My cat choked silently, pawing his mouth. What could be wrong?

Question

My cat was sitting on the chair next to me when he suddenly started to look like he was choking. His tongue was out all the way, he was pawing frantically at his throat and mouth and kind of flopping around with panicked eyes, but there was no noise coming out. So I took his collar off which wasn't even tight and he calmed down. Now he's acting normal again but his meow is a little raspy and his respirations were a little weezy upon expiration but that's starting to subside! What could be wrong? Pet's info: Cat | Mixed Breed | Male | unneutered | 2 years and 9 months old | 10 lbs

Kevin Sanada, DVM · Accepted Answer

This definitely seems suspicious of an airway blockage. If this was the first time you've seen this, then it would be good to try and check inside his mouth to see if anything is visible. It's best to do this with two people - where one holds a flashlight and looks, while the other holds the mouth open. If you see something, then I recommend taking him to the vet to get it removed, because if you attempt to remove it at home, you have a chance of pushing it further into the throat. If he has had something like this happen before, then I would be suspicious of a nasopharyngeal polyp (a soft mass that can develop in the throat), which can cause them to choke every once in a while. This would have to be diagnosed and treated by a veterinarian. The other possibility is that he got his claw stuck in his collar. This happens sometimes when they are scratching and can cause them to panic like this. If he is getting better, then I would not worry too much right now. It wouldn't hurt to get him checked-out by a vet sometime in the next week, to make sure that this won't happen again. I hope that helps and all goes well.

My cat choked silently, pawing his mouth. What could be wrong?

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