Its normal for all cats to occasionally sneeze. Much like in humans, sneezing is the normal response for a cat to clear out their nose from irritants. If your cat has had a single short burst of sneezing, they are most likely to be okay. However, if you have noticed that your cat has suddenly started sneezing consistently or your cat has sneezed many times in a row you should start looking for a cause and then move on to take the necessary action to remedy it. In cases where you are still uncertain you should always take your cat to their vet if they are behaving oddly. Read on to find the potential sources of what could be affecting your cat’s nose and what you can do about it.
When should I worry about my cat sneezing?
Most animal health professionals will recommend you to take your cat in if they begin to sneeze often. This could mean that they begin to regularly sneeze for several days in a row. Your cat may expel a small amount of snot when they sneeze, but an excessive amount is enough reason to go to the vet as is seeing blood in their snot. If your cat has other symptoms such as lethargy you may also consider taking them to the vets a bit earlier. Sneezing alone won’t warrant an emergency visit but setting up a visit to the vet as soon as possible is always a good idea.
Why has my indoor cat suddenly started sneezing?
As we said previously, cats sneeze as a natural reaction to clear their noses from irritants. These irritants can come from either inside your cat in the case of an infection, or the outside. A common cause of indoor cats suddenly sneezing is an upper respiratory infection, the cat equivalent to getting a cold and in some cases, it can be quite dangerous for your cat.
Indoor cats can also have their noses irritated after they come in to contact with a new strong smell. Cats have a much stronger sense of smell than humans so it really won’t take a lot to set them off on a fit of sneezing. If you have noticed your cat sneezing in a particular location such as the bathroom of the kitchen they may be irritated by a new smell. It could be worth removing the new smell to see if your cat
Additionally, there are rarer causes of cat sneezing which include nose tumours, fungal infections, and small objects being stuck in the nose. Only your vet will be able to correctly diagnose these conditions as they will require an examination of your cat as well as the contextual understanding of their life and habits. We’ll use the rest of this article to go over the different causes of why your cat might suddenly be sneezing lots and what you can and should do about it.
How do I tell if my indoor cat has a cold?
If your indoor cat has suddenly started sneezing a lot more, you should try to assess if they are ill. We are not vets at PetsIndoors. If you are not qualified to assess the health of your pet and you are unsure about their health, the only people who can tell you how your cat is doing with certainty are trained veterinarians. However, we can go over some of the symptoms that your cat may be showing if they do have an upper respiratory infection. This includes fever, a runny nose, coughing, a lack of interest in food, and tiredness. Your cat can have an upper respiratory infection and still not show any of these additional symptoms.
How did my indoor cat get a cold?
We have previously talked about how indoor cats live safer lives and on average have a longer life expectancy as they are safer from the dangers of an outdoor environment. It may seem really strange then if your indoor cat has managed to get ill despite being separated from the outside. Indoor cats can become ill if a member of the household has unfortunately tracked in a disease after coming into contact with another infected cat. This is particularly true if your indoor cat is not up to date with its vaccinations. Parasites can be tracked into the home if you step into some contaminated dirt or animal droppings outside and then step indoors.
What makes cats sneeze?
Cats have much stronger senses of smell than us humans. Smells that are naturally strong to us will be overpowering to a cat. The most common smells that get introduced into the cat include citrus oils from oranges and lemons, mint, lavender, and gasoline. If your cats get a whiff of these smells, they will probably find them strongly unpleasant. It may cause them to sneeze but it’s more likely that the will just leave the area before their nose has a chance to react.
Small particulate matter such as, dust, spices, smoke, and aerosol sprays will irritate your indoor cat’s nose if they breath them in. If you have recently cooked, smoked, or used perfumes near your cat this could be a source for why they are sneezing. Cats live much closer to the ground and find themselves into small nooks and crannies, of they start sneezing after disappearing behind some furniture they may have found a patch of dust that you weren’t able to clean them up. If you think that this is the source of your cat’s sneezing, you can try to separate them from the source by placing them into a separate room until you are certain that your cat’s nose is being triggered by the smell.
Home remedies to treat a sneezing cat
If your cat is sneezing and has a snotty nose, you can gently wipe their nose with a damp paper towel to wipe away the dirt. After consulting your vet, they may recommend you place a humidifier near to where your cat is to comfort them. The same effect can be achieved by running a hot shower until the bathroom becomes full of steam. Just make sure that you don’t use any soaps or essential oils in the humidifier which could irritate your cat. We don’t recommend that you try any treatments without talking to your vet first.
What should I do if my cat keeps sneezing?
To summaries this post. If your cat has already been sneezing for a couple of days or has other symptoms such as a loss of appetite or fever, you should book a vet appointment as soon as possible to get them checked out. Otherwise, if they have only just started sneezing excessively you should try to find out if there is a new smell of substance that could be irritating their sensitive noses. There are more complex and serious health issues that could be causing your cat to sneeze excessively but only a vet will be able to check for these causes. It is normal for indoor cats to occasionally sneeze and by itself should be cause for concern.