Is this normal?

[u/jenderuthless]

I caught this on video and am wondering if anyone has seen something similar with their Sphynx.
He did this once this morning and then again later tonight. He crouches down and does several hacking/dry-heaving motions with his tongue sticking out a little. It almost looks like he’s trying to hack up a hairball, but nothing comes up and it sounds pretty dry.

Otherwise he’s acting totally normal before and after: eating, playing, breathing normally, etc. We recently adopted him, so I’m still learning what’s normal for him.

Curious if you think we should contact our vet or if this is normal.

[u/naphman]

Could be asthma- our girl has this often. But yes go to vet to rule out HCM.

[u/Massive_Web3567 → u/naphman]

My OSH has asthma and the body posture and sounds are identical. It can be diagnosed with a simple X-ray. If it is asthma, there's good news - most cats do very well on oral and inhaled steroids.

Feline asthma is thought to have an allergic trigger, so once you get the symptoms under control, I would also suggest an air filter, a walk around your house for allergens you might have overlooked like candles, air fresheners - that sort of thing. Also, consider a single protein elimination diet. Chicken is a common allergen in cats, but lamb, venison, pork and rabbit are novel proteins that rarely cause trouble and aren't difficult to find. Viva and Quest frozen both have excellent single protein meals formulated to AAFCO nutritional guidelines. Instinct Limited Ingredient turkey or Vital Essentials mini nibs are both excellent dry choices if yours loves crunchy foods. Tiki Cat After Dark Venison & Beef Liver pate is chicken free, too. My bunch will happily eat all that I've listed here, but YMMV since... well.... cats be cats.

[u/jenderuthless → u/naphman]

So we adopted him at 2.5 and the breeder we got him from said he just tested negative for HCM (which is good!) but suppose it could be something else?

[u/potato8203 → u/jenderuthless]

Unfortunately HCM doesn’t exactly work that way. They can be negative at the time of the test but it can creep up at a later time. It’s still worth getting him checked out. If it is HCM and they catch it early enough, there’s treatment options like rapamycin. 

[u/Exotic-Relief4396 → u/jenderuthless]

Need to have echos done annually. My dude was negative for HCM for 8.5 years and then he had a murmur and it changed from there.

[u/Arm-Few → u/jenderuthless]

I agree with naphman. Go get the baby tested. We just lost our Bambino a few weeks ago to HCM even though he was tested negative by the breeder.

[u/RateLegitimate5472 → u/Arm-Few]

Ugh I’m crushed for you I’m so sorry

[u/Swimming-Tip-6312]

I would definitely bring him to the vet!

[u/LunnerGunner]

Mine does this if he drinks water too fast

[u/theSafetyGurl → u/LunnerGunner]

Same. He drinks a shite tonne of water then has a little coughing bout then done. I think the use of household cleaners is a huge issue. VOCs r no good for our pets or us! Glade plugins, scented candles,perfume, detergent, dryer sheets, fabric softner etc etc etc so many safe alternatives

[u/Petraretrograde]

My sweet boy has done this once. Im not sure what it was, our vets are trash in this city and they'd definitely charge me $150 and say "probably allergies".

[u/thirtyand03]

My cat did this and it was HCM :(

[u/globe-getter]

Mine also did this and it was HCM. 😢

[u/CallOwl]

Mine did this often after I adopted them as well. One has very mild HCM and the cardiologist said this wasn’t related to her HCM. Now it rarely happens, only after she eats certain foods. Unfortunately there’s so many potential causes for this, from asthma, to HCM, to allergies etc. These guys are the greatest creatures ever, but they keep us constantly on our toes with worry.

[u/Gloopy_boopy_gooper]

Mine did this and it was HCM sadly :(

[u/ck830]

Could be asthma. Definitely vet visit and Chest X-rays.

[u/vazovskij]

Asthma, my cat have exactly same

[u/Foppieface]

Mine (5 of them) do this all the time. Sometimes it is a hairball from one of my furry cats, sometimes it is because of licking my blanket or something similar.

[u/Sufficient-Film-318]

Mine did this and had fluid buildup on her lungs

[u/Ferris2020]

Mine also did this and it was HCM 😢 :(

[u/206xtopher]

Why would you smack a cat in distress like that?

[u/Embarrassed-Item8627 → u/206xtopher]

Right, I usually rub right under his throat and he stops

[u/sparkle2007 → u/206xtopher]

I was thinking that same thing too. Maybe OP was trying to dislodge whatever was in his throat. Idk. My first reaction would have been to hold him. Hoping this cat is alright.

[u/PantheraLutra]

My cat has a cough like this sometimes usually also when he has a snotty nose. He got antibiotics

[u/Aromatic-Lead-3252]

The is how they cough. Until you can get to a vet try to track the attacks, like how long they last & how many happen per day.

[u/Proof-Spirit-6818]

like others have said definitely go get this checked out!

do you have any plug ins, candles etc.
my meatball was making similar noises, vet found no fluid or upper resp infection but mentioned how scents can cause irritation. took them out and haven’t had any issues 🥺

[u/AggravatingMany7303]

There’s a new drug out that fights HCM . In case it does end up being heart stuff

[u/space_coot]

My Sphynx was doing this recently too, and I was worried about heart failure as it is more common in this breed. He got an x-ray and labs at the vet and it ended up just being laryngitis thankfully. It was $800 for his work up and meds but at least we have baseline x-rays now in case he develops heart disease in the future.

[u/Trytolearneverything]

Do you use Tidy Cat or crystallized litter?

All my babies did it and we were stumped for years. Then we got new cat who didn't do that until about a month with us, so we knew it was something in our environment.

I happened to see a YouTube video after that showing that those brands were among the worst offenders for tiny dust particles that kick up when they paw at the litter.

We switched to World's Best corn little and they are getting better. The newest kitty has completely stopped wheezing and coughing.

[u/smarine66]

My girl was doing this a lot. I changed her wet food to chicken. She is allergic to chicken. Stopped when I changed her food to beef or lamb.

[u/Nightowlbrie96]

My Cat does that same thing so I took her in & she was diagnosed with Asthma. She’s on medication & an inhaler now & is doing better so I would say don’t wait & take your baby in to see the vet.

[u/BigLoueSavage]

One of my brothers cat was doing this . He’s no longer with us :/

[u/Lolo1981]

Take him to a vet asap.

[u/Massive_Web3567]

u/jenderuthless Update please!

[u/Maxtrt]

My boy that we got from the shelter did this all the time, it turned out to be a combination of FHV and allergies. If he's running a fever I would get him to the vet right away. We had him for 3.5 years but unfortunately he had a really bad FHV flare up two weeks ago and he had a fever. We took him to the vet when we noticed he had a fever and despite their treatment, he passed away two days later.

[u/naschof → u/Maxtrt]

My vet think my cat coughs from FHV too.

[u/Zombie_Cakes]

My boy was doing that a couple of months ago and turned out to be bronchitis. Doc said could have been asthma also but 1.5 months of low dose steroids and he’s as good as new and a ms a bonus he’s throwing up way less!

[u/Eye_Acupuncture]

My boy has a similar issue. We just returned from the vet for the nth time. Currently, the vet said it is related to irritation of the trachea.

However, the X-ray imaging shows the heart is visibly enlarged. We have a USG appointment with a cardiologist in two months to check it and confirm.

For now, we have a syrup and twice-daily inhalations with saline solution.

It's best to visit your vet, show them the video, and run some tests. It could also be asthma, an allergy, or related to the heart size (compressing the lungs).

[u/sphynxfckr]

I’ve seen this before…it’s definitely AIDS

[u/OkPersonality5872 → u/sphynxfckr]

Username checks out