Thread: Does your cat pant?

This is really weird, Harry did yesterday for the first time, it was strange, it was just like watching a dog. He had his mouth wide open and when I picked him up you could hear it. I was going to ask whether this was normal, it was quite scary when he did it.

I have one that tends to pant when put into a different situation,he doesn't seem stressed but just pants while he takes it all in,one of the boys pants easily if he does too much chasing of the laser beam so he gets restricted time with that type of play although he had his vet check & everything seemed ok & the others tear around & nothing at all.
Thats MC's for you....

I know I paranoid about all things MC & Spots & please please please dont all charge off to the vets or loose any sleep but I would be a bit concerned about a cat panting & maybe not encourage to much rushing around. Milo used to pant when he was a kitten & I just thought at the time it was because he was to hot or been tearing around to much but after him going at only 10years old because of his heart I do wonder if it was because he was born with a heart problem

Its probably just the way they get so excited & rush around so much & its getting warmer at last

I've seen our moggies pant when it's really hot, or have been running around alot.

Originally Posted by Scrapdragon

I've seen our moggies pant when it's really hot, or have been running around alot.

Simba sometimes forgets to put his tongue away after hes been washing

I have to say that I think there are two different types of panting,any animal cat or dog if they are in real distress the mouth is very wide open & they also seem to drool a lot plus the eyes take on a panic look or become glazed over.As I said I know one of mine is just a phew where are we type of pant & after a few minutes the mouth is shut & things carry on as normal no change in breathing which you would also expect if there is a problem.
Just be sensible over it & don't over tire the baby with play & if he does seem to be off colour then get him checked by the vet,if I had taken mine to work everytime it has panted since I had her my boss could be retired now on the income but having said that I have two friends who have lost their MC's suddenly neither of them that old & neither of them showing any signs,so hear we go again,another worry when you are an animal owner but we are still going to have them aren't we because we love em....

I think jckkerrison is right about different types of panting. Harry was in the garden with us for the first time when he did it. I think when they are young, like children really they almost forget to take a breath with all the excitement going on. I will mention it to the vet on my next visit, just for peace of mind, but the fact that he's not the only cat on here that has done it has reassured me slightly.

Haven't seen Simba panting but he did make some strange noises in the garden today. It was when he was sitting on the bench trying to catch butterflies - I think he was getting angry he couldn't get them. I have never heard him make this noise before though - it was almost like a bark - perhaps he has picked it up from the dogs Hope I haven't over done it with him - he has been asleep since lunch time!

Yes they do pant if they get hot, such as when they have been racing around. All of our male MCs have done it as kittens after just racing and racing around. Having lost a MC mix to HCM we were quite concerned the first couple of times it happened, but appears to be perfectly normal. Talked with breeder and she said that she sometimes sees it after heavy play--particularly with the males. In our experience, they do not do it for long at all--nothing like a dog that might pant for minutes and minutes. Instead, the cats will just pant very briefly (less than a minute) and then be fine.

Our girl Bella, who goes outside with me sometimes, panted the other day after she was outside in the sun and it was very warm. Her coat is not yet adapted to warm weather, and having lots of black she was getting quite hot from the sun. At one point she flopped down in the cool grass and panted. This was a first for me to see and I kind of freaked out, but within half a minute she was back up hunting baby moles, so it was obvious she felt fine.

The way you want to check on heart difficulties is to look at their breathing rate when lying quietly or sleeping (sleeping is the most reliable). Their breathing rate should be around 30 breaths per minute (i.e., a breath every two seconds). If it is substantially higher, like 60/min, that can indicate developing heart issues. This is what vet cardiologists have you do to keep track of cats with heart issues. We checked our HCM cat regularly for years. (Of course in the end he had some massive event and was in great distress and breathing very rapidly.) Note that cats do breath around 60/min when purring, so make certain your cat isn't purring quietly when looking at breathing rate.

Cats will also pant and drool when upset, as when going on a long car ride or to vet. Two of ours have done this.