Strange Swallowing Sound Post-Dental

[theperseph]

Some background story: We just moved cross country to a new state with our two cats, Persephone and Artemis. About a month ago I noticed a bump on the right side of Persephone's lip. I originally thought it was a hurt from playing with Artemis, but noticed it got a little bigger the following week so I scoured reviews for vets in our new area and called around. I found a vet that could see her the same day (first vet) and another that could see her the following week (second vet) so I made both appointments thinking I could get 2 opinions.
Both vets concluded that the bump on her lip looked like a cyst. At the same time they looked at Perseph's gums, which were irritated from gingivitis and recommended that she get a dental very soon. We did a course of antibiotics and a steroid to see if the cyst would shrink. It didn't. I went back to the first vet, in which the appointment didn't end very well because they wanted to charge me an arm and a leg to administer 4 different shots as well as "try" to get a sample from the cyst to send it to biopsy, so I called the second vet who is very no nonsense and suggested that they could remove the cyst to send it to biopsy and knock a dental out at the same time. Two weeks ago I decided to go with the second vet and scheduled her dental and cyst removal for this past Monday.

It turns out that while the vet surgeon was doing Persephone's dental, he found an abnormal growth on the bottom of her tongue. When he called me after the surgery, he said the growth was concerning and that he removed it. They would send it off to biopsy and would hear back sometime next week. He said the bump on her lip turned out to be nothing concerning and that they had put had dissolvable stitches both under her tongue and where the cyst was. Additionally, he said her bloodwork was good, that she was a very healthy cat, and she did really well while being under anesthesia.

My concern now is that since she came home Monday, she has been making a hiccuping/gulping sound every time she swallows. It seems to be more pronounced when she eats, and since she's never had any issues swallowing I'm really concerned. Her energy levels and appetite are normal with the exception that she won't meow despite normally being very vocal. Persephone had a benign mass removal from her back 4 years ago (she is now 7) and had absolutely no issues with swallowing before. Should I be concerned about the strange swallowing sounds or is it something that should go away in a day or two?

P.S. I am also anticipating the results from the growth but am trying my best to take it one step at a time.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hello -
Can you get a video of both the sound and possibly of what she looks like when she's swallowing, (head nod or shake, visible throat movement) and send that to your vet? It could be a simple thing that she's sore and trying to avoid the sore spots, but even so, if it were me I'd check with the vet. A video would make it a lot easier for them to see/hear what's happening.

Sending loads of love !!

 

[theperseph]

Hello -
Can you get a video of both the sound and possibly of what she looks like when she's swallowing, (head nod or shake, visible throat movement) and send that to your vet? It could be a simple thing that she's sore and trying to avoid the sore spots, but even so, if it were me I'd check with the vet. A video would make it a lot easier for them to see/hear what's happening.

Sending loads of love !!

That’s a really good idea! I‘ll see if that’s something I can do.

 

[theperseph]

I did forget to mention that I called the vet about it yesterday, but they didn’t seem to understand what I was talking about, but a video might help for sure.

 

[Furballsmom]

Let us know how things go and what they say

 

[theperseph]

First off, good news! The growth removed from the bottom of her tongue was benign.

Secondly, I emailed the vet a video of Persephone's swallowing like was suggested. Her response was, "So I think it is coming from possibly couple of things, certainly having had an endotracheal tube in her throat the other day that can have a few lingering effects of some swelling in the back of the throat. This small lump we found & removed was on the underside of her tongue near where it "attaches" to the floor of her mouth. I can see we could still have some inflammation & of course sutures there which could also be causing some issues. Is she eating ok?"
I went on to ask if Perseph would benefit from anti-inflammatory or any pain killers. The vet responded with a "maybe" and to see how she does overnight and that we'll go from there.

This morning Persephone ate well, but saw that our younger cat was given dry food, so they switched food bowls, and she ate the dry food instead. I was still asleep at this time and know this from my partner who fed her. I've been only feeding her wet food since the surgery because I was afraid dry food could scratch any inflammation that she has.

I have also noticed that Persephone is completely unable to meow normally now. The past couple of days she has been squeaking, but today she went through the motions of meowing, but no sound came out. She seems to purr okay, but doesn't as much as she did pre-surgery. She is normally a very talkative and vocal cat. I am going to respond to the vet today to let her know. I am afraid that her throat may have gotten scratched or hurt from the tracheal tube since she is still making the strange swallowing sounds.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hopefully her meow comes back after time, I had a kitty who became hoarse after an Intubation. She wasn't allergic to latex that we know of, but in any case her meow did come back as her throat healed. Hang in there!!