A few common causes of respiratory system conditions are asthma, bronchitis, cat flu, hair balls, heartworms, heatstroke, and kennel cough. Learn more about these common conditions now.
Asthma
Vets still are not sure what causes asthma, but it appears to be due to an allergic reaction to such things as pollen, litter-box dust, or even perfume that causes airways to get inflamed and swollen, reducing the flow of oxygen to the lungs. Dogs occasionally get asthma, but it is much more common in cats.
Asthma in cats is so common, in fact, that it is sometimes called feline allergic bronchitis, or simply, cat asthma. There are two forms of this condition. In cats with acute asthma, the attacks come on suddenly, causing loud wheezing. In addition, your cat may sit with his shoulders hunched -- or lie down with his mouth open -- straining to breathe.
"When your cat has an acute asthma attack, he needs emergency medical attention," says Lynne Boggs, D.V.M., a veterinarian in private practice in Austin, Texas.
The other form of cat asthma, called chronic asthma, is a lot less serious, at least in the short run, says Dr. Boggs. Your cat will breathe more rapidly and deeply than usual, but he won't be starved for air. The problem is that chronic asthma increases pressure inside the lungs, which can put pressure on the heart, causing additional problems.
There is no cure for asthma. If your pet has had one attack, he will probably have another. Veterinarians usually treat asthma with medications to open airways inside the lungs, along with anti-inflammatory drugs to reduce the swelling.
There isn't a cure for cat flu, so you have to let it run its course. (In most cases, it will start to clear up within a week or two.) In the meantime, you can expect your cat to do a lot of sneezing and to have a clear discharge from his eyes or nose.
If the discharge is cloudy or yellow, however, your cat may have developed a second, and more serious, bacterial infection. This means that he will need antibiotics, and you should take him to the vet.
Some cats are particularly susceptible to cat flu and will get it again and again. The repeated infections may permanently damage the linings of the nasal passages, causing a lifetime of sniffling, says Dr. Craig. "He may be healthy in all other respects and not have other symptoms. Persians, Siamese, and Himalayans seem to be more prone to this problem."
The best way to prevent cat flu is to make sure that your cat gets his annual vaccinations. "Vaccines are very important for preventing infection," says Dr. Craig. It is also helpful to make your home an inhospitable place for viruses to live. The cat-flu virus can live as long as 10 days outside your pet's body -- in litter boxes, food bowls, and on blankets. Washing your cat's belongings every week will help wash away viruses before they cause infection. Washing your own hands several times a day will also help prevent the virus from spreading.
Hair Balls
Cats love to be clean and will spend hours licking and rubbing their fur until it shines. With each lick, however, their coarse little tongues pick up loose fur, and the only place for it to go is down the hatch. The hairs tickle, which is why cats periodically give a good harumph and hack them up. "The vast majority of coughing in cats is due to hair," says Alan Kirmayer, D.V.M., a veterinarian in private practice in Marysville, Pennsylvania.
Not all hairs, unfortunately, are expelled by coughing. Many are simply swallowed. Eventually, they may form large, gooey clumps in the stomach. Some of the clumps pass out of the body in the stool. Others, too large to enter the intestine, get vomited back up -- usually on your best carpet.
For cats, hair balls usually aren't a problem. But for owners who wake up in the middle of the night to noisy hacking or who clean up the resulting mess the next morning, they are a nuisance, to say the least. But they are not that hard to prevent. The easiest remedy is simply to groom your cat every day. This will remove loose hairs from his coat before he gets a chance to lick and swallow them.
In addition, there are ways to help hair balls pass through the digestive tract rather than being vomited back up. Pet supply stores sell a number of hair-ball remedies, which essentially lubricate the digestive tract so that the hairs pass out more easily. A less expensive strategy is to put about a quarter-teaspoon of petroleum jelly on your cat's front paws or on the roof of his mouth. When he licks the petroleum jelly, it will pass into his stomach, lubricating the hairs so that they move gently into the digestive tract. When your cat is coughing, apply the petroleum jelly once a day for about four days, says Craig N. Carter, D.V.M., Ph.D., head of epidemiology at the Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory at Texas A&M University in College Station.
Hair balls generally come up fairly quickly when your cat starts hacking, says Dr. Kirmayer. If your cat is coughing and retching, but nothing is coming up, he could have a large hair ball stuck in his system. This can be serious, so it is important to call your vet right away.
Heartworms
You don't think of parasites as causing a respiratory problem, but that is one of the first symptoms of heartworms. These unpleasant worms, which live and grow inside the pulmonary arteries and the right side of your pet's heart, often cause shortness of breath, along with coughing, fatigue, and weight loss.
Heartworms begin their lives as larvae inside an infected mosquito. If your pet gets bitten, the larvae enter his bloodstream. Within six months, the larvae migrate to the heart, turning into spaghetti-like worms that can grow up to 12 inches long. Eventually, the worms may block the flow of blood. Since blood carries oxygen, reduced blood flow causes shortness of breath. Heartworms can also cause high blood pressure or heart failure.
There are drugs for treating heartworm. Unfortunately, the drugs may cause side effects that can be more dangerous than the worms themselves, says Kenneth Drobatz, D.V.M., assistant professor of veterinary medicine and director of emergency service at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine in Philadelphia. That is why prevention is so important.
Heartworms are very easy to prevent with medications. Taken daily or monthly, depending on the kind you choose, the medications will kill heartworm larvae in your pet's bloodstream before they have a chance to mature and cause problems. Such preventive medications are generally recommended.
Heatstroke
Pets don't sweat the way people do, so they can easily overheat, particularly if they have been left in a parked car or in a yard without shade. When they get too hot, their internal temperatures rise to dangerous levels, possibly causing heatstroke, says C. Dave Richards, D.V.M., a veterinarian in private practice in Valdosta, Georgia.
In the early stages of heatstroke, your pet will be panting heavily. He may salivate a lot or even vomit. As his temperature rises above 104?F, he may begin staggering or even collapse entirely. His tongue and gums will probably turn a bright red.
Heatstroke can kill within hours, so it is essential to get to a veterinarian immediately, says Linda T. Stern, D.V.M., a veterinarian in private practice in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. If, for some reason, you can't get him to a vet right away, you need to begin emergency first-aid. "It is critical to get the body temperature down," she says.
She recommends moving him to a cool place, then covering him with towels soaked in cool water. Or turn on the garden hose and let cool water run over his body for 10 to 15 minutes. When his temperature reaches 103?F, you can stop the treatments, she advises. Then get him to a vet as soon as you can.
Kennel Cough
In the old days, dogs really did get kennel cough -- a viral or bacterial infection of the upper airways -- in kennels. Today, most kennels require dogs to be vaccinated before they check in, so the risk of getting kennel cough in a kennel is much lower than it used to be.
The germs that cause kennel cough are everywhere, however. And because they are contagious, kennel cough can readily be passed from dog to dog, says John Daugherty, D.V.M., a veterinarian in private practice in Poland, Ohio.
As the name suggests, the main symptom of kennel cough is a dry, hacking cough. This condition isn't particularly serious, Dr. Daugherty adds, and will usually clear up on its own in a week or two, particularly in grown, large dogs. Puppies and small dogs are more likely to have problems because they have smaller nasal passages than their larger kin.
The vaccinations against kennel cough aren't 100 percent effective simply because there are many germs that can cause this condition. Still, vaccines are helpful even when they don't prevent illness. "In most cases, they will prevent the infection from being severe," Dr. Daugherty explains.
When your dog is recuperating from kennel cough, don't put him on a leash because the airway inside his throat (the trachea) will be very tender. "Any pressure on the throat will cause him to cough," says Dr. Daugherty. If you are going for a walk, use a harness instead.
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