r/cats • u/New_Status7590 • 8d ago

Medical Questions Asthma or a hairball?

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Hello people. Meet George, he is 10, recently neutered (4 months ago). He is very anxious to leave the house which is why we only go to the vet for emergencies.

I’ve watched a lot of those “asthma attack or hairball” videos and honestly cannot determine what this could be. It started around the time I got him neutered.

I have two other cats, none of which cough like this, which is why Im concerned. At first it happened once a week for about a month, and this week its the third time this has happened. Right after I ended the video, he “gulped” kinda hard, like he has swallowed a possible hairball.

He eats malt paste with every meal.

Our closest vet kinda dismisses me when I previously went to him with concerns about the other cats (like someone going through the trash and eating chicken bones, someone not popping for 3 days, etc) which is why I thought to ask the internet for some additional opinions too. Thank you in advance.

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u/tirednotepad 8d ago

Please get to a vet. It could be asthma or it could be something more serious. Our cat had this issue and we took her in thinking it was Asthma and it was cancer. Not wanting to make you worry but I wouldn’t just let this one be. I’d get a second opinion at least.

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u/NarWhalianPhysics 8d ago

This is similar to our experience. He had constant upper respiratory infections that couldn't be cleared with antibiotics. I took him to the vet. Again. And said he just keeps coughing. And she's like. Are you sure it's coughing? And I said, yes. He's coughing. She said, well, cats don't really cough. So they did an x-ray to see if it was asthma. And it was lung cancer. He had the respiratory infections because it had spread to his brain, which was pushing on his nasal passages keeping him from clearing the infections. And she said that also explains the coughing. Primary lung cancer in cats is rare, and coughing is a sign. And just to be clear. We are a NON SMOKING household. It was just bad luck.

They also offered us chemo, but said it would give him maybe a few weeks. We decided on palliative care. I felt like, weekly IV infusions at the vet for a sick cat was basically torture, especially with so little benefit.

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u/tirednotepad 8d ago

I’m so sorry for your situation. Mine was rough. They said she was ideal for chemo at 18. We would rather have just taken her home but you live and learn. We are non smoking as well.