Occasional sneezing in a cat is normal and not a cause for concern. As in humans, sneezing in cats is an explosive release of air through the nose and mouth—often the body's response to irritants in the nasal passages. Sometimes excitement or movement can cause cats to sneeze.
However, if your cat's sneezing does not go away, or if other symptoms occur along with the sneezing, you may need to consult your veterinarian to see if treatment is required.
Viral, bacterial or fungal infections.
If you have a sneezing cat, she most likely has an upper respiratory infection. Similar to colds in humans, these infections are more common in young cats, especially cats from animal shelters.
Many of these infections can be prevented with early and complete vaccination.
Viral infections that most commonly cause sneezing in cats include:
Feline herpes virus.
Cats become infected with herpes through contact with other infected cats. Stress can make the disease worse and can also spread it to other cats. Treatment is aimed at controlling symptoms. Feline herpes virus is NOT contagious to humans.
Feline calicivirus.
This virus is highly contagious between cats. Mouth ulcers are the most common problem, but they can affect the respiratory tract and even cause pneumonia.
These infections can make your cat more likely to develop other respiratory problems that can make the sneezing worse.
For example, a cat with herpes may develop a secondary bacterial infection. They are often treatable with antibiotics.
Cats and loud noise
Even though cats are widely domesticated and have cute paws and fluffy fur, they are hunters at heart. This allowed their ears to develop so that they became very sensitive to even the slightest noise. Their sensitive ears help them hear distant prey.
At the same time, smaller cats, like ordinary domestic cats, can be prey to larger animals. This gives them a very sensitive reaction to situations that they may consider dangerous. In other words, cats may run away when they feel they are in danger.
Because cats have sensitive ears and a tendency to run away in frightening situations, sneezing can be a real challenge for your kitty. When you sneeze, the muscles in the middle ear contract. This reduces noise and protects their inner ear.
Many cats perceive this phenomenon differently. Some are worried, others are scared. As a result, your cat can give quite a few answers when you sneeze. Although some reactions are positive, most are negative because sneezing is often loud and sudden, which frightens most cats.
A wide range of other infections can also cause sneezing.
These include:
- Feline infectious peritonitis, which over time can be asymptomatic, mild or more severe.
- Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), which develops slowly, but seriously affects a cat's immune system, leaving it vulnerable to other infections.
- Feline leukemia, a serious and often fatal infection.
- Chlamydia, which often causes an eye infection (conjunctivitis).
- Bordetella
- Mycoplasma
What your cat wants to talk about (part 2)
Animals, unlike people, cannot tell others about what worries them now, talk about their well-being, their mood. Of course, a caring owner always understands his pet, but even for him the behavior of a cat can become an unsolved mystery. Fortunately, now the behavior of many animals has been well studied, so by characteristic gestures and postures you can determine what exactly your pet wanted to tell you.
Common poses
You can often determine your pet’s mood by the position he took at that moment.
1. The cat stands with its tail raised, the pose is joyful and springy, it rubs its head against a person or some objects. This means that at the moment the animal is experiencing joy, saying that it feels good in this place or that it is filled with love for its owner. If a cat does not greet anyone at the moment, but simply walks with its tail raised, it shows everyone around that it is happy with itself and its life, and the cat can demonstrate that it is the most important in the area.
2. The pet suddenly stopped and raised its front leg, its lower part relaxed and hanging. He is very interested in something, and he is trying to understand what it is, trying not to make awkward movements. Or this pose can be called the “predator pose.” She becomes motionless so as not to scare away the prey. When the mouse or bird gets close enough, it will be able to lunge and catch it.
3. The cat lies on its back with its paws spread out. This is a sign of friendliness and trust. The cat will not show his abdomen to strangers, as he instinctively protects his abdomen, in which the most important organs are located. This is why animals often do not allow their bellies to be touched, starting to scratch and bite. If a cat grabbed your hand when you tried to stroke his tummy, remember that this is not just aggression, but an innate instinct that he inherited from his ancestors. If the cat allows you to stroke its belly, then this is a sign of complete trust. But if the pet is not relaxed at this moment, his ears are flattened, his pupils are dilated, his paws are raised, this means that he is ready to attack and has taken a position to use all 4 paws at once.
4. The pet arches its back and purrs loudly, its fur stands on end, its ears are pressed to its head. So he wants to scare away a stranger who has entered his territory, or a mother cat protects her babies. The raised fur is a sign that tells the enemy that the cat is big enough, so it can cope with any stranger.
The cat inhaled irritants or allergens.
If your cat only sneezes occasionally, something may simply be irritating the nasal passages.
Look for patterns in your cat's sneezing.
Does this happen after you light the candles at the dinner table? After your cat leaves the litter box? After you've cleaned the house?
These are all examples of potential irritants or allergens (substances that cause allergic reactions) in cats:
- Cigarette smoke
- Perfume
- Pest sprays
- Cat litter, especially the kind that collects dust
- Cleaners
- Candles
- Dust
- pollen
- Form
In cats, allergies are a less common cause of sneezing than in humans. If the sneezing is due to an allergy, sometimes itchy skin is also present.
What does a cat's meow mean?
You don't have to own a cat to know that they make the sound that most people call a meow. Interestingly, cats meow almost only to people and not to other cats. When cats become kittens, they meow to their mother, asking for help. As they grow older in the wild, the instinct to meow gradually goes away.
On the other hand, domestic cats tend to retain the instinct to meow. This may be due to the fact that domestic cats basically live as perpetual offspring. In other words, they are constantly raised and nurtured by their human masters, and they definitely don't mind.
In most cases, a cat's meow simply means that they want something. Whether it's for attention, food, or time outdoors, cats meow to communicate their need. Meowing can also mean that your cat is happy to see you, as if she is saying, “Welcome home!” whenever you return home from work.
Moreover, meowing may indicate that your cat is lonely or sick. Old cats meow especially when they start to feel like they are getting old. Likewise, cats, both young and old, may meow at their human owner to show irritation or fear, which is likely the case when your cat meows after sneezing.
Sneezing and other symptoms
The symptoms that may accompany sneezing in cats can be the result of a wide range of infections and other problems. These symptoms may include:
- Eye discharge, swelling or ulcers
- Heavy nasal discharge, sometimes yellow or green (sometimes a sign of a bacterial infection)
- Fatigue or depression
- Heat
- Increased salivation
- Decreased appetite or weight loss
- Enlarged lymph nodes
- Wheezing or cough
- Poor coat condition
- Labored breathing
- Diarrhea
The cat is constantly meowing
A cat meows for dozens of different reasons, and the meowing itself can vary depending on the age of the animal and its physiological state, so in order to solve this common and very annoying problem, it is necessary to accurately determine the cause. This is not too difficult to do, especially if the pet has been living with you for a long time, and you know all its habits well, since any deviation from the norm will immediately catch your eye.
At the same time, it is important to distinguish between meowing caused by some extraneous factors and health problems. In the first case, the situation may well resolve itself or with minimal help, and in the second, not only the well-being, but also the life of your furry pet may depend on the promptness of your actions.
When to go to the vet
If your cat only sneezes occasionally and has no other symptoms or is only showing mild symptoms, you can simply monitor her for a few days. Keep your cat indoors and monitor for changes.
But be sure to contact your veterinarian if your cat sneezes constantly or frequently, sneezes blood, or has other signs like those listed above. They may be signs of a disease or condition that requires veterinary attention.
Treatment depends on the cause of the sneezing. In mild cases, your veterinarian may recommend measures to simply make your cat feel more comfortable, such as using a humidifier.
In other cases, antibiotics, antihistamines, steroids, or fluids may be needed. In rare cases, cats that do not respond to drug treatment may require surgery.
Other strange reactions to sneezing
Meowing isn't the only strange reaction you might get from your cat after sneezing. Each cat is unique and reacts very strangely to sneezing. Here are some other strange reactions you may notice whenever you sneeze around your cat.
Chirping
Some cats make a strange chirping sound when they see a squirrel or bird. It is not clear why cats make such a sound. At first, people believed that cats chirped whenever they wanted to provoke their prey. However, after further research, it turned out that cats chirp out of excitement. So, they chirp whenever they see a bird or a squirrel because they are excited.
If your cat is really comfortable around you, your sneezing may arouse her. This is a less common reaction to sneezing, but is quite common. The loud noise may make them feel like you're trying to play with them, causing them to chirp in excitement.
Run away
This answer is more clear, but many cats run away when you sneeze. This is because the sneezing scared them and their response was to run away. As we already mentioned, cats do not like loud noises.
Sneezing, especially the sneezing of some older men, is very loud and frightening to the cat. This causes them to run away from the source of the sound. Even if your cat is familiar with you, the sound may startle her and cause her to fly in your presence.
Read by faces
A group of scientists from the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Montreal has developed a feline facial expression scale (Feline Grimace Scale), which is used to diagnose pain in animals. The method allows you to determine whether a cat is experiencing pain based on an external examination without the use of any equipment. It can be used by both pet owners and professional veterinarians. “Pain assessment remains a major challenge for pediatric and other patients who are unable to self-report the level of discomfort they experience,” the authors of the method write in an article in the journal Nature.
The developers tested their system to determine its effectiveness. The experiment involved 20 volunteers who were divided into four equal groups: cat owners, veterinary students, veterinary nurses and veterinarians. The scale showed a high level of inter-rater reliability. That is, the participants in the experiment, using the system, came to the same assessments of the animals’ condition. Moreover, the results of all groups largely coincided with the “gold standard” - the diagnoses of a group of professional veterinarians.
The cat facial expression scale takes into account five indicators: ear position, degree of tension in the eye orbits, tension in the muzzle, whisker position and head position. Each of the indicators is scored from 0 to 2. For example, a free-hanging and curved mustache corresponds to 0 points, a slightly curved or straight mustache corresponds to 1 point, and a straight and forward mustache corresponds to 2 points. If the calculation results for all indicators exceed 3 points, then the cat should be taken to the veterinarian.
Participants in the experiment were sent instructions describing how to use the scale. They did not undergo any additional training. All of them were asked to use the described method to evaluate the condition of 100 cats from photographs. Animals were filmed in cages before or after painful procedures and surgeries, and before or after receiving pain medications. Painful symptoms were present in 40% of the cats whose photographs were used in the experiment. The level of inter-rater reliability, reflecting the agreement of opinions in one group, did not fall below 80%, and even reached 88% among students. At the same time, the experiment participants demonstrated maximum unanimity in assessing the position of the ears, the state of the eye orbits and the position of the head, but the assessments of the tension of the muzzle and the condition of the mustache coincided much less often.
Another indicator reflecting the accuracy of the proposed scale is intra-rater reliability. It determines how often a specialist makes the same assessments in identical cases. All participants in the experiment turned out to be very consistent. Intra-rater reliability of ordinary cat owners and veterinary nurses was 87 and 81%, respectively. And veterinary students and professional veterinarians are 91% consistent on the scale. All parameters obtained during the tests showed that the scale for assessing facial expressions of cats allows both specialists and ordinary people to diagnose pain in pets with high accuracy. Moreover, the age and number of cats a person keeps are not related to the accuracy of his diagnoses. But women notice cat ill health much more often than men.
Face control for cats: a scale for diagnosing pain in animals has been developed
Canadian veterinarians tested a scale they developed for assessing cat facial expressions, which allows a person, even without special training, to determine whether an animal is currently experiencing pain. To answer this question, you need to evaluate the cat's appearance according to five criteria: the position of the ears, eyes, whiskers, head and tension of the muzzle. Tests have confirmed that thanks to this simple system, every owner can diagnose their pet's health problems with almost the same accuracy as a professional.
Why don't cats like it when their owners cry (cm)?
I have noticed more than once that a cat bites if I start crying. Why is this happening?
Cats are actually very sensitive creatures. They are very close to people because in every 2nd house there is a cat. They sense this emotional distress and start feeling sad with you. It is not for nothing that there is a proven fact that if a sick person stays with a cat for a couple of weeks, then in most cases he will recover. They have some kind of healing gift that they themselves do not know about. This is how nature created them)
If we talk about cats, they are very sensitive and vulnerable animals.
I had quite a lot of cats and their personalities were very different, but in some ways they were similar.
I also noticed this kind of behavior in my cat. When I cried or was worried, the cat did not support me, but began to get angry and bite my hands.
I think cats sense their owner's mood. When you keep this pet for a long time, you also learn to understand its actions and behavior.
My cat bit me because she didn’t want me to worry! I felt and understood this with all my heart, but then I did not pay special attention to this behavior of my beloved “Muska”.
Now that she is gone, I sometimes think about her antics, habits and emphasize something for myself! Cats actually become very attached to their owner. These animals, like psychics, can feel the experiences of their owner. It’s not for nothing that they were once sacred in Egypt!
If we face the truth, very often we endow animals with qualities that they simply cannot possess. For example, we think that a cat caresses us because it loves us. In fact, she marks us. We are not a source of food for her, but part of her flock. Cats have no self-awareness and cannot empathize or understand what grief and sadness are. At the same time, they are subject to stress, may experience fear, feel that something is changing, and, accordingly, become anxious. They can feel changes in the intonation of the owners or in their behavior, in their smell. When cats sense these changes, they may become anxious.
