Feral with unusual breathing

I took in a extremely young Feral left in a bucket outside a shelter I was volunteering at. A bad snowstorm was forthcoming, Jersey had almost 30 inches. For the record, my savings is low and I am not working with much here.  The feral had bites and scratches which appeared to have been done by other adult cats and his skin was shedding from something fungal.  He {Mr. Simon} has a beautiful shiny full coat now and appears to be on time developmentally, both physically, and mentally.

Now that we will embark on shots (My daughter and I) we would like to figure out the conundrum of his loud unusual breathing.  This usually is amplified when Mr. Simon is getting ready to sleep and is louder when he's asleep.  It's not snoring.

About Mr. Simon:

He's at the perfect size, not overweight nor too thin.

He's about 3.5 months old.

He eats well and we spend for food with minimal fillers.

He like's to play a lot as well as chomp on fingers, but does listen to my (STOP/NO/OnTheFLOOR) command at least

He had a FUNGAL infection up til 6-7 weeks ago<------ Absolutely no sign of it, but I am curious about his lung(s)

He isn't around smokers, well, unless it's my Son in Laws once a week after work weed, but he shoes him away, lol.

Sorry to make it cumbersome, I wanted to cover all the basis to find out what is going on before we get the vaccination$ and thanks for any forthcoming advice.

Thank you.  Lana, Sammy and Mr. Simon.

Thank you for taking this little one in.Mr Simon is a lucky cat.

There are several things it could be, but it will need a vet exam to be sure, and I would suggest a visit. Asthma comes to mind, a lung malformation, a nose blockage or a deep-seated infection. If it is an infection, it may need antibiotics and the vet will not vaccinate until it is cleared up.

If it's happening ONLY when he's going to sleep and into his sleep, could it be a form of a purr? I've had several cats that purr to put themselves to sleep, and it sounds like real rough breathing. Observe him and see if he does it at other times it, like eating, they purr sometimes then too. If not, have the vet check his lungs when you take him in, he would know if they are congested or not. I would doubt a cold if he is not sneezing, coughing, or has nasal or eye discharge. Asthma could be a possibility, but he would do it more often then just going to sleep, like after strenuous play. He looks pretty healthy, and is so very lucky to have you to love, he will bring you much love and happiness in your life!   

Our oldest, Halsey, has asthma. He sounds like that when he starts to fall asleep and during sleep. We use unscented litter and that helps a lot.

I agree with the others in that a vet visit will help identify the cause.

It does not sound like it is impairing his quality of life but knowing the source will help either heal it or, like with asthma, keep it from getting worse.

You are doing a wonderful job. He's gorgeous.