Gagging in cats is not common. You may notice that your cat may extend its neck and swallow by making a certain sound, and open its mouth like when it wants to vomit. This is what gagging looks like. There are also several worth mentioning reasons why it can happen. In a situation when gaging appears to become a behavior that concerns you, please consult with your vet and solve the problem.
Gagging appears when the cat feels a need to reject an object from its throat. That something can originate from the cat’s stomach or lungs.
Cats spit the body liquids from the part of their throat and they do it spontaneously. In the case of gagging, it is done in a panic. Completely unexpectedly without any previous routinized body movements common when spitting something out. While gagging cats can be vocal.
Your cat may need help. Do not underestimate the reasons or the time it takes.
I will elaborate on several causes of cat gagging.
Hairballs are among the most frequent reasons for cat gagging. They may sometimes be part of vomiting, but they can also be a reason to vomit. If the reason for gagging is a hairball your cat will make an effort to through it out and you will see it. Some cats cannot spit it immediately and they will need to try hard to catch the whole hairball and throw it.
In case your cat is struggling with hairballs you have to be ready to act because most of the time those hairballs appear as a result of hormonal problems, food allergies, or intestinal problems. Another illness can also be a reason for a hairball in your cat, so consult your vet and take your cat for a check.
Foreign objects are one more reason for gagging in your cat. These curious felines do not hesitate to investigate and try things that are forbidden. Among the most mentioned foreign objects that a cat can ingest are strings. In this case, the string either goes inside the stomach of the cat and stuck or can occur if the string remains stuck to the cat’s tongue.
When this happens, the cat will not stop gaging and try to vomit. I am afraid that you will have to take it to the vet if it does not throw the string out. You are not supposed to try and pull the string. Pulling may cause a great injury to some of the inner organs of the cat. It may also happen that if not by spitting or vomiting the cat will get rid of the foreign object through its stool. That will be a good variant.
Respiratory infections when the mucus is stuck in the cat’s throat can cause gagging. Heartworm and Bronchitis are two common respiratory infections that cause gaging.
Sometimes it may be not a serious gagging caused by mucus, but there are occasions when you will have to visit your vet as soon as possible.
Asthma is a disease that can be found in cats, too. When having an asthma attack which you will not miss by its symptoms your cat will be gagging as when it wants to spit out a hairball. In this inconvenience, cats usually lie down with extended necks and start gagging. In this position, it is visible how the sides of the cat’s body hardly move in and out because the breathing is very hard. Do not wait. Hurry to the vet.
Dental Issues are a reason for gaging. Your cat may have a dental disease that you may not be aware of and must undertake a check with anesthesia. If it tries to get rid of more than the usual amount of saliva and start gagging you should visit the vet to diagnose and help the cat.
Nausea or Gastrointestinal Issues
Some cats can be a symptom of anxiety in cats because our felines react as we do when under stress. Nausea caused by stress can make the cat gag and vomit. Since all cat owners know the behavior of their cats, I am positive that you will notice some other symptoms before gagging caused by anxiety and be aware of what exactly is going on with your cat. Whatever the reason you think is the vet is the person to visit and consult.
In case your cat’s gagging is accompanied by vomiting then you might be facing a major health issue for your cat. It may be connected to the gastrointestinal system, so if the gagging lasts more than expected take your feline to the vet.
Tumor of the neck or throat area in your cat’s body can be a cause of gagging. The symptoms of these kinds of tumors are hard swallowing and eating. In case you notice these accompanied by gagging then you should immediately react. Your vet will do a biopsy and set a protocol to start the cure treatment for the cat.
Eating very quickly causes giggling in cats because some cats swallow food quickly or take big bites trying to finish their meal as fast as possible. Gagging starts right afterward, but it does not last long, so you have to get advice on how to make your cat eat slowly.
When to visit a vet?
In case your cat is gagging and you find a hairball or a foreign object coming out of its mouth and the gagging stops after a second or third try then you do not need to make any fuss.
But, if there is not a hairball or anything spit out after the cat tries gagging, and if it becomes frequent then do not hesitate and go to visit an emergency vet or call your vet for immediate advice.
