Can Cats Catch Colds?

With the arrival of cold and flu season, a cat’s sneezing may not seem odd. Furthermore, it’s often cute, and owners don’t take it seriously.

However, cat cold doesn’t relate to the season in any way and can have severe complications. Furthermore, cold-like symptoms may indicate much worse conditions than the common cold.

Every owner should know the symptoms, causes, and complications of cold in cats to help their little friend feel better sooner.

Is It Ok For a Cat To Sneeze?

Sneezing is one of the most common symptoms of cold in cats and humans, so many pet owners instantly decide that their cat has a cold based on this single symptom.

However, occasional sneezing is ok for cats and can occur due to numerous reasons. It doesn’t necessarily indicate a medical condition but rather is a body’s way to clear nasal passages through an explosive air release.

In other words, the short answer to “is it ok for cats to sneeze?” is – yes. However, it depends on the sneezing frequency and overall cat’s health condition and behavior.

If the cat only sneezes every so often, is active, eats well, doesn’t lose weight, and behaves like usual, the owners have nothing to worry about. Most likely, the cat sneezes due to dust building up in the nose, pollen, or another harmless cause.

However, if the sneezing is frequent, the cat may need a vet appointment. Often, sneezing is a symptom of severe conditions that require urgent treatment. Sometimes, the owners don’t pay attention to the symptoms until it’s too late.

Therefore, despite sneezing being ok for cats, the owners shouldn’t ignore it and must monitor the cat’s general condition and watch out for other symptoms.

Symptoms of Colds in Cats

Numerous medical conditions can cause sneezing in cats, so how do you determine a cat has a cold? Generally, the symptoms of a cat cold aren’t different from a human cold. Our little four-legged friends can also sneeze, cough, have a runny nose, teary eyes, and fever.

While occasional sneezing is ok for cats, other cold symptoms aren’t. A healthy cat shouldn’t have congestion, intense discharge from the eyes, or fever. The normal temperature for a cat ranges from 38.3 to 39.2 degrees Celsius.

In most cases, the symptoms go away in seven to ten days with home treatment, but like a human cold, a cat cold may cause complications. The most common consequences of a severe cold include pneumonia and bacterial infection that can be lethal.

Watch out for yellow-green discharge from the eyes, trouble breathing, and loss of appetite. These are the first signs of complications that require the owner to be proactive and seek urgent treatment.

Can Cat Cold Spread To Humans?

Cat cold symptoms are nearly identical to human cold symptoms, so you likely won’t be surprised to find out that the causes of cat cold are also similar.

The primary causes of cat colds are viruses, the most common of which is feline herpesvirus. Sometimes, a cold may be caused by a bacterial infection. In the worst cases, a cat may suffer from a virus and bacterial infection simultaneously.

A cat may also experience cold-like symptoms after lengthy exposure to low temperatures. However, such cases aren’t classified as the common cold but rather hypothermia and require different treatment.

A common misconception is that cats can get sick from cold weather. The truth is that cold weather only weakens a cat’s immune system and makes the organism more susceptible to catching viruses causing cold.

If your cat is sneezing and coughing, you may wonder – can humans catch colds from cats? In short, no. Most feline viruses are species-specific, so they can only transmit from one cat to another cat and aren’t dangerous to humans.

In other words, if you and your cat have a cold simultaneously, it’s nothing more than a coincidence. You can safely take care of your pet without fearing spreading the virus. But wait, can cats catch a cold from humans?

Yet again, no. Human viruses don’t transmit to cats because they’re used to a specific host and can’t survive in a different organism. Some studies show that cats can catch Covid-19 from humans, but the cases are rare, and the symptoms are mild.

However, since cat cold can spread to other cats, you should separate the sick cat from other felines in the house. Note that this doesn’t always help because the virus can survive on clothes, furniture, and other objects.

How To Deal With a Cold

The primary question of anyone suspecting their pet is sick is how to deal with cold in cats. First, identify the case severity. Pay attention to the overall cat’s behavior, appetite, and color of eye discharge.

If your cat is doing ok overall, has a good appetite, and is active, you can treat your furry friend at home. However, watch out for other symptoms because they tend to manifest quickly in cats.

Provide the cat a warm spot for resting, such as a soft cat bed or a throw. Clean the cat’s eyes and nose using a soft, damp cloth or cotton pad to remove any discharge.

You can use lukewarm water, chamomile tea, or a special solution for eye cleaning that can be purchased in a veterinary pharmacy. Use a separate cotton pad for each eye.

Be gentle – don’t touch the eyeball and move the cotton pad from the eye’s outer edge to the inner edge. If the eye discharge is intense, your vet may recommend using eye drops to kill bacteria.

Congestion affects the cat’s sense of smell, often leading to appetite issues. If the cat has lost appetite, boost it by heating the food to make the odor more intense.

You may also add treats to the food or buy cat food created for cats with a weak sense of smell. Such food is sold in veterinary pharmacies and has a more intense odor to stimulate appetite.

However, be careful switching cat food brands because cats can have food allergies that may worsen the cold symptoms.

Don’t give your cat any medicine without consulting a vet first, especially human medications. If you follow these guidelines, your cat should feel better in about a week unless the cause of symptoms is different.

Conditions Similar To Cold

The main problem with cat cold is how easily it can be confused with other, more severe conditions. Sometimes, an owner expects their cat to feel better, but the poor creature’s condition only worsens day after day.

Feline calicivirus is extremely similar to the common cold at first. Both viruses begin with sneezing, discharge from the eyes, congestion, and loss of appetite. Fever is also common, although the body temperature may never increase despite severe infection.

A cat can catch calicivirus only from contact with an infected cat or inanimate objects contaminated with virus particles, such as clothes, dishes, and furniture.

The main difference between cold and calicivirus in cats is that the latter is often lethal and rarely goes away without treatment. Even if it does, the condition becomes chronic and significantly reduces a cat’s life expectancy.

Any stress can reactivate the virus. Furthermore, a cat that was once infected with this nasty virus remains a spreader for its lifetime, so it can’t be kept with other cats. However, such cats pose no threat to other animals.

But how do you distinguish between cold and calicivirus in cats? One worrying sign to look out for is ulcers on the tongue, nose, gums, and lips. Ulcers are painful, causing loss of appetite and intense salivation.

Untreated calicivirus can spread to other organs, including the gastroenteric tract, joints, liver, and kidneys. Consequently, the cat may vomit, suffer from diarrhea, have trouble walking, and experience other unpleasant symptoms.

Old cats and kittens are more likely to develop severe symptoms. The good news is that with timely treatment, the owner can ensure the long and happy life of their four-legged friend.

When To See a Vet

The similarity between an ordinary cold and dangerous calicivirus in cats is frightening, so every cat owner should know when to see a vet. Don’t rush to make an appointment as soon as you notice sneezing.

Visiting a vet is stressful for cats, and stress doesn’t help the immune system fight the virus. However, constantly watch out for symptom development and check the cat’s mouth for ulcers.

Pay attention to shallow breathing, gurgling, rattling, unusually fast breathing rate, and bluish mouth because these are the primary symptoms of pneumonia in cats, a common complication of the common cold.

If your cat doesn’t start to get better in 4-5 days, has yellow or green discharge from the eyes, refuses to eat, has ulcers, can’t breathe properly, makes odd respiratory noises, or is lethargic, bring it to the vet immediately.

Don’t stress it – with proper treatment, your little friend will feel better very soon. Most importantly, follow the vet’s guidelines and don’t miss medicine days.

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