Hi there,
I'm in the process of introducing my two older kittens (7 months and 5 months) to each other. They are still separated but have "play dates" and have been eating with each other. My concern is with my older kitten (Lester) who has been panting a lot and breathing very quickly while the two play and while he's around the new cat. I'm not sure if it's due to him being overly excited or stressed about the new kitty. The two cats play quite rough, I think Lester is still trying to figure out how to play with something other than humans and his toys. He gets very excited and breathes very very heavy while panting every time the two cats play.
Just a little background: Lester has always panted after excessive play. He is a hyper kitten and runs around until the point where he stops, pants and breathes very hard for about a minute and then he's ready to go again. I've read that it's fairly normal that kittens pant after play, however I'm starting to get a little worried about it. Since the new cat has come into our home, Lester pants almost every single time he plays and when he gets very worked up around her. He's not growling, hissing or puffed up at all, so I wouldn't call him aggressive towards her, but he definitely wants to play rough with her. I bought 2 Feliway diffusers to try and calm him down and they've worked a tad, but not enough to stop his excitement and panting.
I should also note that Lester lately has a watery eye and usually a bit of crust around his nose (a very very small amount). That has just arose over the last month.
I guess my question is should I be taking him to the vet? I know panting isn't the most normal thing for cats, but he's always done it, even when he was a few months old. Could it have something to do with his watery eye and crusty nose? Or could it be that he just gets so excited around the new cat?
Am I just overreacting?? I'm a new pet momma and I get worried about my baby!!
Thanks!
I'm in the process of introducing my two older kittens (7 months and 5 months) to each other. They are still separated but have "play dates" and have been eating with each other. My concern is with my older kitten (Lester) who has been panting a lot and breathing very quickly while the two play and while he's around the new cat. I'm not sure if it's due to him being overly excited or stressed about the new kitty. The two cats play quite rough, I think Lester is still trying to figure out how to play with something other than humans and his toys. He gets very excited and breathes very very heavy while panting every time the two cats play.
Just a little background: Lester has always panted after excessive play. He is a hyper kitten and runs around until the point where he stops, pants and breathes very hard for about a minute and then he's ready to go again. I've read that it's fairly normal that kittens pant after play, however I'm starting to get a little worried about it. Since the new cat has come into our home, Lester pants almost every single time he plays and when he gets very worked up around her. He's not growling, hissing or puffed up at all, so I wouldn't call him aggressive towards her, but he definitely wants to play rough with her. I bought 2 Feliway diffusers to try and calm him down and they've worked a tad, but not enough to stop his excitement and panting.
I should also note that Lester lately has a watery eye and usually a bit of crust around his nose (a very very small amount). That has just arose over the last month.
I guess my question is should I be taking him to the vet? I know panting isn't the most normal thing for cats, but he's always done it, even when he was a few months old. Could it have something to do with his watery eye and crusty nose? Or could it be that he just gets so excited around the new cat?
Am I just overreacting?? I'm a new pet momma and I get worried about my baby!!
Thanks!