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Why is my cat sick with runny nose and sneezing after hairball?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Scottish Fold | Female | spayed | 13 years and 6 months old | 9 lbs

What can be wrong with my cat? She passed a bit bigger hairball during the night. She was very stressed about it. When she was regurgitating - liquid even came out of her nose. For a while she continued to make regurgitating attempts, was distressed and looked tired. Now 5 hours later : her eyes are watery and a bit closed, runny nose, she intensively rubs her nose and sneeze from time to time, looks fatigue and mostly sleeps. Thank you!

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Jenna Beyer, DVM, MBA, cVMA

Veterinarian, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist

Published on July 16th, 2023

Hello there, thanks for choosing Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Goodness! That certainly does sound like a scary experience for Persyk. Hairballs shouldn't cause this much trouble coming up, though I can't be certain why it was such an issue this time. However, based on your description of Persyk after the event, it sounds like she has some vomitus in her nasal passages. A small amount of liquid should resolve on it's own within a day or two, but if there was any solid material, it could have become trapped and would continue to cause the nasal pain, sneezing, running nose, etc. I would say that if she isn't back to normal in a day or so, she needs to be checked out by a vet. After physical examination, the vet may recommend sedation to flush the nasal passage and do a more thorough exam.

10Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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