# Cat Cough - Anything to worry about ?



## N1ck (Oct 7, 2010)

Hi, Miya my 9.5month old Russain Blue kitten has had a very occaional dry cough for a few months, we notice it 2-3 times a week (thats only what we see), at first we didn`t think it was anything to worry about as she is in perfect health, coat, eyes, general health and is very active.

We decided to mention it to the vet and she said it might be furr ball related and gave us some katalax which we mixed in with her food for 5-6 consecutive days and kept a log of the coughs. 
She still does them, same frequency but it did seem to coincide after she has eaten, so we though maybe she was rushing her treats (encore and dreamies) but the last couple of times we are not sure if we can attribute it to that.
I intend to try a different cat litter to make sure the dust from that isn`t causing anything and failing that maybe back to the vets other than that any suggestions ?

To add she is an indoor cat, although has been out on a harness and has been spayed.
Food - Orijen dry, treats of Dreamies and Encore fish.
Litter - Sainsburys clumping

Video here of coughing
YouTube - Cat Coughing


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## Ianthi (Oct 21, 2008)

Hi there,

Any persistent cough should always be investigated and I would certainly take her back to the vets. Considering you've noticed it most after eating I would get the vet to have a good look at her throat. Sounds as if food might be getting trapped there for some reason. Best to rule this out first.

Has she been fully wormed? Roundworms can cause coughing as well surprising enough. Also heartworms-these can also be responsible- have become more common is cats in UK so make sure you use a good broad spectrum wormer.

Of course there are other causes as well such as feline asthma and heart disease but hopefully it will be something else.

Keeping a log is an excellent idea as an aid to prompt diagnosis.Good luck with the visit and let us know how it went.


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## N1ck (Oct 7, 2010)

Thanks for the reply, I did mention heart worms / lungworms and the vet said she would be extremely unlucky being an indoor cat to have them but like you say the symptoms are consistant.
She was wormed at 6 months and 9 months so just passed, i cannot remember which one TBH but it was from the Vet, it does say Milbemax on the receipt maybe thats the one.
I was leaning away from asthma as It doesn`t coincide with exercise and she can run around for hours also no wheezing and the cough is dry but not ruling it out.
I`ll keep the log up and try to keep a closer eye on her and go back to the vets in a week or two if it doesn`t get better.

Thanks again.


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## tyrole (May 5, 2009)

It looks likely that Max who is 1 has feline asthma.
He's had all the tests and the last one involving lung examinations has shown thickening of the lung with mucous build up 
I hope Miya's cough gets better.


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## carly87 (Feb 11, 2011)

I found this very, very interesting, as my little Russian White kitten had a similar cough that we never did get to the bottom of. I'd be very interested to know where you got your girlie from. If it was the same breeder as I used, I'd be interested to find out, as I believed it was something inherrent. PM me privately and let me know, would you?


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## koekemakranka (Aug 2, 2010)

My new kitty also has an occasional cough and the vet could find nothing wrong. It also seems to happen after eating her wet food (she does tend to wolf down her food). She has been dewormed. Could it be a wind or something in the gullet that causes this, i wonder? It is not a bad cough and only lasts for a few seconds, like a throat clearing.


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## N1ck (Oct 7, 2010)

Hi, I cant seem to pin it down to anything in particular, possibly we thought it might be crumbs stuck after eating but we are not sure, im still trying to eliminate things before we go back to the vets. 
Quiet often it did seem to follow eating kibble or dreamies but not all the time.
She can go 1 full week without us noticing and it doesnt seem to bother her at all. Over a two week peroid it only happened twice , once it seemed to follow went she jumped down after drinking but again not everytime.
Im unsure about asthma as it doesnt tie in with exercise but not ruling it out.

Im off work with a broken collarbone so I can monitor it quiet closely now, I will be interested if anyone has got further thoughts.


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## lorilu (Sep 6, 2009)

That does not look like a hair ball cough to me, though it _could_ be fur stuck in her throat..

But even if it IS, hairball remedy is not going to do any good mixed into her food. For one thing, hair ball remedies interfere with nutrient absorption. for another you want the stuff to glom onto HAIR, not food.

Give the hair ball remedy on an empty stomach at least 2 hours before a meal. See if that helps, it there is fur caught in her throat, the hair ball stuff will help slick it down and she will pass out the other end.

It does sound as though she is aspirating, going by what you have said about water and food. But do try the hair all stuff given in a single blob, on an empty stomach.

What is in the katlax? The Cat Lax I use is made with cod liver oil, which is high in vitmin A and should not be given more than once w week. I use a variety of hair ball remedies and rotate them.


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## N1ck (Oct 7, 2010)

Thanks again for the reply , I have monitored this over the last few weeks while recovering from my broken collarbone and she only does it on average every 5 days for a few seconds and again I can`t pin it down too much to any particular behavioualr habit. She can be running, cough then run again so I just cannot see its asthma as she is really active.

She does groom herself a lot , maybe its hair in the throat :-/

I will try the katalax on an empty stomach to see if that helps (I will check info first), failing that I think we will go back to the vets just to be sure.
Whatever it is, it doesnt seem to bother her at all.


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## ambercat (May 4, 2009)

Has the vet ruled out heart disease? That cough is just like the way my Sam used to cough. He was diagnosed with HCM and he'd coughed like that on and off for quite some time - I stupidly thought he was attempting to cough up a furball each time - never occurred to me that there wasnt any evidence of furballs.


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## N1ck (Oct 7, 2010)

ambercat said:


> Has the vet ruled out heart disease? That cough is just like the way my Sam used to cough. He was diagnosed with HCM and he'd coughed like that on and off for quite some time - I stupidly thought he was attempting to cough up a furball each time - never occurred to me that there wasnt any evidence of furballs.


I will mention this when I go, although she is not showing any of the symptoms apart from this cough, she will run up the stairs and carry on playing straight after a cough.
Thanks for the suggestion, I will ask with the vet.


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## ambercat (May 4, 2009)

N1ck said:


> I will mention this when I go, although she is not showing any of the symptoms apart from this cough, she will run up the stairs and carry on playing straight after a cough.
> Thanks for the suggestion, I will ask with the vet.


There may not be any other symptoms of heart disease initially - my Sam just coughed, in all other respects he appeared normal. It was only much later when he showed other symptoms (fast, laboured breathing) that the diagnosis was made.


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## N1ck (Oct 7, 2010)

Thankyou I will ask the vet to check for this.


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