinformation. I don’t think it’s fearmongering to give an honest account of your own experience & understanding of something that was asked about on a reddit forum.
I mean, it is a possibility that other people weren't saying, so if it is a possibility even if it's not a 100% match in these few photos, it would be a good idea for OP to know it's a possibility and watch for it, or get her cat checked out asap.
There's really no downside for someone saying it could be asthma here. Even if it turns out not to be.
Ok my cat has booger blowouts and I dont know if it's asthma related.
She lives with my boyfriend and he tried to explain what the vet said about it, said it is likely a virus that a lot of stray cats have. But when I asked if it was FIV he said he couldn't remember. 🤦♀️
oh boy, i would definitely take her back in! I haven’t heard of booger issues being asthma related, but i have a friend who’s cat had feline leukemia (FeLV) with similar symptoms! even if it is FIV, there are generally things vets can do to make your kitty more comfortable!
feline herpes could definitely be a cause as well! if it is herpes, they usually will do antibiotics, antiviral meds, steam, and similar treatments to help with symptoms!
for FeLV, they usually do antibiotics, transfusions, chemo, and comfort care, among other things.
for FIV, it’s more regular vet care, comfort, dietary management, and keeping them indoors.
I have a cat with asthma and my immediate thought seeing this was that this is asthma. It could be something else of course, but when my boy has a minor attack, it's just like this. He doesn't always go into the full crouched with head down position unless it's a bigger attack.
And I don't think you're "fear-mongering" at all, this person asked for input and you gave an incredibly plausible (and I think very likely) hypothesis. Feline asthma is usually pretty easy to manage when caught, we are lucky and my boy just needs a steroid injection every 6-12 months. But left untreated it can be terrifying and fatal, I have never been more afraid in my life as I was the night my boy had his worst attack. It's just way better to be safe than sorry, and making people aware of what feline asthma looks like saves lives.
Exactly. I agree 100%. It’s scary af when you dont know what it is and, despite it being fairly common apparently, it isn’t always so easy to find helpful information on it. Not until you search it specifically. That was my whole motivation in posting that, to offer some guidance that I struggled to find myself.
Thanks for trying to understand and relate to my response instead of assuming the worst possible intention. And I’m glad to hear your little guy is doing well!! I’m taking our cat for his follow up visit today (he is going to be pissed when he sees that carrier 😭). I’m hoping we can do the periodic injections like yours, that sounds easier than oral stuff or an inhaler.
Thanks again for the kind response. ✌🏽
She's too little to have hairballs, she's probably swallowed something and she's trying to throw it back up. We have kittens and cats and I know all about that. Please help her and watch her to see what she throws up.
Mine had this for a couple of minutes smelling around in a dusty corner.. Might have just been a dust crumb in its nose :) Glad to read it was only momentarily.
Ok so my cat did this exact same thing as a kitten. These episodes happened once every month. She is now almost 3 and had two episodes close together. I took her to the vet for an X-ray and she was diagnosed with inflammatory respiratory disease or asthma. Not saying that your cat has this. But if you want to take it to the vet to get a final answer. If it's not super serious it may not need strong medications, but if it gets worse, then you have the reason and you can treat it.
To me this doesn't sound like hiccups because of the wheeziness at the end of it. With my cat it was never a hairball because she never coughed anything up.
I'd definitely make an ASAP vet appointment. It looks and sounds exactly like the asthma attacks my late cat used to have.
Until a vet can see him,maybe just watch him and make sure he's able to recover after his episodes, and keep track of the frequency/duration. I would also rush him to an emergency vet if I noticed any open-mouth breathing.
Developed asthma after exposure to smoke during a house fire, had the condition for 12 years and kept it in control with flovent/albuterol and a baby-sized inhaler spacer for cats.
My cat did this when she was a kitten. Only occasionally after eating or drinking. Vet recommended taking away any toys with fluff/feathers that could be getting stuck in throat. Did that and my cat hasn’t coughed since!
Seems like the beginning of a hairball it’s sad to watch cause I hate seeing my cats do it but they end up throwing up a piece of hair that looks like a piece of poo
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That is exactly how our kitten sounded, turns out it was asthma. Google “feline asthma” and watch the videos. It looks exactly like that. We thought it was hairballs too, but no hair ever came up and he only vomited a bit of bile once. Ours has been on prednisone for a week ad he hasn’t had a single flare up. It could be something else, but it’s better to be safe than sorry because feline asthma can be fatal. With meds, though, they live otherwise normal lives (just like people with asthma). Not trying to scare you, nust giving the info I wish I could find while searching for months.
Good luck!
owner of a cat with asthma here, there is tell tale posture (low to the ground, extended neck) with an asthma attack that this kitten is not displaying.
I’m familiar with the posture you are describing. This kitten does look like it is in that posture imo, but his short legs dont really poke as much as a bigger cat would. The head turning back and forth and that particular cough with no discharge whatsoever before settling back down to resume normal breathing all match the exact same pattern as my cat and others I’ve read about - and asthma attacks often follow a meal, as OP specified. Again, better to safe rather than sorry with potential respiratory stuff.
Regardless, OP, get them checked asap and be sure to show them this video or any other vid you have like this.
this also could simply be a kitten eating too quickly and getting the hiccups, a hairball, etc. don’t diagnose other peoples cats, it doesn’t look “exactly” like asthma. these attacks do NOT often happen after a meal. my and many other cats (mines been on an inhaler for 2 years) have attacks at particular times of year or times of day when their meds are wearing off. your comment is full of misinformation and fear mongering
It’s not a diagnosis and saying something looks “exactly” any way is subjective. Your experience doesn’t match mine or that of the other people’s reports that I’ve read. None of that is misinformation. I don’t think it’s fearmongering to give an honest account of your own experience & understanding of something that was asked about on a reddit forum.
But you disagree. Ok. Noted.
I mean, it is a possibility that other people weren't saying, so if it is a possibility even if it's not a 100% match in these few photos, it would be a good idea for OP to know it's a possibility and watch for it, or get her cat checked out asap.
There's really no downside for someone saying it could be asthma here. Even if it turns out not to be.
great! no downside to me listing very prominent symptoms of asthma then, either!
By chance does your asthmatic cat shoot giant snot rockets on occasion?
she does not! she is a drooler, though.
Ok my cat has booger blowouts and I dont know if it's asthma related.
She lives with my boyfriend and he tried to explain what the vet said about it, said it is likely a virus that a lot of stray cats have. But when I asked if it was FIV he said he couldn't remember. 🤦♀️
oh boy, i would definitely take her back in! I haven’t heard of booger issues being asthma related, but i have a friend who’s cat had feline leukemia (FeLV) with similar symptoms! even if it is FIV, there are generally things vets can do to make your kitty more comfortable!
By chance is one of those things a vaccine for upper respiratory related health?
I could have swore he said it was a "feline herpes" to which i thought "what the actual frick-frack"
He loves our cat, but he's kind of a himbo and our schedules usually conflict with her appointments for me to be there too.
https://preview.redd.it/743fjhh5du6g1.jpeg?width=2048&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=62c4f0b38896d2b5b0340d8dec52fc4252aae40e
she is BEAUTIFUL, by the way
Isn't she!? She's my precious baby!
We found her in a pile of firewood as a kitten shortly after I was told I needed a hysterectomy and our plans of having children were changed.
feline herpes could definitely be a cause as well! if it is herpes, they usually will do antibiotics, antiviral meds, steam, and similar treatments to help with symptoms!
for FeLV, they usually do antibiotics, transfusions, chemo, and comfort care, among other things.
for FIV, it’s more regular vet care, comfort, dietary management, and keeping them indoors.
Its probably feline herpes.
He mentioned that and I did a double take because I knew nothing about that.
Thank you so much for the confirmation!!
I have a cat with asthma and my immediate thought seeing this was that this is asthma. It could be something else of course, but when my boy has a minor attack, it's just like this. He doesn't always go into the full crouched with head down position unless it's a bigger attack.
And I don't think you're "fear-mongering" at all, this person asked for input and you gave an incredibly plausible (and I think very likely) hypothesis. Feline asthma is usually pretty easy to manage when caught, we are lucky and my boy just needs a steroid injection every 6-12 months. But left untreated it can be terrifying and fatal, I have never been more afraid in my life as I was the night my boy had his worst attack. It's just way better to be safe than sorry, and making people aware of what feline asthma looks like saves lives.
Exactly. I agree 100%. It’s scary af when you dont know what it is and, despite it being fairly common apparently, it isn’t always so easy to find helpful information on it. Not until you search it specifically. That was my whole motivation in posting that, to offer some guidance that I struggled to find myself.
Thanks for trying to understand and relate to my response instead of assuming the worst possible intention. And I’m glad to hear your little guy is doing well!! I’m taking our cat for his follow up visit today (he is going to be pissed when he sees that carrier 😭). I’m hoping we can do the periodic injections like yours, that sounds easier than oral stuff or an inhaler. Thanks again for the kind response. ✌🏽
Yes
Hiccups or hairball.
Definitely not a hiccup, it’s is a cough
Little one ate too quick, probably hiccups lol. One of our cats gets hiccups every once in a while
She's too little to have hairballs, she's probably swallowed something and she's trying to throw it back up. We have kittens and cats and I know all about that. Please help her and watch her to see what she throws up.
There is no such thing as too little. If they play with, lick other cats or themselves they can get hair balls
How is she doing now?
She’s doing good, she hasn’t done it since this video. As others have stated I think it was hiccups from eating too fast since this was after eating
Mine had this for a couple of minutes smelling around in a dusty corner.. Might have just been a dust crumb in its nose :) Glad to read it was only momentarily.
Ok so my cat did this exact same thing as a kitten. These episodes happened once every month. She is now almost 3 and had two episodes close together. I took her to the vet for an X-ray and she was diagnosed with inflammatory respiratory disease or asthma. Not saying that your cat has this. But if you want to take it to the vet to get a final answer. If it's not super serious it may not need strong medications, but if it gets worse, then you have the reason and you can treat it.
To me this doesn't sound like hiccups because of the wheeziness at the end of it. With my cat it was never a hairball because she never coughed anything up.
My baby has asthma and this is how it looked when it started. Vet visit is in order.
I'd definitely make an ASAP vet appointment. It looks and sounds exactly like the asthma attacks my late cat used to have.
Until a vet can see him,maybe just watch him and make sure he's able to recover after his episodes, and keep track of the frequency/duration. I would also rush him to an emergency vet if I noticed any open-mouth breathing.
Did your cat die of asthma??
No lol old age, he was 21.
Developed asthma after exposure to smoke during a house fire, had the condition for 12 years and kept it in control with flovent/albuterol and a baby-sized inhaler spacer for cats.
Might be feline herpes. My baby still does it when he has a breakout but I give him medicine and it calms him down.
Hm she hasn’t done it since
My cat did this when she was a kitten. Only occasionally after eating or drinking. Vet recommended taking away any toys with fluff/feathers that could be getting stuck in throat. Did that and my cat hasn’t coughed since!
My kitty has a hernia on his diaphragm and has attacks similar to this.
I too think it’s a little asthma attack if there are no hairballs or vomit that happens after.
The hairball never came all the way up. Hence, the swallowing afterwards.
These are not hiccups, this is a cough. Might have choked oh food or something else. If it doesn’t stop soon I’d speak to a vet
Very cute kitty!
Seems like the beginning of a hairball it’s sad to watch cause I hate seeing my cats do it but they end up throwing up a piece of hair that looks like a piece of poo