You might not know the speed of a normal cat’s breathing. That’s why most of the owners do not realize that their cats are experiencing fast breathing.

A normal cat which is healthy breathes around 20 to 30 times per minutes. Normal cats breathe the oxygen throughout their lungs and the oxygen is circulated throughout your lungs to their vital organs.

When your cat is suffering from rapid breathing, then the breathing rate becomes irregular and shallow. It can indicate that your cat cannot bring enough oxygen into its lungs and circulated through its body.

Rapid breathing can be an indication of some injuries or illnesses. Breathing is a vital process for every living thing, including your cat. So, that’s why it is important to understand the reasons of rapid breathing in cats.

Symptoms of Rapid Breathing

Before getting to the causes of rapid breathing in cats, you also need to know the symptoms of rapid breathing in cats. Here are the symptoms of rapid breathing in cats.

Coughing or gagging
Lethargy and unwilling to move
Open-mouth breathing
Lack of energy
Rising and falling stomach or chest
Blue tinged tongue, nose or lips

It’s important to know the symptoms of rapid breathing in cats as some of the owners are not familiar with this condition. So, by knowing the symptoms of rapid breathing in cats, you would be able to do immediate action to prevent worse condition.

Reasons of Rapid Breathing in Cats

There are several reasons behind your cat’s rapid breathing. Here is the list of the causes of rapid breathing in cats:

Asthma
Allergic reaction
Heartworm
Pain
Injury
Pneumonia
Pulmonary edema
Presence of foreign object
Trauma
Stress or shocked
Tumors in throat or chest

If you think that one or more causes above stimulate your cat to have rapid breathing, then immediately contact your vet.

Though for some people, purring or rapid breathing can also be a sign of happiness, but there is nothing wrong about checking it to your vet. It will give you stronger assurance about your cat’s condition.

If your cat is having problem with its lungs, then you might need to know about these two diseases: pneumonia and bronchitis. You can check the signs of pneumonia in cats and bronchitis in cats.

How to Determine the Causes of Rapid Breathing in Cats?

After you consult with your vet, then there might be several test to determine the cause of rapid breathing experienced by your cats. Here are the ways to determine the cause of rapid breathing in cats:

Breathing observation – your vet will listen to the breathe rate of your cat through the chest.
Cat’s gum color – gum color is one of the indications telling that your pet is not feeling good, including cats. It indicates lack of oxygen to your cat’s organs. Pale color of gums can also be one of the signs of dehydration in cats.
Blood test and blood work – these two tests might seem to be the same but they have different function. Blood work is used to see the infections or the amount of carbon dioxide and oxygen in the blood. Blood test is to investigate the presence of infection caused by heartworm. Vomiting blood is also a serious problem and heartworm can be one of the causes. Check reasons your cat is vomiting blood. This condition requires immediate action!
X-rays – this test is used to check the presence of any foreign objects and potential tumors as well.
Ultrasound – this test is used to check the enlarged heart or abnormal conditions of lungs.

Those ways will help your vet and you to decide the best ways to treat the rapid breathing as well.

How to Treat Rapid Breathing in Cats?

To treat rapid breathing in cats, you need to set a peaceful, warm and safe place for your cat to recover. That’s the first step, because warm and safe place are the keys of quick recovery.

Then, you might also want to restrict your cat’s activity. Do not let your cat exposed by too many activities that will make the condition worse.

And, if it is related to severe diseases, your cat might need to consume some medicines given by the doctor, such as antibiotics, antihistamines, or even oxygen therapy.

You might also wonder how long my cat should get medication or treated that way. The answer is depending on how severe your cat is. As its owner, you also need to give support to your cat as support and love from its owner will be really meaningful and strengthen them.

If you are a cat owner, you must need some of the tips of having cat as a pet at home. Regarding to their food, you can cook these yummy recipes of homemade cat food. Besides, if you need idea about some disease that they might experience, you can see common diseases of cat.