Cat Asthma Attack What To Do

However a cat in the grip of an asthma attack does have problems breathing.

Cat asthma attack what to do.

A coughing cat is a rare thing and is commonly linked with feline asthma. During an asthma attack many cats have a wheeze that you can hear from across the room but again not all cats do. Feline asthma very similar to human asthma is a chronic inflammation of the small passageways of a cat s lungs. However the absence of a cough does not rule asthma out.

After rescuing this big boy from the outdoors his previous owner s abandoned him we found him doing this strange cough. Do not try to give mouth to mouth resuscitation or cpr to a cat having an asthma. A full blown asthma attack may at first resemble a cat trying to cough up a hairball or possibly choking on food. Asthma with bronchitis in cats.

An asthma attack is fairly easy to spot. Dead skin flakes that originate around a cat s sweat glands can float in the air stick to dust particles. Because breathing is so severely restricted during an asthma attack the cat s gums and tongue may take on a bluish color. However this is a general sign of respiratory distress rather than specific to asthma.

You ll notice rapid open mouthed breathing accompanied by wheezing and often by forced exhalations. Even if you normally give your cat a long acting bronchodilator your vet may prescribe the albuterol so you can have it on hand for emergency situations. A cat having an asthma attack will hunch its body toward the ground and extend its neck forward. Cats can produce numerous allergens that can trigger asthma symptoms including.

During an asthma attack many cats hunch their body close to the ground and extend their necks forward in a characteristic posture figure 2. The bronchi begin at the end of the trachea where they split off into two branches. When an asthma attack occurs these passageways thicken and constrict making it very difficult for a cat to breathe. It didn t look like a.

Instead veterinarians rely on information gathering and testing to arrive at a diagnosis. From there they split off into smaller branches called the bronchioles. The lower respiratory tract or lower airways includes the bronchi bronchioles and alveoli. This often leads to respiratory distress which can become grave in a matter of minutes.

With asthma the cat s body will be hunched lower to the ground and its neck and head will be extended out and down in an effort to clear the airway of mucus. Asthma in cats is an immunity related condition and attacks can often be brought on by an allergy or stress. There is no single specific test that can definitively diagnose feline asthma.