hi my 3 year old tom garfield has suddly started breathing very quickly and drooling very badly from mouth?

Question

my beloved cat i have 4 has suddenly started drooling very heavily from mouth and breathing very heavy. he looks as if he not interrested in anyone or any thing. this has only started in the last few hours, hes a big strong cat and is never ill, would anyone have any ideas wat to do, its the middle of the noght and all my children are in bed and i dont have a babysitter or i would take him straight to my vet ??? please help gina...

Answer 1

Hi Gina...excess drooling (ptyalism) with rapid breathing can be indicative of several factors such as accidental ingestion of toxins, periodontal diseases/gum disorders, etc. Consider ringing a veterinarian to discuss if your cat should come in to be evaluated as this could be quite SERIOUSLY life-threatening.

More on causes of drooling:
http://www.manhattancats.com/Articles/drooling.html
http://www.cathealth.com/drooling.htm
http://www.vetinfo.com/cdrool.html
Periodontal diseases:
http://www.vet.cornell.edu/fhc/news/badBreath.htm
http://www.vet.cornell.edu/fhc/news/dentist.htm

Disorders of the teeth and gums are a common reason for drooling. “Periodontal disease and the accompanying gingivitis, if severe, can lead to halitosis (bad breath), dysphagia (difficulty eating), and drooling”

Oral trauma and associated pain and discomfort can lead to drooling. Broken teeth with resultant nerve exposure, a fractured jaw, and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders are traumatic injuries that often lead to pain and drooling.

Damage or paralysis of the trigeminal nerve (cranial nerve V) can lead to drooling secondary to an inability to close the mouth. Lesions involving other cranial nerves (cranial nerve VII, IX, X, and XII) can also lead to drooling. Fortunately, cranial nerve disorders are uncommon in cats.

Kidney failure is a very common condition, especially in geriatric cats. Cats with severe kidney failure may have significant uremia (literally “urine in the blood”). Uremic cats often develop ulcers on the gums, tongue, and edges of the lips. These ulcers are painful, and many of these cats drool foul-smelling saliva as a result. These ulcers are readily visible on oral examination.

Various drugs and toxins can cause hypersalivation in cats.

Answer 2

Oh Lord...with the drooling, it is possible he has been poisoned. There should be an emergency after hours vet you can call to ask if there is something you can do for him at home, but he really really needs to be seen. I'm assuming he has had all his shots, particularly rabies? Drooling is a symptom of rabies as well. You could also take a look in his mouth and throat. When our cat Jake was a kitten, he kept coughing and gagging. My mother took a look in his throat, as a joke (I'd just had strep throat, and we'd been shining flashlights down each other's throat for days). He had a threaded needle embedded across his soft palate, and the thread was irritating his throat and causing him to cough and gag. He got lucky, it lodged. My hands were the smallest, so following the vet's instructions I pushed the needle deeper on one end so i could free the other end and dislodge it. The vet didn't even want us to bring him in, he was afraid to take the time and the additional risk of moving him. There could be an obstruction somewhere. I don't know...It's the weekend, could you wake your kids up and take them with you?

Answer 3

Keep him comfortable and quiet. Then, search the house to see if you can find evidence of anything he may have eaten (insect poison, etc.). Even if you can't leave the house, you should at least call the emergency vet for advice. In light of your situation, they should be willing to make some suggestions over the phone.

Good luck sweetie...try not to worry too much. Cats are actually very smart...when they get sick, they know to just sit quietly.

Answer 4

http://www.asah.net/feline_urinary_disease.htm
http://www.folsomfelines.org/newsletter/082004/page2.html

Could be poisoning...but advanced FLUTD with full blockage will cause toxic distress symptoms.

In the past week has Garfield:
urinated in the wrong place?
yowled while using his box ?

The first time my cat blocked I never noticed the symptoms leading up to it...I found him in exactly the condition you described. He was drooling, listless (really out of it), and had vomitted.

Your cat needs help right away.
This sounds like he's blocked (urinary). He needs to go to a vet immediately!! This is not uncommon in male cats, but will be fatal if he does not receive attention ASAP.

What happens is, crystals develop in the bladder and block the urethra. Your tom can not urinate and toxins are building up in his system. This leads to kidney failure. If he is drooling, he is already experiencing symptoms and needs the vet.


Please take Garfield to the vet now. This is treatable but he needs help right away.

Answer 5

Surely there is an emergency number you can ring and get a vet to come and visit you. Don't leave it till morning please. Look up the Golden Pages and find a number. There may even be a number at your own vet. Ring and see what it says on the answering machine. Good Luck

Answer 6

short asnswer you love the cat! so phone a local VET for advice, they are the first and best place to contact if your animal is sick or not behaving like them selves.
if the vet says it is nothing better safe than sorry!
find your phone book and phone a vet NOW!!!
better yet take to the nearest vet for imediate attention.
as one user said it could be a fur ball or worse poisoning.
the sooner you get the animal treated the better the chance for survival especially in the case of a poisoning.

good luck and i hope the cat gets better soon.

Answer 7

Stay with him and get him to the vet as soon as humanly possible. You will thank yourself later. It could be complications with his gigantic and wonderful old heart. You would never forgive yourself if you neglect him in any way. My heart goes out to you because all you can do is to watch him behave like this. Here in my country I have the telephone number of a twenty-four hour animal hospital. If you can check your phone book or information operator, perhaps you can find referral to weekend care of all animals and ask what can be done to help your cat pull himself through this awful episode. I had a cat named Baby Puss who had heart murmurs, and we went through precisely what you described. It was frankly awful, so connect with a vet as quickly as you can, when you can, and this sort of thing can probably be prevented from happening in the future, which is certainly the desired course I would assume you would want to pursue. This story can have a happy ending.

Answer 8

Kids are allowed at the vet. Change in breathing should always be considered a possible emergency. Sorry, you are just going to have to wake the kids.

Answer 9

Look up in the phone book, there are some vets that make house calls. But you are risking it by not taking him in. Your kids will understand, it's important. My cat ingested poison and almost died. She was puking up green stuff. It was horrible.

Answer 10

Either he has eaten something poisonous or he's having a sejour(don't know how to spell). Why did you wait soo long?

Take your cat to the vet immediately or else he's NOT going to make it. Wake up the kids and throw them in the car asap.

GO !