Why Is My Cat Sneezing A Lot?

|

An occasional sneeze from your feline buddy is quite normal and is should not really cause for alarm.

Like humans, cat sneezing is an explosive release of air through their mouth and nose— usually as the body’s response to some irritants in the nasal passage.

In cats, movement or excitement can sometimes cause sneezing.

However, if your feline’s sneezing just won’t go away or if there are other symptoms that come along with sneezing, then you might need to check with your vet in order to see if there is any treatment required.

Causes of Sneezing

If you feline sneezes a lot, then your vet can initially suspect a cause based on the review of your pet’s symptoms.

In some cases, your vet may take a swab from the nose, eyes, throat or mouth and send it to a lab in order to confirm an infection.

Here are some of the most common cause of frequent sneezing in cats:

1. Allergens or Inhaled Irritants

If your feline only sneezes once in a while, then there might be something that simply irritates her nasal passages. Look for patterns in your feline’s sneezing.

Does it occur after you’ve cleaned the house? After your cat leaves the litter box? After you have lit the candles or turn on the scented humidifier?

These are all examples of possible allergens or irritants in cats:

  • Mold
  • Pollen
  • Dust
  • Candles
  • Cleaning agents
  • Cat litter, the types that create dusts
  • Pest sprays
  • Perfume
  • Cigarette smoke

In felines, allergies are less common cause of sneezing. However, is sneezing is related to allergies, sometimes an itchy skin is also present.

 

2. Fungal, Bacterial or Viral Infections

If you’re feline sneezes a lot, chances are your cat has an upper respiratory infection. Just like colds in humans, these infections are usually common in young felines, particularly those that come from animal shelters. Most of these infections may be prevented with complete and early vaccinations.

The viral infections that commonly cause frequent sneezing in cats include:

  • FELINE CALICIVIRUS: A virus that is highly contagious between felines. Mouth ulcers are the most usual problem, however it also affects the respiratory tract and even cause pneumonia.

  • FELINE HERPES VIRUS: Felines catch herpes from exposure to other felines that are infected. Stress may cause a flare-up as well as the transmission to other felines. Treatment is usually aimed at controlling the symptoms and is not contagious to humans.

Fungal infections, on the other hand, are not often seen in cats because of their strong immune system, however sometimes, a cat may breathe in the spores from fungus like aspergillosis or cryptococcosis which are quite rare.

Your cat, however, can inhale spores around pigeon droppings and cause frequent sneezing.

These infections can make your cat more likely to develop respiratory problems which can worsen sneezing.

A broad range of other infections which may lead to frequent sneezing includes:

  • FIV OR FELINE IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS that develops slowly and severely impacts your cat’s immune system, leaving the feline more vulnerable to other infections.
  • FELINE INFECTIOUS PERITONITIS that may cause no to mild symptoms to even more severe symptoms if not treated.
  • CHLAMYDIA, often produces conjunctivitis or an eye infection
  • FELINE LEUKEMIA, which is the second leading cause of death in felines, affecting 3 percent of all cats and is highly fatal in 85 percent of infected cats within the first 3 years of transmission. It attacks the immune system and causes anemia.
  • MYCOPLASMA
  • BORDETELLA

 

3. Dental Disease

The 2 most common symptoms of a feline dental disease are nasal discharge and sneezing. Infections in the teeth can allow bacteria to grow and populate in the nasal sinus with resulting sneezing and inflammation.

If left untreated, these bacteria can also travel to other parts of the body.

 

4. Other Potential Causes

There are other factors that may contribute to cat frequent sneezing. For instance, it is common for cats to experience sneezing at least 4 – 7 days after receiving an intranasal vaccine.

However, it should last for no more than a few days. In addition, cats may also sneeze in order to dislodge a blockage inside their nasal passages.

In very rare cases, frequent sneezing in cats can be a sign of cancer.

Sneezing and Symptoms

Symptoms which may accompany frequent sneezing in cats can be the result of a broad range of infections and other issues. These include:

  • Drooling
  • Depression
  • Fatigue
  • Eye discharge, ulcers or swelling
  • Fever
  • Excessive nasal discharge that can be green or yellow in color
  • Diarrhea
  • Poor coat condition
  • Enlarged lymph nodes
  • Trouble breathing
  • Coughing or wheezing
  • Weight loss or decreased appetite

When To See Your Vet?

If your feline sneeze once in a while, has only mild to no other accompanying symptoms, then you might want to simply monitor her for a few days. Keep your pet indoors and watch for any changes.

Call the vet if your feline sneezes often or continuously sneeze blood or have other symptoms listed above, since they may be signs of a condition or illness which needs veterinary care.

Treatment will depend on the cause of sneezing from making your cat comfortable and using humidifier to fluids, steroids, nasal decongestants, and antibiotics, to rare cases of medical therapies that need surgery.

6,282 thoughts on “Why Is My Cat Sneezing A Lot?”

  2. I believe this is one of the most significant info for me.
    And i’m glad studying your article. However should observation on few basic issues, The site taste is ideal, the
    articles is in point of fact excellent : D. Good job, cheers

  4. Do you have a spam issue on this website; I also am a blogger, and I was curious about your situation; many of us have developed some nice practices and we
    are looking to trade methods with others, be sure
    to shoot me an e-mail if interested.

  5. Hello there! I could have sworn I’ve been to
    this website before but after going through some of the posts I
    realized it’s new to me. Nonetheless, I’m certainly happy I came across it and
    I’ll be book-marking it and checking back often!

  6. Good day! Do you use Twitter? I’d like to follow you if
    that would be okay. I’m definitely enjoying your blog and look forward to new
    posts. cheap flights 2CSYEon

  7. Good day I am so delighted I found your weblog, I really found you by mistake, while I was browsing on Google for something
    else, Anyhow I am here now and would just like to say many thanks for a remarkable post and a all
    round exciting blog (I also love the theme/design), I don’t have time to look over it all
    at the moment but I have bookmarked it and also included your RSS feeds, so when I have time I will be
    back to read much more, Please do keep up the great work.
    cheap flights 31muvXS

  9. I do not know if it’s just me or if perhaps everyone else experiencing issues with
    your website. It looks like some of the text on your posts are
    running off the screen. Can someone else please provide feedback and let me know if this is happening to them too?
    This may be a issue with my browser because I’ve had this
    happen before. Thanks cheap flights y2yxvvfw

  10. Excellent post. I was checking continuously this blog and I’m impressed!

    Extremely useful info specifically the last part :
    ) I care for such info a lot. I was seeking this particular information for a very
    long time. Thank you and best of luck. cheap flights
    y2yxvvfw

  18. I am not sure where you’re having your information, but great topic.
    I has to invest some time learning more or understanding
    more. Many thanks for excellent info I wanted this info for my mission.

    Stop by my website BuckUPesicka

  20. Having look at this I believed it had been extremely informative.
    I appreciate you spending a while and effort
    to put this content together. I once again find myself personally spending lots of time both reading
    and leaving comments. But what exactly, it was actually
    still worth the cost!

    Feel free to surf to my web blog … EmileYBlaese

  21. Today, I went to the beach with my kids. I found a sea shell and gave it to
    my 4 year old daughter and said “You can hear the ocean if you put this to your ear.” She placed the shell
    to her ear and screamed. There was a hermit crab inside
    and it pinched her ear. She never wants to go back! LoL I know
    this is completely off topic but I had to tell someone!

    Here is my web-site; dotted grid paper notebook

  22. I do not even know the way I ended up here, but I assumed this post was once
    good. I do not realize who you are however certainly
    you are going to a famous blogger in case you are not already.
    Cheers!

  24. Hmm is anyone else encountering problems with the pictures on this blog loading?
    I’m trying to determine if its a problem on my end or
    if it’s the blog. Any feed-back would be greatly appreciated.

  27. Fantastic site you have here but I was wondering if you knew of any message boards that cover the same topics talked about in this article?
    I’d really like to be a part of group where I can get suggestions from other knowledgeable individuals that share the
    same interest. If you have any suggestions, please let
    me know. Many thanks!

  31. Please let me know if you’re looking for a article writer for your weblog.
    You have some really good posts and I feel I would be a good asset.
    If you ever want to take some of the load off,
    I’d really like to write some content for your blog in exchange for a link back to mine.
    Please blast me an email if interested. Thank you!

  33. When someone writes an paragraph he/she retains the image of a user in his/her mind that
    how a user can be aware of it. Therefore that’s why this article is amazing.

    Thanks!

  35. What i don’t understood is in reality how you’re now not actually a lot
    more neatly-liked than you may be right now. You are very intelligent.
    You recognize thus significantly in the case of this matter, made me in my view imagine it from numerous numerous angles.

    Its like women and men aren’t interested except it is something to accomplish with Girl gaga!

    Your individual stuffs nice. All the time care for it
    up!

  36. certainly like your website but you have to take a look at the spelling on several of your posts.
    Several of them are rife with spelling problems and I in finding
    it very troublesome to inform the reality however
    I’ll certainly come again again.

  38. Hi there, I believe your blog might be having internet browser compatibility issues.
    When I look at your web site in Safari, it looks fine but when opening in IE, it has
    some overlapping issues. I merely wanted to give
    you a quick heads up! Besides that, wonderful site!

  43. That is very interesting, You are a very skilled blogger.
    I have joined your feed and sit up for looking for
    extra of your great post. Additionally, I’ve shared your site in my social networks

  47. Amazing blog! Is your theme custom made or did you download it from somewhere?
    A theme like yours with a few simple tweeks would really
    make my blog shine. Please let me know where you got your design. Kudos

  57. Hmm it seems like your blog ate my first comment (it was super long) so I guess I’ll just sum it up what I wrote and say, I’m thoroughly enjoying your blog.
    I too am an aspiring blog writer but I’m still new to the whole thing.
    Do you have any points for first-time blog writers?
    I’d certainly appreciate it.

  58. Do you mind if I quote a couple of your posts as long as I provide credit
    and sources back to your website? My website is in the
    very same area of interest as yours and my users would certainly benefit from
    a lot of the information you present here. Please
    let me know if this alright with you. Thanks!

  62. Hello! Quick question that’s completely off topic. Do you
    know how to make your site mobile friendly?
    My blog looks weird when browsing from my iphone4.
    I’m trying to find a template or plugin that might be able to correct this issue.
    If you have any suggestions, please share. Thank you!

  64. hello there and thank you for your info – I’ve certainly picked up anything
    new from right here. I did however expertise
    some technical issues using this website, as I experienced to reload the web site many
    times previous to I could get it to load correctly.
    I had been wondering if your web hosting is OK? Not that I am complaining,
    but sluggish loading instances times will sometimes affect your placement in google and could
    damage your high-quality score if advertising and marketing with Adwords.
    Anyway I am adding this RSS to my e-mail and could look
    out for a lot more of your respective exciting content.

    Make sure you update this again very soon.

  67. Have you ever considered writing an ebook or guest authoring on other websites?
    I have a blog centered on the same information you discuss
    and would really like to have you share some stories/information. I know my viewers would
    enjoy your work. If you are even remotely interested, feel free to send me an e-mail.

  75. Hey I know this is off topic but I was wondering if you knew of any widgets I could add to my blog that
    automatically tweet my newest twitter updates. I’ve been looking for a plug-in like this for quite some time and was hoping
    maybe you would have some experience with something like this.
    Please let me know if you run into anything. I truly enjoy reading
    your blog and I look forward to your new updates.

  77. You actually make it seem really easy together with your
    presentation however I find this topic to be really something that I feel I might by no means understand.
    It kind of feels too complicated and very huge for
    me. I’m taking a look forward on your subsequent submit, I will try to get the
    grasp of it!

  81. Hello! I know this is kinda off topic but I’d figured I’d ask.
    Would you be interested in exchanging links or maybe guest authoring a blog post
    or vice-versa? My website addresses a lot of the same
    subjects as yours and I believe we could greatly benefit from each other.
    If you’re interested feel free to shoot me an e-mail.
    I look forward to hearing from you! Fantastic blog by the way!

  90. Hi, Neat post. There is a problem with your website in web
    explorer, would check this? IE still is the marketplace leader
    and a huge section of other folks will leave out your wonderful
    writing because of this problem.

  93. Normally I do not learn article on blogs,
    but I would like to say that this write-up very pressured me to check out and do it!
    Your writing style has been surprised me. Thank you, quite great post.

  97. I was wondering if you ever thought of changing the structure of your site?
    Its very well written; I love what youve got to say.
    But maybe you could a little more in the way of content so people
    could connect with it better. Youve got an awful lot of text for only having one or two pictures.

    Maybe you could space it out better?

  133. Thanks for some other informative blog. The place else could I am getting that kind of
    info written in such a perfect manner? I’ve a challenge that
    I am simply now operating on, and I have been on the look out for such information.

  148. I appreciate, lead to I found just what
    I was taking a look for. You’ve ended my four day lengthy hunt!
    God Bless you man. Have a nice day. Bye

  156. Unquestionably assume that that you simply said. Your preferred reason seemed to be around the internet the simplest thing to
    be familiar with. I say for your needs, I definitely get irked while people consider worries
    that they just usually do not learn about.
    You was able to hit the nail upon the best in addition to defined out everything with out side-effects , people could have a signal.
    Will probably return to get more. Thanks

    Look at my blog :: SamXKodera

  193. I just like the helpful info you provide on your articles.

    I’ll bookmark your blog and take a look at again here regularly.
    I’m relatively sure I’ll be informed a lot of
    new stuff right here! Best of luck for the next!
    국내선물대여업체.

  225. Everything is very open with a very clear clarification of the issues.
    It was truly informative. Your site is very helpful.
    Many thanks for sharing!

    Feel free to surf to my webpage :: w88

  239. Oh my goodness! Impressive article dude!
    Thanks, However I am having troubles with your RSS.
    I don’t understand the reason why I can’t subscribe to it.

    Is there anybody else getting the same RSS problems?
    Anyone who knows the solution can you kindly respond?

    Thanks!!

    Feel free to surf to my page – fun88

  544. taking viagra after prostatectomy
    Г© preciso receita pra comprar viagra
    cialis and viagra side effects