My cat is gagging and only spitting up saliva. Should I worry?
Updated On September 23rd, 2025
My cat has been gagging / coughing for a day. She was puking and now she only gags if anything does come up it's saliva, Not sure how to help her!
2 Answers
Most Helpful Answer
Published on March 9th, 2017
Oh my. The best way to help your kitty is to take her in to the vet. She needs at the very least, an injection of anti-vomit medication to settle her gagging and vomiting right away. If she continues this she will become severely dehydrated and can even cause irritation to her esophagus. Then she needs to be examined to determine what is causing this. Common causes of excessive vomiting in cats is a foreign body obstruction, kidney disease and pancreatitis. I hope your kitty gets better soon!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Related Answers from Veterinarians
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Published on August 12th, 2018
Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Vomiting can occur secondary to conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease, dietary indiscretion, parasites, among other possibilities. I recommend that you have Buddy evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. At the very least they can start him on medications to make him feel better and check his hydration status. In the meantime, keep water available at all times to try to prevent dehydration. Good luck and have a good day!
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Health & Wellbeing
Why is my cat gagging, coughing and vomiting so much the last few days?
Hi, thanks for your question. It's unusual to see vomiting and coughing at the same time, although it's possible. Typically, though, the cat is just retching and nothing is coming up. It's likely, especially if your cat is bringing up stomach contents from time to time, that this is solely a GI problem. Vomiting can have a number of causes. Depending on how old your cat is, whether it goes outside, etc, one possibility might be more likely than another. Here are some possibilities: parasites, food intolerance/dietary indiscretion (eating something that made her sick), exposure to a toxin, a blockage either in the stomach or intestines, kidney disease, liver disease, diseases of the pancreas, inflammatory bowel disease, and cancer. As you can see these are all very different diseases. Your vet can help you figure you what's going on with a good physical exam and some tests, probably blood work and x-rays to start with. Get your cat seen as soon as you can.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
Help me ! Savannah is throwing up, watery puke. I gave her some mature cat meal replacement to help give her nutrients and electrolytes .. my bank account was drained 4 days ago and im worried about her. I seperated her from stella and have her ow
It sounds as Savannah is suffering from a gastrointestinal condition, possibly an infection. it could also be due to ingestion of a foreign body material. i would recommend taking her to the vet the first chance you get, she will need to be checked first, if the vet thinks it's a simple gastrointestinal infection she will need an anti vomiting injection, antibiotics and a special food for a few days in order to get better. if the vet thinks it is more serious she will need a blood test and possibly an ultrasound in order to find out what is wrong.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
my cat is a 2 yr old female she was puking white phlegm and gaging i thought she was choking so i took her to a vet they gave her antibioatics she still haveing a hard time swalloing
AT her age there may be an infection or mild obstruction causing the problem. If there is no improvement, then she may need to be sedated to get xrays on her neck and throat and a good exam down her throat to check for anything abnormal. If there was something irritating it at one point, then this will be evident and they can adjust medicine to help get her better.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Food & Nutrition
My cat who’s 3 yrs old keeps gagging and it’s been 3 days now. She gagged up what looks like spit but she ate and drank food yesterday. I’m super worried please help.
Hi there and thank you for using Boop by Petco to address your concern. The gagging could indicate that there is something stuck in the back of the throat or in the esophagus. I would recommend having Tinky examined by a veterinarian so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. They may need to sedate Tinky to get a good oral examination and check the back of the mouth. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My cat has been vomiting on and off for about 10-15 minutes. He is walking around the house and will throw up small piles. Sometimes he gags/retches with no production and sometimes it’s very small. I have attached a picture of the only pile that rea
Hi, I think it is best to have him checked over. Acute vomiting can be secondary to a number of different things, pancreatitis or other acute gastro-intestinal pathology, but also toxicosis.. it's safer to have him checked over and if it's nothing too serious he will feel much better soon with some medications on board!
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My cat is gaggging a few times a day for the last few days, he was throwing up, and he has a cough with a raspy meow as well. Any idea what's wrong, and what I should do?
Hello and thank you for reaching out to Boop by Petco. I'm sorry to hear that Mittens has been vomiting and is now coughing. Cats can vomit for a number of reasons, including trying to vomit a hairball, eating something they shouldn't have, gastrointestinal obstruction, infection, inflammation, or even cancer. From the information you provided, my concern is that Mittens may have aspirated (taken fluid into the lungs) during one of these vomiting episodes, and is now coughing as a result. Aspiration pneumonia can be a scary thing in cats, and especially if Mittens is not acting himself or wanting to eat, I would recommend bringing him to your veterinarian to be examined. If your veterinarian determines that he has abnormal lung sounds, he/she may recommend blood work and chest x-rays to look for evidence of pneumonia. If present, they will likely start Mittens on some antibiotics. There are other possibilities for Mitten's cough including bronchitis or an upper airway infection, which
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My cat has been having a lot of hair balls in the last week, due to over grooming. However, the past day she has just been gagging and nothing has been coming up. After she ate and drank water, she threw it up. Still no hair ball. We got gel to help
Hi there, and thanks for posting the question. If the vomiting has gone on more than 24 hours, and especially if she won't eat, then I would be concerned as well. I would recommend an examination by your veterinarian, and they can help you decide what to do. An X-ray may be recommended to make sure she doesn't have an intestinal obstruction. I hope Beebs feels better quickly!
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My cats stomach is gurgling and then he coughs like he's trying to get a hairball up and then it's just water based vomit
Your cat Felix is nauseated and trying to vomit. If this has been going on for some time, or if he is very lethargic and not himself, he may be very seriously ill. I recommend a vet visit right away for blood work and X-rays of his belly to see what is making him sick, and if he needs emergency supportive care like surgery and IV fluids.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
my cat has been sneezing and it sounded like he had a blocked nose. But nothing is coming out (from what i see). He licks his nose a lot. Then all of sudden he looked and sounded like he was about to vomit, but nothing comes out and it looked like he
This is probably an upper respiratory infection. it's very common in young cats and is very contagious to other cats as well. is treated with oral antibiotics for about 2 weeks. I advise going to your vet asap to start the treatment right away.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Health & Wellbeing
My cat is sluggish very weak in both body and eyes. Gagging and lost of appetite! No vomiting or diarrhea though. Please help. Have no money for vet.
Thanks for using Boop by Petco! I’m so sorry to hear about Buddy! My first concern is that he ate something like a string, ribbon, etc that is now stuck somewhere. This is the most common type of foreign body in cats. Because a string will not block the intestines entirely, there is sometimes not any vomiting. However, this type of scenario can be life-threatening. If he is prone to eating stuff like that, I recommend seeing a vet as soon as possible- tonight would be ideal. Of course it could be many other things too as these are “non-specific” signs. A simple gastroenteritis (ate something weird and it disaggrees with him), viral infection, pain/injury, fever, toxin, abscess, and even a hairball stuck in the intestines can all cause these types of signs. Long story short, if Buddy is not better in 48 hours or is worse in any way, it’s time to see the vet. Best of luck to you and Buddy!
Updated on September 24th, 2025
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