My cat was locked in a closet, panting. Vet visit for overheating?

Hello! Cats are very stubborn nose-breathers and hate panting. This means they usually only pant if they are in severe respiratory distress. This, associated with the drooling and being outdoors makes me very concerned that she could have been suffering from severe heat distress or heat stroke. Sometimes cats can also hide signs of heart and lung disease until they are truly struggling to breathe, and this could be exacerbated by heat by as well. I would recommend taking her into a vet to be seen. They will likely recommend bloodwork and x-rays to start evaluating her major organ function, check for signs of infection, and evaluate the heart and lungs. I hope you find this helpful! Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Yes, this is a concern so I do recommend having Walter seen by a vet for it. While it could be the heat, I can't rule out a medical condition causing the panting without seeing him in person. Give his vet a call today to make him an appointment. Best of luck.

I would recommend taking DoReMi to a veterinarian as soon as you can. It is not typical for cats to pant unless they are in extreme pain, very stressed, or in respiratory distress. Some common causes of difficulty breathing include heart disease, feline asthma, and pleural effusion (or fluid outside the lungs in the chest cavity). Even if he is just experiencing stress in his new surroundings it is much safer to have him checked out by a veterinarian than to wait until his breathing is worse.

I would be very concerned for cardiac disease or infectious disease (pneumonia) based on those radiographs. With a temperature of 35 C (95 F) that is absolutely an emergency situation. You can see panting with cardiac disease when pulmonary edema begins to develop, which is when fluid is present within the lung tissue and does not allow for adequate gas exchange to occur. I recognize that this was posted 3 days ago, but if Sasi has not been re-evaluated by her veterinarian she needs to be ASAP to determine a treatment plan and if further diagnostics are indicated (echocardiogram, airway wash, etc.).

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! While panting and open mouth breathing can be due to nervousness to some extent, this most likely signals a respiratory condition such as asthma, heart disease, among many other possibilities. I highly recommend you consider taking Fluffy to your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. They will likely recommend starting with an exam and chest radiographs. Hoping for the best! Good luck and have a great day!

Oh no, poor Midnight! You are correct that her panting can be due to the heat, but she could also be in respiratory distress, or in a lot of pain. It's not normal for a cat to pant, and if it continues for more than five minutes, then yes I would take her into an emergency cat clinic right away.

Panting in cats can be caused by stress, so it's likely that the panting was due to Luna being anxious about the car ride. In some cases, panting can also be caused by heart disease or other respiratory problems - this is much less likely if Luna is acting normal otherwise and does not pant in any other circumstances, but you could certainly discuss your concerns with your vet to see if he/she would recommend chest x-rays or any other testing to rule out a serious problem.