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As warmer weather approaches, small animal veterinarians are seeing an increase in pet owner complaints related to “breathing problems.”
Symptoms of respiratory illness may include:
- Noisy breathing or snoring
- Increased gasping for breathing
- open your mouth and breathe
- cough
- sneeze
- shallow or abdominal breathing
- Lavender or bluish tongue or gums
- Exercise intolerance, or feeling tired after short periods of activity
These symptoms can have a variety of underlying causes related to abnormalities in the respiratory and cardiovascular organs, as well as abdominal, hormonal, and even cancerous diseases.
The beautiful and intricate way our bodies work means that our organ systems are intended and designed to work in harmony. Unfortunately, when one or more of these systems is adversely affected by infection, inflammation, or cancer, all systems are affected.
Most disease processes have common characteristics. A lack of oxygen reaching tissues causes organ stress, pain, and ultimately dysfunction. Oxygen is necessary for the health of all cellular processes.
When there is a problem with an organ system, the body requires more oxygen and the rate and effort of breathing increases, even if the problem is not caused by the respiratory system.
Breathing rate also increases if you have pain, fever, infection, increased exercise or activity, and/or anemia (low blood cell count).
The normal resting breathing rate for dogs and cats is 15 to 30 breaths per minute. Pets should close their mouths and breathe through their noses when at rest. There is usually no audible sound.
If your cat is breathing with its mouth open, you should seek immediate veterinary attention. This is a sign of a serious problem and should be consulted by your veterinarian. Be very careful when picking up your pet, as even the gentlest pet can become agitated when they are breathing with their mouths open as they struggle to get enough oxygen.
Just as humans sweat to cool down, dogs often pant or open their mouths to expel heat through their tongues.
If your pet is breathing rapidly, has an open mouth, or you can hear breathing sounds, these symptoms may be:
Respiratory system
- Allergic bronchitis in dogs, asthma in cats
- Sinusitis/rhinitis – allergic or infectious
- Narrowing or constriction of the nasal openings (nares), elongation of the soft palate, LarPar (laryngeal paralysis, narrowing or collapse of the trachea)
- Heartworms and other migratory parasites
- pneumonia
- Collapse or twisting of a lung lobe
- lung blisters
- Lung cancer or lymph node cancer
- Tracheal collapse or tracheal stenosis
- pleural effusion
- pulmonary fibrosis
- pulmonary hypertension
heart
- congestive heart disease
- cardiomyopathy
- pericardial effusion
- metabolism
- liver disease
- Hormonal imbalances such as Cushing’s disease, diabetes, and thyroid disease
- kidney disease
- autoimmune disease
Congenital or obstructive disease
- heart defect
- Airway narrowing – common in round-faced breeds of dogs and cats
- intracranial shunt
- Chiari-like syndrome (brain larger than the base of the skull or first few vertebrae)
- anemia
- Infectious disease/fever
- As body temperature increases, oxygen demand increases, so body temperature must be lowered by panting.
- cancer
- Many cancerous processes metastasize to the lungs
- In some tumors, the growing tumor becomes necrotic (the center of the tumor loses blood flow), which increases body temperature and increases breathing.
- Trauma, bleeding, poisoning – loss of red blood cells increases oxygen demand
- Immune-mediated blood and coagulation
pain
- Pain increases respiratory rate, and animals in pain are unable to take deep breaths to provide sufficient oxygen.
- Spinal pain often directly increases breathing rate
There are many diseases that can affect a pet’s breathing, which is why veterinarians need to perform many tests to get to the bottom of complaints that start with a visit note that says, “My pet is breathing strangely.” It’s easy to understand.
Your veterinarian will likely recommend blood tests and x-rays to start, but may need to recommend an ultrasound or CT scan to get a better image of organs. CT scans are the best way to image areas with high air content, such as the lungs, sinuses, and inner ear.
Be sure to let your veterinarian know if you’re concerned about the progression of your cat’s breathing becoming louder or faster. Measure your resting breathing rate at different times of the day and night. Tell your veterinarian if your dog’s breathing rate often exceeds 30 breaths per minute.
To measure respiratory rate in animals that do not move their chest wall much during breathing, use a mirror in front of the nose and count the “clouds” on the mirror.
If your cat has difficulty breathing or is breathing rapidly, you should seek veterinary attention immediately, as some symptoms can be serious and life-threatening.
In either case, if you’re concerned about a change in your pet’s health, your veterinarian can guide you through questions, tests, and solutions.
Dr. Cynthia Malo is a veterinarian at Ellwood Animal Hospital in Ellwood City and Chippewa Animal Hospital in Chippewa Township. She writes a biweekly column about pet care and health issues. If you have a topic you’d like us to cover, please email ellwoodvet@msn.com.
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