Wondering why is my cat drooling a lot. Though drooling is a general phenomenon in most cats, there could be specific causes behind excessive drooling. Drooling is caused by copious factors that range from routine emotions to critical medical ailments.
The major cause of cat drooling could be because of the cat’s stress, fear, and other reasons. Cats may drool excessively due to some underlying health issues. Once you get to know the cause of cat drooling, you can take the necessary action to treat it.
By diagnosing the cause of cat drooling, you can give proper treatment as early as possible. Here are a few reasons and causes of excessive cat drooling along with necessary suggestions about when to visit a vet for cat drooling. Have a glance!
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Why Is My Cat Drooling?
Why Do Cats Drool? Drooling is a common behavior in most cats. Usually, cats drool when they’re happy, stressed, threatened, etc. Few cats produce saliva droplets under their mouths while drooling. This happens mostly when the cats are pampered, feeling elated, while traveling, and more.
Some other times, cats may drool excessively due to an oral health problem, respiratory issues, heatstroke, kidney or liver disease, and more. When your cat is drooling so much alongside witnessing some symptoms then, it could be a serious health ailment.
In the early stage of life, kittens knead their paws on their mother cats for milk production. This enhances the bonding between the mother cat and the kitten. Once the cats enter into the adult stage, they start kneading out of happiness and relaxation. As a result, cats drool so much. Purring could be another cause of drooling in cats.
When is My Cat’s Drool Normal?
Cats aren’t heavy droolers like dogs. Still, drooling slightly is a quite common thing in cats which is nothing to worry about. But, drooling like a waterfall could be an indication of a sick cat.
Cat drooling is pretty common when it is anxious or suffering from nausea. When the cat is happy and relaxed, it may start drooling a little. When your cat sniffs an intense smell, the cat’s drool will be excessive and come to normal condition after some time.
Cat Drooling appears to be quite common when you come across the below-mentioned situations. To help you determine ‘Cat Excessive Drooling’, we have listed out a few causes in this post. Let’s go through the common reasons behind cat drooling that make it a normal behavior in your cat.
1. Freaked Out / Stress
Cats drool so much when they are freaked out or stressed. When the body releases hormones, few cats drool which is an emotional reason. Breathing through the mouth and difficulty in breathing are indications of anxiety and stress. Sometimes, cats get stressed when you put them in a carrier or a car.
Usually, cats don’t like to experience a sudden change as it could enhance their stress levels. Whenever your cat starts drooling out of stress or anxiety, just wait until the cat overcomes the situation.
2. Disgusting Taste
Is your cat drooling a lot? It’s because your cat has tasted something bad. The disgusting taste in the cat’s mouth could lead to cat drooling. When your cat consumes specific human foods, scrap material, household cleaning supplies, houseplants, etc, it leads to cat drooling.
To get rid of such an unpleasant taste, the cat starts drooling. If the cat has any food allergy or is sensitive to certain foods, it makes the cat drool. Certain medications and antibiotics given to the cat could make them drool.
3. In a Delightful Mood
Few cats drool when they are enjoying being pampered and cuddled by their owners. When the cats are relaxed and are in a happy mood, they tend to drool.
It’s just a bodily response to happiness from the cats. Sometimes, cat drooling happens when they are asleep and relaxed. Drooling slightly is an indication of a delightful cat.
4. Relaxed Cat Purring
When a cat is purring, it leads to drooling. Purring is quite common in the everyday activities of the cat. To stop your cat’s drooling while purring, try to use a blanket to give cuddling time to your kitty. The cat purring happens usually when it is relaxed and happy.
5. Constant Sniffles
Whenever the cat smells something powerful, it causes your cat to drool. Constant sniffing of the cat leads to cat drooling. If the cat drool starts when it sniffs some powerful smell and becomes normal after some time then, you need not worry about the cat drooling.
6. Cat is Threatened
Cats may drool when they are afraid. Sometimes, cats may get threatened seeing some stranger in the house which could lead to drooling. In such a situation, take the cat to a safe place away from the frightening situation. Otherwise, make your cat feel secure in your hands. By doing so, the cat stops drooling.
7. While on a Journey
Why Is My Cat Drooling All Of A Sudden? When you take your cat for a ride in your car, it may feel stressed or threatened. This could be due to the movement of the vehicle.
As a result, your cat starts drooling due to the sudden journey. To avoid cat drooling while traveling, try to make your cat habituated to the car. Otherwise, put your cat in its carrier so that it feels less movement in the car.
Serious Causes For Abnormal Drooling In Cats
Few cats drool more than usual due to some serious health issues like dental disease, respiratory problems, kidney or liver ailments, etc. Cats drool so much due to some underlying health problems.
Once you determine the cause of drooling, you can take appropriate action to treat it. To help you, cat owners, we have compiled a list of serious causes for abnormal drooling in cats. Take a look!
1. Gulping / Munching Toxic Foods
Cats that have swallowed some toxic substance could lead to excessive drooling. If there is a garden in your house, your cat loves to roam around chewing some plants. When the cat eats toxic plants, it could result in excess salivation.
Some of the toxic plants include poinsettia, lilies, chrysanthemum, dumb cane, etc. If you have the aforementioned toxic plants in your garden, make sure your cat doesn’t go near them or just fence it.
Munching certain medications and drugs also causes drooling. Some of the household cleaning items can irk the cat’s mouth which in turn leads to ulcers and drooling. Toxin ingestion causes abrupt drooling in cats.
Take care of your cat so that it doesn’t munch on unnecessary foreign body that lodges in the cat’s throat or mouth. If you doubt that your cat has been exposed to toxic substances like chemicals, pesticides, poisonous plants, and more, take your cat to the vet immediately.
2. Foreign Body Obstruction
If your cat is drooling excessively, check whether there is something in your cat’s mouth. Certain foreign bodies might get stuck in the cat’s mouth which could result in drooling. A piece of string, parts of a toy, grass, fish hooks, wood chips, etc., might get obstructed in the cat’s mouth.
In that case, you shouldn’t pull the hanging string out of the cat’s mouth as it is. Pulling the string may worsen the situation. Take your cat to the veterinarian as soon as possible.
3. Suffering from Dental Illness
Dental disease is one of the main reasons for cats’ excessive drooling. When you find excessive saliva in your cat’s mouth then, it could be because of dental disease. In general, older cats come across some or the other dental disease.
Gingivitis or early periodontal disease is a type of inflammation caused to the tissues surrounding the gum and the tooth. Early-stage and later-stage periodontitis can cause drooling in cats.
Cats having gingivitis infection will be in so much pain that results in excessive salivation. If your cat has gingivitis then, their gums turn red and swollen. Sometimes, the saliva may be associated with blood and an unpleasant smell.
Cats with gingivitis will also experience difficulty while eating, chewing, and blood-tinged saliva. Such cats have unpleasant breath and wish to consume soft food instead of hard food.
Your veterinarian will look for dental problems in your cat by examining its mouth. Once the vet finds some dental issue in the cat, he/she performs dental cleaning. If the cat has some dental problem then, it must be treated by a vet under anesthesia.
The vet will prescribe necessary medications like antibiotics to treat your cat’s dental issues. To prevent dental issues in cats, oral hygiene is very important. Make sure you brush your cat’s teeth frequently.
4. Due to Respiratory Infections
Respiratory infection is another cause of Cat Drooling A Lot. Ulcers in the mouth can lead to respiratory problems that in turn result in excessive salivation.
Cats that have respiratory tract infections associated with other symptoms like eye discharge, nasal discharge, sneezing, and low appetite are a cause of oral ulceration and excessive cat drooling.
Cats suffering from respiratory infections will be unable to eat and drink normally. The veterinarian will clinically examine your cat and give the necessary medication.
5. Mouth Sore
Cats having an oral injury can cause excessive drooling. Stomatitis is an inflamed mouth that results in red and swollen gum lines and swollen throat. In some cats, stomatitis can also affect the cat’s lips. Cats with stomatitis result in cat drooling.
When your cat has an injured tooth, it could lead to mouth soreness or tongue injury. As a result, your kitty will be in so much pain and produce excessive saliva. If you find blood-tinged saliva from the cat’s mouth then, take your cat to your vet.
6. Mouth Tumour / Cancer
Your cat’s drooling may be a sign of a mouth tumor or cancer. Mouth tumors are extremely painful which makes it difficult for your cat to eat or chew its food. Other signs of mouth tumors include bad breath, bleeding, or pawing from the mouth.
Also, cats with mouth cancer will be unable to close their mouth fully because of the mass on their jawbone. Most cats are at great risk of developing mouth cancer. Cats may get cancer in their throat or tongue.
7. Oral Damage / Tooth Injury
Sometimes, damage to the teeth can cause slobber in cats. Cats with tooth injury or oral damage can produce excess saliva. To find out whether your cat has an oral injury or not, you can smoothly pull back your cat’s lip and take a look at its teeth.
If there is an injury to the cat’s teeth, it leads to excessive drooling. It results in mild to moderate pain, bleeding gums, and more. In case, the cat’s teeth have brown or stony texture and bleeding gums, it refers to tooth injury. Take your pet to the vet and give the necessary treatment. Mostly, veterinarians scale and polish the cat’s teeth to treat tooth decay.
8. Sunstroke
Mostly, Persian cats are likely to get affected by sunstroke. It may not be as common in cats as we find in other animals. When your cat is exposed to too much heat and not adequate hydration, it causes heatstroke.
This results in excessive drooling. Cats affected by heatstroke may have a few symptoms that include abnormal breath, dark red gums, red tongue, vomiting, lethargy, weak personality, restless behavior, and a rise in body temperature.
To avoid such problems, make sure you provide adequate fresh and clean water to your cat. Keep your cat in cool locations during summer and other hot days.
If you have already understood that your cat is suffering from heatstroke, make sure you take it to the veterinarian as early as possible. Sometimes, heatstroke could be a life-threatening condition. The vet may give IV fluids to the cats affected by heatstroke.
9. Neurological Ailment
Cats with some neurological disorders may drool excessively. Drooling is caused in cats due to cranial nerve paralysis causing uncontrollable swallowing.
When damage is caused to the cranium or the cat’s skull, it leads to neurological ailments. This leads to the inability to swallow due to the restraining of seizure activity. This results in excessive cat drooling.
Some cats with neurological disorders in their head may affect their face while some other cats may have this disorder signs in various parts of their body. To diagnose the problem, your vet will examine the cat properly and give the necessary treatment.
10. Kidney / Liver Dysfunction
Chronic diseases such as kidney and liver dysfunction, hyperthyroidism, pancreatitis, etc are some of the potential reasons for excessive drooling in cats.
The major symptoms of liver and kidney disease in cats include vomiting, diarrhea, urination, low appetite, behavioral changes, immense thirst, and more. Liver disease in cats may cause yellow gums and yellow skin. Cats with kidney disease toxins lead to mouth ulcers.
These ailments may cause pain and excessive drooling associated with bad smell in the cats. To diagnose these underlying health conditions, the vet will perform blood and urine tests on the cat.
That’s all! These are the serious causes of abnormal drooling in your cats. If you find any of them in your cat, take it to the veterinarian as early as possible.
When to See a Vet for Excessive Drooling In Cat?
There’s nothing wrong with contacting your vet for advice when you see some abnormal behavior and unusual symptoms in your cat. You must visit the vet when you see sudden drooling in your cat.
If the drooling is constant and is associated with some other symptoms like no appetite, vomiting, blood in saliva, and pawing at the mouth, you must take your cat to the veterinarian.
Mostly, cats often try to conceal their illnesses from their owners. Until they are extremely ill, cats don’t expose their problems. Take your cat to the vet if the problem is severe and get it treated.
Conclusion
Well, this is everything you need to know about the reasons and causes behind ‘why is my cat drooling’. As a pet parent, you will probably know the normal behavior of the cat. If you see any change in your cat that lasts for more than a day then, it’s time to take it to the vet.
We hope this article has guided you properly about the cat’s drooling reasons and when to worry. If you still have any queries regarding this article, feel free to ask us in the comments section. Visit our website TheCrazyCats frequently to learn more about pet cats, their food habits, behavior, and more.
