My cat died suddenly after panting & drooling. Was it painful?

Hello and I am so sorry to hear about the passing of your kitty. It is so heart breaking to lose them. Without an autopsy, one can't be certain, but most often in a cat without any other clinical signs, it's usually a bad heart that will cause sudden death. One of the most most common heart diseases in cats is called Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. It often has no symptoms. It is often not detectable on a physical exam. Sometimes there will be fluid in the lungs from congestion in the lungs that can leak out after passing. I hope this helps to provide some closure and with time, I hope your heart heals. My condolences, Dr. Elizabeth

I'm so sorry you suddenly lost your cat! Without seeing her in person, I can't say for certain what caused her to pass away, but I can make some guesses. In senior cats, cancer is common, and because our animals can't tell us what is going on with them, oftentimes we find that they are suffering from cancer but we don't know it until it's too late. It could be possible that your kitty had cancer, and it ultimately took her life. She could have also been suffering from kidney disease, hyperthyroidism, diabetes, or other organ failure. I hope my guesses may give you some peace of mind, and again I'm sorry for your loss :-(

I'm so sorry this happened. Unfortunately there is no way for us to tell you why she died by looking at some photos. If you want to know for sure you will need to have a vet do an autopsy. If this way a young cat the two most common reasons for sudden death are trauma (like hit by a car) or poison ingestion.

Oh no, I'm so sorry that both of your cats have died recently! You are correct that they could have gotten into something toxic causing their symptoms, but unfortunately without seeing them in person, I can't say what that toxin might be. You could take their bodies into a vet for a necropsy (an autopsy for cats) which may give you some answers. If it's too late to take them in because you've already buried them, then I recommend looking out for similar symptoms in any other cats you may have at home. Should you see those symptoms again, rush them into a vet immediately for treatment. Again, I'm so sorry for your loss :-(

I am very sorry to hear that. This could be either due to an acute cardiac problem or respiratory one, but it is likely that the lungs filled up with fluid. A post-mortem examination would help to shed some light on the underlying cause of it.

He may have had an injury, been hit by a car or he had a congenital heart defect that caused a blood clot at the bifurcation of the aorta (that paralyses hind legs and hurts terribly). This can also cause a clot in the lungs which would cause breathing problems. Unfortunately most cats with these blood clots die within a short time. I am so sorry for your loss. This is very sad.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. I am sorry to hear about the loss of James. It is never easy to see a loved one pass away. His untimely death could have been due to a heart condition leading his heart to fail. Any underlying systemic disease that was going on that you did not know about could have progressed to the point where it overwhelmed James' system leading to his acute death. Unfortunately, it is difficult to speculate as there can be so many causes. I would discuss this with your veterinarian as he / she may be able to perform an autopsy on James to help determine what the cause of his untimely death could have been. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.