Frequent sneezing?

[juanita]

I'm a little worried about my chubby feline. I noticed last Friday that he sneezes a lot more than the usual. He can sneeze 5, even 10 times in a row and then not sneeze at all for hours. I don't see anything coming out of his nose, by the way. He seems perfectly happy and eats normally as well.

I'm wondering if he could be allergic to something, but what? I didn't change his diet or anything. Could it be the pollen? I've been sneezing like crazy for the last few weeks, perhaps he is allergic too . I can't see how it could be rhinotracheitis: he is a only cat, stays indoors and is up to date on all his shots. And until yesterday, I hadn't been at the shelter for 3 weeks. What could it be?

Any opinions would be welcome. I'll make an appointment with the vet if I must, but I just spent almost 200$ last week for what I thought was ringworm - having a vet come over for another false alarm would really make a big hole in my budget and stress him needlessly. Thanks in advance!

[RareBreedExotic]

even though your kitty is an indoor kitty, he still could get an upper respiratory infection. these types of infections are similar to the ones that humans get and do not have to be rhinotracheitis. i know of a breeder who keeps his central air on and ALWAYS has problems with his cats getting the upper resp infections. however, usually you will see more than sneezes and will see a runny nose, possible lack of appetite, and possible lethargy. the nose has always been the dead ringer for me, so i wouldn't worry too much if you haven't seen that.

just keep an eye on your kitty over the next week. monitor his eating (try scheduled feeding with measured food amounts vs. an open feeder) and try and see if there's a certain area of the house he sneezes the most at. if you don't see a lack of appetite, but still can't pinpoint the sneezing, close up the windows for a while (this could really suck in the summer ) and see if you see a decrease in sneezing. closing the windows could keep the pollen out for while and could help you determine if he has pollen irritation.

good luck to you and to paw-talk!

~amber~

[DirtySouthChins]

I agree just monitor his habits, eating, drinking, playfulness, ect.... It may or may not be an Upper Respitory Infection. Sneezing can be caused from alot of things, an onstart of an Upper Respitory Infection, Dust, Pollen, Allergies, running of the a/c, ect... so just keep a close eye on him. Best wishes, keep us updated

[pihlaja]

When my Galina got a URI (upper respiratory infection), her nose was not runny at all. At first it was just sneezing. Then, as the week went on, the sneezing increased. However, she was still playing and eating well, so I thought it may just be dust or pollen. Finally, two weeks after the sneezing first started, she started to become lethargic and her eyes were runny and producing some green gunk. So, I took her to the vet.

I say give it two weeks from when the symptoms first start. If the sneezing continues or his condition worsens, take him to the vet to have a check up.

[Candycane]

Have you changed litter...or did you just open a new bag/box of litter? If the sneezing continues, I would definitely see a vet to rule out a URI. Otherwise, I would consider switching litter if you are using a dusty one. I have recently switched to Swheat Scoop and it is MUCH less dusty than traditional litter. Granted, seasonal allergies are definitely a possibility but maybe it may be something less complicated.

[juanita]

Thanks to all! So far, Siggy is a pig as usual and runs around madly (14-pound cat on very old hardwood floor, heee hee). I've noticed his eyes are sometimes runny, but earlier this year the vet said this is normal (in reasonable amounts) given the size/shape of his eyes. I'll check that too.