Question about wheezing

Ferris has a vet appointment on Friday this week, but I was just wondering, for those of you who have asthmatic cats, how did the symptoms first appear?

I'm asking because on two occasions, both when Ferris was at complete rest, he has made little wheezing noises, almost like a "woo" sound, but VERY quiet, and only on the exhale. His shoulders do seem to move when he breathes, whereas on Ginger, it's just her belly that moves.

I've listened and listened to him, but it seems to have been just those two times so far. His eyes are clear, no discharge, his nose is clear as well, and he has never coughed to my knowledge.

Do you think he might have the very beginnings of a breathing issue? I'm going to run this by the vet, but just thought I'd see what experiences those of you with asthmatic cats may have had at the onset of the issues.

It sounds like asthma. Gizmo had an attack today. Coincidentally it's the day after all the windows in the apartment were closed because of winter weather.

I'm going to turn the air filters up to High and vacuum a bit more often.
Her wheezing is a 'whee' sound, done with her neck outstretched. Since she does not get them very often the vet nixed using meds to counteract it; I just have to be careful what sort of cleaners I use, and how much the air circulates.

As I mentioned in other posts, air filters and a HEPA vacuum are essential equipment when one has an asthmatic cat. Try to keep him off the meds. Good luck!

I can't dust on a regular basis due to my severe allergies to dust and dust mites, and I absolutely cannot afford to buy/run HEPA filters, nevermind buy the replacement filters. I've priced them, and it is beyond my means.

I can live quite well in my apartment by leaving the dust alone, but stirring it up causes me real problems. Our home is vaccumed only as often as it absolutely needs to be, and the days we vaccum I have to leave the house for hours or I can't breathe and get horrid headaches.

When Ferris made those tiny wheezing sounds, his head was snuggled up against his chest, and like I said, it was just twice, and it was a very, very tiny sound - when I joggled him, it stopped immediately. He wasn't too happy to be disturbed, either, and I haven't heard the sound come out of him since.

I really hope it isn't asthma!!!

Oh heck, I am sorry to read your post and I cant offer any advice as I´ve not experienced asthma with my kitty crew.

Heres sending lots of positive {{{{{vibes}}}} for your vets visit - hope it goes well and maybe its just hair-balls !

Heres some for Ferris and a big for you

Keep us posted !

Awww, thank you so much! Actually, the vet visit is for his neuter but I'm going to talk to the vet about it when I drop him off.

Dust in a house is going to trigger asthmatic reactions in cats. I dislike cleaning house but I do have the vacuum (a very good one, well worth the cost) and do it for her. It benefits me indirectly as well.

You are being a good kitty Mommy by noticing a behavior that seems out of the ordinary to you.
Although it does not sound like Asthma...
you do need to talk to your vet about the symptoms you observed...
especially with your kitty undergoing anesthesia.

My boy Dexter was recently diagnosed with Asthma....
Here are some informative sites about feline asthma that I found useful.
If you look them over they might help you clarify any questions that you have for you vet.....

http://www.marvistavet.com/html/feline_asthma.html

http://www.fritzthebrave.com/asthma/symptoms.html

Keep us updated.

Originally Posted by gizmocat

Dust in a house is going to trigger asthmatic reactions in cats. I dislike cleaning house but I do have the vacuum (a very good one, well worth the cost) and do it for her. It benefits me indirectly as well.

Click to expand...

It is less that I dislike cleaning house, rather, it is that I happen to have severe allergic reactions when dusting or vaccuming, so to avoid that - and I MUST, I dust rarely and when I do, I use a moist cloth, which puts less of it into the air.

If vaccuming makes me leave the hour for HOURS afterward unless I want to REALLY suffer, I'll be darned if I'm going to do it more often! I'm sorry, I love my kitties, but I love being able to breathe more - I can't do them any good as a caretaker if I'm continually debilitated, and I sure as heck can't afford an outside cleaning service.

Ginger used to sneeze after coming out from under furniture, and that has never happened with Ferris. He runs around like a mad kitten and does not pant or wheeze AT ALL after exercise, only when he is at rest, and then it has only happened twice, and it was VERY quiet, as I said. It may be nothing at all, and I'm not going to get all paranoid about it.

I am absolutely going to discuss this when I bring him in to the vet, but again, he has no apparent breathing issues.

I'm just a meowmy that is hyper-vigilant about any small changes in habit, appearance, eating, pooping or peeing, and when I heard that tiny little sound, I thought - hmmm, going to have to look into this!

I thank you for the reminder that he will be put under anesthesia - I'm the type that will call the vet to ask questions just to make myself feel better, so please rest assured I will not be doing ANYTHING that will put his furry little life in danger.

Thank you for the links - I'll take a walk through them...I believe in self-educating, which is why I posted this thread to begin with.

I just read through the links, lots of good info, thank you, and none of it fits Ferris' "syptom." One of the sites said this:

Snoring or loud breathing at rest are not necessarily signs of any problem and can be present in the asthmatic and non-asthmatic cat. Ask your vet if you have concerns.

Both times I heard it, he was at rest and almost asleep. I think he's just a loud breather. I will still speak to my vet about it.

I am all for being a hyper-vigilant kitty Mommy.
Let us know how the appointment goes on Friday.