Cat Panting

Good afternoon,

I was reading some other posts here and in one it mentioned a cat panting and the responders were talking about CHF.  How common is this in cats?  (both the panting and the CHF?)

About the cat... she is a ragdoll (mix?) just under a year old.  We took her in from a lady on craigslist who needed to get rid of her due to landlord issues several months ago.  We took her to the vet, got her shots and spayed, and she has been fine.  She is a bit of an odd duck... and we tease her about being a little too inbred... but she is sweet, silly, energetic, definitely nocturnal as she plays all night long and always checks with me to see if its time to get up yet or not - but when I let her know its not she runs off and plays for another half hour or so.  good appetite.  She is very vocal, and we call her a big cry baby, but we feel its the siamese in her. It doesn't seem like she is in pain.  She has this thing she does where she is always bringing you a toy and begging for treats.  If she doesn't get a treat she will either curl up beside you and wait, or else run off and find something else to amuse herself.  I mean to say, she always wants something when she cries.  I am not sure her coat is healthy, its very fuzzy... she is not quite long haired and looks like she static in her hair all the time.  She is a chocolate point and to us looks like siamese, but the lady we got her from kept saying no, she is a ragdoll.  We have never had a ragdoll, so maybe their coats are just like that. 

I have seen her on several occassions panting.  Usually its when we take her outdoor in the daytime - she loves going to PetCo and PetSmart with us, but everytime we put her in the car, she is panting before we are even a quarter of the way there (with ac on).  There have been other times, but I don't really notice it indoors so maybe she is just sensitive to the heat?  She will pant sometimes when I take her for a walk in her stroller, but when I let her walk oni the leash, I don't notice her panting as much, she is much to distracted by everything else there is going on.  

Does anyone have a  healthy cat that pants?

If it were CHF, wouldn't the vet have caught this prior to spaying her?

Is this something that could develop so suddenly in a cat so young?

What are some of the other signs?

What are some other things that can cause a cat to pant all the time?

Thank you in advance for your thoughts.

It sounds like she only pants when you take her out.  While it could be the heat, especially since it is summer and she is longhaired, it is more likely nerves.  Many cats pant when they are nervous or stressed.  I have one ragdoll mix that hates to go in the car, and he will be painting and drooling within the first few minutes even if it is cold out.  If I were you, I would not take her to Petsmart and Petco just to avoid any germs from other animals that might be there.  The outside walks are fine, and if she pats less when she is out of the stroller, maybe she doesn't like to be confined and that makes her nervous.  I doubt if she has CHF because it isn't constant and she seems energetic.  Try avoiding situations that stress or excite her and see if that prevents the panting.  BTW mother cats often pant when they are in labor and giving birth, and they often purr at the same time. Make notes of when you see her panting and what was going on at the time, as well as what the temperature was, if it was warm.  Perhaps you will get your answer by observation.  She sounds like a wonderful cat and you are lucky to have her!

I'm assuming you're talking about my post. My cat has a history of coughing and has been diagnosed with mild cardiomyopathy. I was okay my cat's panting up until recently because it was accompanied by a cough and stupid me has forgotten he has heart problems. 

But yes, cats pant when they're excited or nervous. And for kittens, panting is pretty normal. I wasn't sure if my cat was nervous walking so far from home - he did seem very scared to be so far from home. For a cat with heart problems, too much excitement is not good so it's best to take it easy! 

Heart disease seems to be very tricky. I've been reading up on CHF and HCM in the past few hours and a lot of sites tell me that HCM can sometimes display absolutely no symptoms and you won't know your cat has heart problems until they're in CHF which is incredibly unfortunate. 

For now, I would minus these environmental factors and see if your cat still pants. Your cat seems super active and since there's no panting when she's playing at home, I'd be confident to say she's just really excited or nervous in the car and stroller. I'd bring this up at your next vet check up though and see what your vet says or even give them a quick call. Peace of mind does wonders

@Redtop  I apprecitae your comments.  Tati (the Ragdoll) is an apartment kitty, so the only time she gets outdoors is on a leash, in the stroller, or in the pet carrier.  She doesn't like the pet carrier so much, but if I get the stroller out, she will run and jump in it waiting for her time outdoors.  Our other cat, Snowy, even likes going for rides around the apartment in a cardboard box and if we haven't gone out for a walk for a few days, she will jump in her box everytime I walk buy until I spend at least 15 minutes pulling her around the apartment.  Snowy just likes being transported from here to there.  Tati doesn't go that far...  but she knows her leash means she gets to explore and sniff and climb, and she knows the stroller means she gets fresh air and new things to look out.  Both good things in her mind. Snowy likes just going for a ride in the car. If I am going for a short jaunt, and I take her, its a treat... she doesn't care if we get out and do anything.  Tati on the other hand isn't crazy about the car.  She will tolerate it by herself, she semi enjoys it if Snowy is with her, but I wouldn't call it a treat.  that being said, both cats like Petco and Petsmart much the way kids like a trip to the candy/toy store.  If we leave too soon, they get pretty riled up once we get home.  If we stay too long, they start misbehaving in the store and let us know its time to go.    They like to watch the birds and the fish, they like to check out the rescue animals waiting for adoption, and yes, they people watch. People still take their kids to the toy store, even though there are germs, so I guess, even though I understand what you are saying, I think what they get out of it makes it worth the risk.  It recharges them.  They are more playful when we get home, and they tolerate the grooming before we go (brushing, face washing, nail clipping)  We do the pet store trips on Saturdays when my daughter and I are home together.  The rest of the week we work different shifts.  When I try to groom the cats during the week, they have no patience for it.  On saturdays, we are preparing to go out... they let me do what I need to do. I think they know!  I really think it is just overheating.  Her coat is super thick! Thank you again for your comments.

@mingking  yes, your post was the initial one I read, and then I read more, whether they were from yesterday or if they were just in the pet health forum.  Our last cat died of CRF at the age of 19+. It was very taxing, both emotionally and financially.  The vet put a lot of pressure on us to euthanize her, and our beloved kitty cat put a lot of pressure on us not to.  Suffer or not, she did not want to leave us and she made herself perfectly clear.  But that is a discussion for another day.... I just live in fear of another chronic illness... the vet bills, the guilt... After Alex died, we said we were not going to get in a hurry to get another cat, but we missed her so much... we went to the Shelter and decided to foster.  Well, guess what - the cat we decided to foster turned out to be very ill.  We could not get the shelter's vet to take her treatment seriously, (the first vet appointment we took her to he acted like it was our fault she was sick, and commented on what poor condition her coat was in and how underweight she was and we had only had her for two days - we picked her up on a Saturday afternoon and had her into the vet on Monday morning...)  The follow-up vet appointment they could not locate her records, and could not recall having ever treated her (despite her still being THEIR cat, and having been seen only 7 days prior).  We took her to our vet, which is against fostering rules - long story, we ended up adopting her just so we could get her treated, but it has been a struggle and she still requires frequent vet visits. After the first round of vet visits and differet antibiotics, and eye drops, etc., Snowy was better, and playful, and more energy than we could keep up with - She was bored with us humans, and making herself crazy trying to get the squirrels and birds out on the balcony.  Enter Tati, whom we got to be a companion for Snowy and her vet bills for spay and vacinations.  No sooner did we get Tati settled in then one of the feral cats from the massive colony surrounding us decided she didn't want to be feral... she liked being fed, so she started spending more an more time hanging out around our buildilng, where everyone would feed her, but no one wanted her.  When it became apparent that she was pregnant, my daughter took her in and set up shop in a spare bedroom. She recent delivered one kitten, and we are vacing vet bills to have the momma and baby vacinated and spayed before trying to find them forever homes.  Just cant deal with more Vet bills right now and I want a healthy kitty to love and pamper for a few years before we go through that again!    Anyway, maybe I overreacted to your post... we just always thought it odd when Tati panted but when I read your post, I was actually scared about it. Hope your kitty is doing better.  Thanks for your comments.

You are so wonderful to adopt Snowy and care for her. And to also take in Tati! 

One of the reasons my mom was so reluctant to allow me to adopt a cat was because of possibly having to deal with a sick cat, vet bills, and ultimately, their passing which is completely unavoidable. I'm a new cat owner and just thinking about the inevitable scares me but I remember that I essentially saved Ming from living a life at a shelter and there's going to be lots of beautiful and wonderful times ahead. 

For now, I really would try not to worry about Tati's panting if it's not paired with any other symptoms like rapid breathing or coughing. And especially since it happens in moments of excitement and possible overheating. I've read anecdotes where cats pant going to vets, possibly because they're nervous. 

As for vet bills, pet insurance has really helped me so far to cover a lot of the cost. I'm grateful for that! 

Out of curiosity, when you take your kitties to PetSmart, do they follow you on leash or you just let them roam around? It sounds like a fun day trip and one I wish I could take with my cat. But I don't think I will because the few times I've taken Ming outdoors and we've come across a dog, he would bolt and run right back home! 

They ride in the cart.  They do really well for the most part. Just like 2 years old though, they have their moments and you have to keep a close eye.  When we are buy the fish, they sit and watch in amazement.  When we are by the cat towers, they want to treat it like a playground and get out of the cart, but we don't let them because then it would be a free for all!  If we stay more than an hour or so, they start getting antsy. One day when we had snowy by herself, we were back by the litter refill bin where you can refill your jugs for a little cheaper and Snowy just started crying and crying... it was her stranger danger cry, but there was no one around.  We left right away, still don't know if it was because the litter gave her a bad memory, or if she really needed to go, or what the deal was.  If you take your cat, be prepared for people to want to pet her.  Our cats enjoy it... when someone points or stares, they glow.. if someone wants to pet them, they are cool with it.

Yeah, you and your kitty have a lot of time to make memories, and its worth it.  Animals love in ways people cant/dont. I would not have traded our time with Alex for anything... even in her illness she taught me a lot about life.  We have only had Tatiana for a few months, but she is growing on us... and of course, Snowy we only had a couple weeks before we were committed.  Its just biting of more than we can chew.  My daughter has looked into pet insurance but for Snowy everything is a preexisting condition.  the calico and her baby  are NOT our cats, we are offering them temporary refuge (we keep saying that, I won't believe it till we find them a home).  Tati, we just hadn't thought it about it until now.

My cat pants in the car as well. He is not long haired so I assume it is a nervous thing for him. My rainbow kitty panted once when she was about a year old when we found her after she was missing for several days. She had been injured while outside and had been hiding until then. She was panting then almost for sure from fear and pain. She was fine after going to the vet and never panted again in her 17 years.

MollyBlue said:

 
My daughter has looked into pet insurance but for Snowy everything is a preexisting condition.  the calico and her baby  are NOT our cats, we are offering them temporary refuge (we keep saying that, I won't believe it till we find them a home).  Tati, we just hadn't thought it about it until now.

Click to expand...

That's how the insurance companies get you! Sigggh... But yes, it would be a good thing for Tati to get pet insurance. I've already gotten what I need to pay this year back so it's definitely worth it. 

I didn't know that the cats you foster can't be taken to vet by you. That's unfortunate, especially what happened to Snowy. I'm glad you shared this so if I ever do foster cats, I know this might be something that will happen.