What does it mean if a cat has white gums?

Question

My kitty is acting tired and is sleeping a lot. He is hardly eating or using the restroom. I just checked inside his mouth and his gums are white. He has been tested for Feline AIDS and leukemia. The tests were negative. Can you please give me some suggestions as to what is wrong and to make him more comfortable. I will be taking him to the Vet tomorrow. Thank you in advance.

My cat is about 6 months old. He is an indoor cat and has not had any trauma that I am aware of. He is walking with his back legs sort of stiff like he is uncomfortable. When I pet him, he purrs, but he is just not acting like himself. He is just staying in his little house. He has drank a little water and some warm milk.

Answer 1

Hi Maddie...this means your cat is very dehydrated, which is causing the lethargy, excessive sleeping, lack of appetite. Gums and the nose (if it's a pink one) will change to a white colouration when a cat becomes dedyrated. d

Cats can become dehydrated for many reasons including illness, accidental ingestion of toxins inside our outside of the home, fever, infection, vomiting, diarrhea, diabetes, and kidney problems, etc. You can tell if your cat is dehydrated by doing the 'pinch' test. Take a bit of skin on the cats back and pinch it, let go and see how long it takes for the skin to retract back to its normal spot. The skin should be extremely elastic and immediately bounce back, if it takes more than a second or two your cat is probably dehydrated.

Symptoms to look for:
- Dry nose
- Dry mouth or eyes
- 'Pinch' test
- Severe thirst
- Lethargy

Treatment:

In more serious situations your cat may need to be given fluids subcutaneously (SubQ) or intravenously (IV).

Feline Kidney Failure: http://www.felinecrf.com/comm0.htm (see Dehydration)
http://www.sniksnak.com/cathealth/firstaid.html

Answer 2

Pale Gums In Cats

Answer 3

It's hard to speculate about what might be going on with your cat as you don't give an age. White gums can be a sign of shock from trauma and this is not the case here. It can also be a sign of anemia.

I know that you are concerned and there is not much I can say to ease your anxiety. I am just very happy that the cat will see a vet tomorrow and hopefully you will be reassured and start a treatment to make the kitty feel better.

When a human or animal is not feeling well fasting is very good for the system. It frees the energy that would be going into digestion for use to help them restore their health and balance.

Answer 4

If his gums are paler than normal, along with lethargy and not eating/defacting, your cat could be very sick. Pale gums can indicate poor blood flow, poor oxygenation of blood, poor nutrition/iron, and slowed heart rate among other things. It could be something as simple as a bad case of intestinal parasites, or perhaps a viral or bacterial infection or other disease, or a tumor. You should defintely get him check out tomorrow, but if this has been going on for a while, you might want to consider an emergency vet tonight.

If you can't, just make sure he doesn't become cold overnight, and try to handfeed some fluids.

Answer 5

A lot of good answers here, although I wouldn't panic just yet. Glad your boy is going to the vet tomorrow!! First thing, I hope.

Pale gums do indicate "low blood supply to the area". To me, that's ANEMIC! He could be dehydrated as well. To test for that, pull up the skin on the scruff of his neck - it should return quickly to its original position. He's VERY dehydrated if not much happens, moderately dehydrated if it returns slowly, and not dehydrated at all if it bounces right back.

Try to get some sleep, sweetie, and get to the vet first thing. Don't panic. Although a couple answers say NOW, unless he's been hit by a car or something, which I'm sure you would have mentioned, tomorrow morning will come all too soon.

My prayers are with you and your kittie.

Answer 6

He's ill for some reason. Take him to a veterinarian. My first thought is some kind of heart problem, but I hate to scare you with that. In the mean time, try to keep water in him. Even my sickest cats loved water dropped into their mouths from a 3 or 5 cc syringe (no needle) -- you can get a "medicine syringe" perfect for the purpose at the drugstore: they use them to give babies oral medications.

As the veterinarian specifically to listen to the cat's heart, although you have to make the cat stop purring to do it (been there done that with my monstercats--a purr through a stethoscope will nearly make you deaf!).

Some good news: if the cat is "just" dehydrated for some reason, a veterinarian can give the cat "sub-Q" fluids by just putting the iv into the skin at the scruff of the neck. The vet doesn't even have to find and use a vein, because cats are sort of like camels that way. You can put the liquid in at the scruff, and then the cat absorbs it into its body. It's not ideal for a badly injured or critically ill cat, but it works fine for "just" dehydration.

Answer 7

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The only time I've ever seen white gums is after a trauma and the cat is in shock. Minus a trauma, white gums could be a lot of things, all of them bad. I'd be in the car on the way to my vet right now. Is your vet really not open on weekends?

Answer 8

DO NOT wait until tomorrow!! Find an emergency clinic tonight!! White gums are usually a sign of anemia and/or blood loss. I'm not sure what could be wrong with him, but an ER vet can run bloodwork and other diagnostic tests to get you some answers. I have worked in an animal hospital for 7 years, and know that the people who wait until the next day on things like this usually regret it. Good luck!

Answer 9

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RE:
What does it mean if a cat has white gums?
My kitty is acting tired and is sleeping a lot. He is hardly eating or using the restroom. I just checked inside his mouth and his gums are white. He has been tested for Feline AIDS and leukemia. The tests were negative. Can you please give me some suggestions as to what is wrong and to make...

Answer 10

it means your cat is not getting enough blood flow to that area of her mouth and is dehydrated. vets usually check for capillary refill time by pressing the gums and counting the amount of time it takes for the gums to turn pink again. but if your cat's gums aren't pink at all, it means she's not getting enough blood flow. this is often caused by dehydration. you can also check by lifting up the skin on your cat's neck and seeing if it takes a long time for the skin to fall back down again. make sure your cat has plenty of water for tonight, or better yet, see if you can give your vet a call - your cat may need to be on I.V. fluids immediately!