Twelve signs that mean a vet emergency in a cat
Cats hide discomfort until they cannot hold out any longer, so by the time a sign shows, it is usually late. These cannot wait for the next day's appointment. Read this now, calmly, because in the moment there is no time to look it up.
Breathing with the mouth open
A dog pants to cool down; a cat almost never does. A cat that breathes with the mouth open at rest, that moves the belly a lot when breathing, that crouches with the neck stretched out and elbows held away from the body, or whose gums or tongue look bluish, has a serious problem: fluid on the lungs from heart failure, fluid in the chest, an asthma attack or heatstroke. Carry them with as little handling as possible, in a top-opening carrier if you can, without pressing on the chest, and go straight there. If they take more than 40 breaths per minute while asleep or deeply resting, even without opening the mouth, that is also a reason for an urgent visit.
A male cat who cannot pass urine
He goes in and out of the litter tray, gets into position, strains and nothing comes out or only a few drops, perhaps with blood. It may be a urethral blockage, and in one to three days the build-up of potassium can stop the heart. It is not constipation or a whim, and it is one of the most common feline emergencies and one of the most avoidable to lose a cat to. Call your clinic or a 24-hour emergency clinic and go without waiting until tomorrow.
Has not eaten for a day or more
Unlike a dog, a cat that stops eating is at risk of developing hepatic lipidosis within a few days, especially if overweight. A whole day without eating anything, or two or three days eating very little, justifies a visit. If they are also vomiting, flat, or have yellowish whites of the eyes or ears, it is a same-day emergency.
Sudden paralysis of the back legs
The cat cries out in pain and drags the back legs, which are cold with pale or bluish pads, and often breathes fast. This is the typical picture of aortic thromboembolism (a "saddle thrombus"): a clot that forms in the heart, almost always because of undiagnosed cardiomyopathy, and blocks the artery that carries blood to the legs. It is an extremely painful emergency with a guarded prognosis. Go to the nearest clinic with an emergency service, and call on the way.
Contact with a lily
Every part of lilies of the genera Lilium and Hemerocallis, including the pollen that sticks to the fur and gets licked off, and the water in the vase, causes acute kidney failure in cats. Do not wait for symptoms: if you saw them bite a leaf or they have orange pollen on their face, go to the vet immediately. Early treatment with intensive fluid therapy, in the first few hours, is what saves the kidneys; after a day or two it may be too late. The simplest thing is not to have lilies in a home with a cat. You can check any plant with Michipedia's plant tool.
You gave paracetamol or a dog spot-on
Paracetamol is deadly to cats even in tiny doses: it destroys red blood cells and the liver within hours, with brown or bluish gums, swelling of the face and paws and difficulty breathing. No ibuprofen, aspirin or any human painkiller either. And dog spot-on treatments and flea collars containing permethrin cause tremors, drooling and seizures in cats, sometimes just from sleeping pressed against a recently treated dog. If it has happened, go to the vet with the packaging, even if the cat still seems fine.
A thread sticking out of the mouth or bottom
Sewing thread, gift ribbon, string, dental floss, tinsel. Do not pull it: it may be caught around the tongue or in the stomach, and pulling can cut through the intestine. If you suspect they have swallowed something like this, especially with a needle, and they are vomiting, not eating or flat, it is an emergency. Look carefully under the tongue: that is where it often gets caught.
A fall from a height
So-called high-rise syndrome: falls from windows and balconies, very common in summer. Even if the cat lands on their feet and walks away, they may have chest injuries such as pneumothorax or lung bruising, a broken jaw, a split palate or broken legs. Take them for a check even if they seem fine, and hold them as little as possible on the way, in a carrier or a box.
Seizures or loss of consciousness
A first seizure, several in a row, or one lasting more than two or three minutes. While it is happening, move away anything they could hit, do not put anything in their mouth, turn off lights and noise, and time it. In cats, a seizure can be caused by poisoning, such as permethrin, low blood sugar in a diabetic cat on insulin, high blood pressure, a liver problem or a brain tumour. Go to the vet in any case.
Pale, yellow or very red gums
Gently lift the lip: a healthy cat's gums are pale pink. White or grey points to severe anaemia or shock; yellowish, to jaundice, typical of liver disease or destruction of red blood cells; bright red, to heatstroke or poisoning; bluish, to lack of oxygen. Any of these in a flat cat is an emergency.
Repeated vomiting or diarrhoea, or with blood
A single vomit is not an emergency. Several in a few hours, with lethargy, with blood or looking like coffee grounds, or a cat that cannot keep even water down, is. In unvaccinated kittens, vomiting with diarrhoea and listlessness can be panleukopenia, which progresses within hours. And in a diabetic cat that is vomiting and not eating, suspect ketoacidosis.
An eye suddenly closed, cloudy or very red
An eye the cat keeps closed, that waters a lot and is painful, that looks cloudy or has a pupil different from the other one, or sudden blindness with very dilated pupils, which in older cats is often caused by high blood pressure detaching the retina. Corneal ulcers, glaucoma and retinal detachment put sight at risk within hours or a few days. See the vet the same day.
In cats, open-mouth breathing, a male who cannot pass urine, not eating for a day, cold paralysed back legs, lilies, paracetamol and dog spot-ons cannot wait. If in doubt, call: no vet will hold one extra visit against you.
Educational content from Michipedia, translated from the Spanish original. It does not replace the advice of a vet or a feline behaviour specialist. Every cat is an individual.