Anyone have experience with a cat salivating like CRAZY??

Hey everyone.  Friday afternoon I noticed my 2 year indoor old cat salivating ALOT (no purring and no foaming).  No other strange behavior  (drinks, eats, goes to bathroom and plays and cuddles).   I took her to the vet right away Friday and they said she looks great and its most likely something in her mouth.   They also said she had swollen gums and some plaque build up.  My little lady is NO friend of the vet and almost took their arm off.  They gave her a shot to reduce the swelling in her mouth and the salivation stopped.  Now its Sunday and she has not salivated anymore.   She's "normal" although her almost constant play with the other kitten has reduced. 

The vet wants me to bring her in first thing tomorrow to  sedate her and do a more thorough inspection of mouth  and if necessary clean or extract whatever is bothering her.   I hate sedating her, she is not a big animal and has a very fragile constitution  (terrible case of eye herpes, uveitis, etc).    I would like to avoid "over-reacting" and putting her through things that are not necessary.  Its not a financial question, we live in Mexico City and vet care is inexpensive. 

Has anyone had experience with a cat excessively salivating but that otherwise acted fine?   What was the cause?     Any other opinions or ideas on what it could be?  

She eats Instinct dry food with Royal Canin wet mixed in and powder L-Lysine (for the herpes).  She will not eat human food and does not chew on house plants or anything green, even though she has a pot of cat grass.   She never leaves the house or the balcony, and has no interaction with other animals except her "sister" (a 9 month old Tabbby rescued May 2015). 

Causes of hyper-salivation are nausea and pain, but can also be caused by getting something bitter or toxic in their mouth.

Since you also mention swelling, I'd be concerned about an abcessed tooth or something along those lines.

I understand the hesitation of sedating her. However, you would want a possible tooth infection to go untreated as the infection can get into the bloodstream and cause more problems.

We have a cat with FIV and Feline Herpes that has had 3 dentals, including 6 extractions over the last 5 years. She has done exceptionally well with everything.

You could monitor and wait for the steroid to ware off (48 hrs or so for Dex) to see if the symptoms come back, but, I'm not sure I'd want to wait.

Talk with your vet before the sedation, as this is usually want most people are concerned about, not usually the procedure itself (I know that is the case for me!)

For me, I consulted with an area vet cardiologist and my vet. In doing so, *I* am most comfortable with the use of Dexdomitor and Telazol with Iso for the gas.

Thanks for the advice.  Watching her eat Greenies just now has me convinced something in her mouth is off.  She normally inhales them and she's chewing them gingerly, letting pieces fall everywhere.   

By your description I think you are right.

Keep us update with what you find out at the vet!

CatPack gave you pretty much the advice I was going to give.  And if the gums are swollen, you really do need to take her in.  Abscesses can rupture and spread infection throughout the entire system.   Better not to take the chance.  And please, yes, let us know how she is getting along after the vet visit!

thanks everyone.  I will post an update tomorrow afternoon after she is home and I have the diagnosis.  Poor baby!  Only two years old and has had three hospitalizations so far.  Think this may have been why her mom abandonded her so young.   My gain, she's a wonderful animal!

Just picked her up from the vet and she had an ulcer on the inside of her lip caused by misaligned canine tooth that had become rough (she chipped it somehow).  They filed it a bit to smooth it out and gave her antibiotics for 7 days to kill any infection.  Doc felt it would be way more traumatic and painful for her to take out the canine because the root is intact and alive.  Thank you for your thoughts and advice.  Looks like she will be just fine. 

Glad she's going to be ok!