Why does a cat stick out its tongue? Expert says

Probably every owner of a furry purr has at least once observed the picture of his pet sitting or lying with his tongue hanging out. Initially, this touches and even causes laughter, but if it is repeated often, then, of course, it causes anxiety and worry in the owner. After all, the tongue is an important organ for cats, which is involved in many processes: from eating to self-care. Therefore, it is important that it is in its place, that is, in the mouth. If you notice that your cat systematically sits with his tongue hanging out, then do not delay a visit to the veterinarian, because this can be either a completely innocent “fun” or a symptom of a serious illness.

The cat sleeps with its tongue hanging out

Cats tend to do all sorts of strange things that are both cute and mysterious. The behavior you'll read about is quite common! Cats are self-sufficient and proud animals. However, sometimes they do something so funny and crazy that their serious image inevitably suffers. These situations can make everyone laugh, and one of them is forgetting to hide your tongue in your mouth, usually while sleeping. This phenomenon even has its own hashtag: #catsleepingtongue. Find out why a cat sleeps with its tongue hanging out!

Physiological reasons

Veterinarians identify the reasons why a cat sticks out its tongue:

1. Relaxation. During rest and sleep, the jaw muscles are maximally relaxed, which leads to prolapse of the muscular organ.
2. Thermoregulation. If a cat is hot, it sticks out its tongue, thereby trying to normalize the temperature.
3. Absent-mindedness. A cat may simply forget to retract its tongue after licking fur or active games.
4. Bite. Due to malocclusion, the tongue simply does not fit in the cat’s mouth. That's why it sticks out. Such pets do not qualify for participation in competitions and exhibitions based on their appearance.
5. Childbirth. Before the expected birth, the cat's behavior changes. She becomes excited, her breathing quickens, her mouth is slightly open, her tongue sticks out.
6. Praise. The cat sticks out its tongue in response to praise. If the owner is constantly touched by the sight of a cat with a hanging tongue, then the animal will systematically carry out such an action for the sake of approval.
7. Hunting. When hunting, cats involuntarily stick out the tip of their tongue. This is due to the fact that in this position of the muscular organ the animal’s sense of smell increases.
8. Age. A cat who has crossed the age of 8 may have loose teeth and fall out. From the cracks that appear, the tongue freely looks out of the oral cavity.

Interesting fact: scientists were able to prove that a cat’s tongue grows by several millimeters during sleep. Therefore, during rest, the owner may notice the tip of the pet’s tongue sticking out.

Why does a cat breathe through its mouth?

The reasons why a cat opens its mouth and breathes like a dog with its tongue hanging out are:

• Physiological, when rapid breathing is caused by natural processes in the body.
• Pathological, in which the cat breathes with its mouth open due to illness or injury.

Physiological reasons

A cat breathes through its mouth under the following circumstances:

If the female is expecting offspring, then such a symptom is a sign of imminent delivery.

• Physical exercise. In kittens and adult cats, the frequency of breathing increases after too active games or running. When a pet runs, a lot of energy is consumed and all organs begin to function faster. The body needs an increased amount of oxygen, since cats do not know how to accumulate it. Therefore, if the cat has been running, it breathes quickly and its tongue sticks out.
• Dream. During the deep sleep phase, all the cat’s muscles relax, including the maxillofacial muscles. This causes the jaw to drop and the tongue to stick out. The Maine Coon sleeps so often, which is considered a feature of the breed. If a cat sleeps with its tongue hanging out and makes a sound, this is natural. Kittens sleep and show their tongues because they have a strong sucking instinct.
• Pregnancy and childbirth. If a pregnant cat breathes through her mouth, this means that the fetuses are pressing on the diaphragm and it is difficult for her to breathe. Mouth breathing indicates the beginning of contractions. The female walks restlessly, meows, and looks for a comfortable place. If heavy breathing appears after childbirth, this may be the onset of eclampsia and the animal needs emergency veterinary care.
• Stress. Adrenaline is released into the blood, causing the heart to work harder and breathing to increase.
• Death. In a state of agony, the cat sticks out its tongue and often breathes through its mouth. When a pet dies, the heart begins to contract worse, causing hypoxia.

Poisoning

A smoking owner with his bad habit can provoke such a manifestation of smoke poisoning in his pet.

If a cat is breathing heavily and opens its mouth slightly, this may indicate that toxic substances have entered the body: alkalis, acids, rodent poisons, household chemicals, medications that the pet accidentally swallowed. A cat can also be poisoned by gas, combustion waste, even nicotine if the owner smokes a lot indoors.

Overheating

In hot weather, animals often overheat, especially if the owner leaves the pet in the car or on a closed balcony. Most often, long-haired cats suffer - Persian, Angora, Siberian. Hairless breeds also overheat and stick out the tip of their tongue. Therefore, in the summer, you should purchase a cooling mat for your pet.

Internal organ injuries

This is a deadly condition in which there may be no external changes. The cat pulls out its tongue and begins to breathe through its mouth after a fall from a height, a car injury, broken ribs, a ruptured diaphragm, or traumatic brain injury. With such pathologies, pulmonary edema often develops, which often provokes death. And also a protruding tongue indicates an accumulation of fluid in the pleural area.

Polyps in the nasopharynx or foreign body

A cat breathes heavily with its mouth open if there are polypous processes in the nose and nasal inhalation is difficult. Polyps grow, occupying the space of the nasopharynx, which is why the cat wheezes and the mouth opens even in sleep. Small objects that the animal sniffs also accidentally get into the nasal sinuses. A foreign body sometimes gets stuck in the throat (fish bones, fragments of toys).

Allergic reaction

If a cat constantly sticks out its tongue, watery eyes, itchy skin, swelling of the throat or mucous membranes appear, this is the immune system’s response to the allergen. The level of histamine increases, which dilates blood vessels, causing respiratory activity to become more frequent. Main agents:

• nutritional supplements;
• household chemicals;
• cosmetics for cats and people;
• medicines;
• dairy products;
• helminths and skin parasites.

Diseases of the heart and respiratory system

The cause of this pathology may be helminths - heartworms.

The cat's tongue sticks out and difficulty breathing occurs with cardiomyopathy, when the structures of the organ thicken, disrupting coronary blood flow. Dirofilariasis is dangerous, in which worms are localized in the cavity of the heart. Often, a cat breathes through its mouth due to pathologies of the respiratory system - pneumonia, bronchitis, pulmonary thromboembolism, laryngeal stenosis.

Pathologies requiring treatment

As you can see, cats stick out the tip of their tongue quite often, and in most cases this is not a reason for panic, but in combination with a number of other symptoms, it may indicate the presence of health problems.

So, let's figure out when your pet should be taken to the vet as soon as possible.

Heart diseases

A cat can stick out its tongue with cardiomyopathy, ischemia, hypertension, heart failure and many other diseases of the cardiovascular system.

Thermoregulation

The cat's tongue is not only part of the digestive system, but also a natural thermometer and temperature regulator.
With its help, the animal more accurately determines the temperature of the environment and food. With food, everything is simple: if it is hotter than it should be, the animal will simply wait. Air temperature is a little more complicated. The surface of the skin of cats is almost completely covered with hair, so they are not able to correctly immediately assess whether they are hot or cold. In case of overheating, the skin with hair also cannot act as a thermostat: the area of ​​evaporation to reduce body temperature is insignificant. There is a need to increase the area of ​​evaporation, which is why cats stick out their tongues, lie down and relax at the same time, so that the fur interferes less with the cooling process.

This reaction also occurs in cases of overexcitement or stress: often our four-legged pets lie down while traveling, breathing heavily, hanging their tongues, sometimes even drooling. From the outside it seems that the cat is very ill, but in fact this is natural thermoregulation in action.

Tongue protrusion when feeling normal

1. Kittens may stick out their tongues when they are very tired after playing or a day full of different experiences. The protruding tip of the tongue indicates that they are tired and want to sleep.
2. The tongue may stick out from behind the mouth when the cat is relaxed or sleeping. When an animal is in this state, this organ becomes slightly elongated and may not fit in the mouth.
3. Rapid breathing, which appears in a pet after games, a long run and other vigorous activity, contributes to the desire to stick out its tongue. This promotes active saturation of tissues with oxygen.
4. This way the cat can escape the extreme heat. This is explained by the fact that the pet does not have sebaceous glands, like humans, and it somehow needs to protect itself from overheating.
5. Expressing emotions during play or other activities. A cat can express its attitude towards something this way or simply tease its owner. If this behavior has already become a habit, then there is no need to worry. The alarm should be sounded if there is a suspicion of a certain disease.

Detailed overview of possible problems

If an adult cat is breathing heavily with its tongue hanging out, then this is a serious signal to the owner to take his pet for a detailed examination. Especially if this condition occurs during the cold season. Additional symptoms may also include grunting, sniffling and whistling while breathing at rest. In some cases, shortness of breath may be observed even with minimal physical exertion, and increased salivation will once again confirm serious malfunctions within the animal’s body. The veterinarian will necessarily consider the following possible pathologies:

Asthma. It occurs to varying degrees of severity in cats of all ages. Most often it is detected in the first year of an animal’s life, but there are many cases where pregnancy or injury could activate the process even in adult pets. At the initial stage, symptoms may be barely noticeable and appear only after intense physical exertion or during the hot season. Subsequently, the cat begins to breathe heavily with its tongue hanging out, and a cough may appear. Lethargy and lack of appetite may be associated with shortness of breath and other breathing problems. The diagnosis is made on the basis of a lateral X-ray of the lungs and a clinical blood test, where an increased number of eosinophils will be detected. Treatment will largely depend on the severity of symptoms. In most cases, asthma occurs more than once during a lifetime, and in animals that experience attacks more than 2-4 times a year, hormonal therapy and glucocorticoids are prescribed throughout their lives. Heart pathologies. There are breeds (Maine Coons, Persians, Exotics, Sphinxes) that have a congenital predisposition to heart defects, which in most cases appear in the first year of life. You can suspect heart problems in an animal by shortness of breath, which can be observed even at rest, paroxysmal cough and blue discoloration of the mucous membranes of the mouth. It is especially dangerous when the cat breathes with its mouth open and tongue hanging out without any provoking factors. Cardiac pathologies can be excluded or confirmed using ECHO. Treatment in each case is individual, depending on the severity of the symptoms. In most cases, heart defects require lifelong care for your pet, not only medically, but also behaviorally (exclusion of physical activity, proper nutrition, etc.). Heatstroke. It is more common in dogs, but cats that travel by car are also at risk. Animals can tolerate even the most extreme air temperatures, provided they have the opportunity to find a cool place. If your pet is locked in a car, even on a not-so-hot day, there is a risk of heatstroke. If, after a long stay indoors in extreme heat, the cat is breathing with its tongue hanging out, its coordination of movements is impaired, vomiting and diarrhea are observed, then you should immediately take the animal to the nearest veterinary clinic to provide the necessary assistance. Some owners try to cool their pet on their own, but this is very dangerous, so you need to be careful and stop in time (we are talking about applying cold to the hips and paw pads). Even if the temperature has completely returned to normal, it is better to show the cat to the veterinarian to exclude possible complications in the future. And remember that you can only provide first aid if you are sure that the animal has heatstroke, and not pulmonary edema or other pathologies associated with the heart or respiratory tract. Pulmonary edema. Very common in chronic heart failure and after serious injuries received in accidents or falls from great heights. If the cat is breathing with its tongue hanging out or is acting restless (and this has never been noticed before), then it is recommended to take it to the veterinary clinic for an x-ray. If pulmonary edema is confirmed, an oxygen chamber and intravenous injections may be needed

But it is important to remember that relieving edema without eliminating the root cause that provokes it does not make sense.

In conclusion, I would like to remind you that large cats after physical exertion or during the hot season can breathe with their mouths open and their tongue hanging out. But, at rest, even in the largest pets, heavy breathing should be alarming.

Heat

The main physiological reason why a cat sticks out its tongue is temperature regulation. The animal protrudes the organ to reduce discomfort, for example, during heat. This prevents the development of heat stroke. In this case, the owner should take the cat to a cool place and pour water on it.

But a cat's tongue sticking out can also be a signal of high body temperature. To understand whether your pet is suffering from heat or is sick, you need to figure out what temperature is considered normal in cats.

The normal temperature for a cat is 38-39 degrees. But don’t panic right away if the indicator deviates slightly from the norm. Here are the common reasons for the thermometer to shift:

• immediately after sleep, the thermometer drops by a couple of divisions;
• in the evening the cat’s body temperature will be higher than in the morning;
• Kittens have a slightly higher temperature than adult animals.

If the temperature rises due to illness, you should not self-medicate - the animal should be taken to the veterinarian.

The cat wheezes when he breathes

The article contains general information on this issue, which can most often be encountered on various forums, blogs and websites, which allows you to better understand how veterinarians act in such cases and what they can advise.

If your cat is breathing heavily on his sides and stomach, how to help?

Cats breathe through the chest; under normal conditions, her chest rises and falls (depending on whether she is inhaling or exhaling). If you notice that the cat is breathing heavily on its sides and stomach, this means that it is painful for him to breathe through his chest. Therefore, inspect for possible damage. If the pet is not seriously injured, it will soon begin to breathe normally, but if serious injuries are detected, take the cat to the veterinarian.

What to do if your cat is breathing heavily with his mouth open?

Physiology in cats does not allow for breathing with an open mouth. If you notice this in your pet, it means that its respiratory system cannot cope and your pet needs the help of a veterinarian. This problem cannot be solved at home and without a specialist.

Breathing wheezing in a cat

Heavy breathing with wheezing can only mean that something is preventing the cat from breathing normally. In many cases, this is due to swelling or mucus that has accumulated in the lungs. This means that the pet is sick with bronchitis or similar respiratory diseases.

If a kitten lies down and breathes frequently, what does this mean, is this normal or not and how can I help?

Small kittens breathe a couple of times more often than adults, and this applies to every breed. Therefore, rapid breathing of a kitten is the norm, especially when he lies tired after any physical activity (play, etc.).

What to do if your kitten has a hoarse voice

Brachiocephalic syndrome is associated with excessive growth of the velum palatine and narrowing of the lumen of the nostrils, which leads to a decrease in the volume of inhaled air.

Most often found in British cats, Persian cats, etc. Manifested by heavy breathing - the animal breathes quite often with its mouth open, breathing with wheezing, whistling; Often the animal snores at night.

Diagnostics: auscultation, radiography, sedation with examination of the oral cavity, laryngo-tracheo-bronchoscopy

Treatment: Surgery is usually required.

The cat wheezes when he breathes and swallows heavily when he meows reasons and how to help

Problems with the respiratory tract and larynx Possibly an infectious disease that requires medical intervention. Before going to the doctor, stop using fermented milk products in your diet. Carefully follow the veterinarian’s instructions, as complications may arise.

Why does a cat breathe through its mouth like a dog and how to treat it at home

Cats breathe through their mouths in the initial stages of respiratory diseases. Possible pulmonary edema. Call a veterinarian as soon as possible. These symptoms are also real: obesity, chest injury, foreign body entering the respiratory tract.

What to do

If you suspect that the kitten has a specific facial expression because it is sick, you need to visit a veterinarian and strictly follow his instructions. Don’t worry that you will bother the specialist unnecessarily. An examination is never superfluous, and it is much better to know for sure that everything is fine with the cat than to cause the disease to develop.

We figured out why cats stick out the tip of their tongue, and now you can easily understand when a tongue sticking out causes a smile, and when it is a menacing symptom. If you have any doubts, it is better to see a veterinarian.