My black cat Tracy

by Tania Pereira
(Hythe (kent) United Kingdom)

Hello, i got Tracy (black female 4.1/2kg short hair, around 5 years of age) from RSPCA in february 2011. She is a lovely cat, always very jumpy and a semi fussy eater. She doesn't like going outside although she does go in the garden with me sometimes and never leaves my side. She has no fleas, great teeth, no diseases, clean healthy ears, glossy fur, very healthy cat (as told by vets). But there is one thing thats bugging me, one day my husband comes home with catnip (i hate it) he intended to rub a bit of catnip on her scratch post so she would use it more...he accidentally dropped A LOT of it on the floor and she started rubbing herself on the floor onto it and ran upstairs manically, i went to check on her and she was severely foaming/dribbling from the mouth with dilated pupils just curled up in a corner. I started crying and cleaned her up as i didnt know these were "normal" side effects of catnip (which is now totally banned from coming into this house!).. anyway, that was the catnip which is "normal".

But now this is what i can't understand, we were visiting the vets yesterday and Tracy was in the back of the car in the cat carrier, she was fine for about 5 mins, then, starts to dribble a LOT and foaming in the mouth, she was opening her mouth as if struggling to breathe but i could see there was no obstruction in her airways but all the saliva! Meowing loudly like a cry for help meow, vomits(only the dried food she'd had all day). She continues this until we got to the vets (when we got to vets she stopped dribbling and acted normal) and then exessively dribbling and foaming again on the way back home...i can't figure out what was wrong with her (panic maybe??)

I am worried, i love her to pieces and i dont want to put her through that again. Please help. Thank you


Reply
Hi
Well as you say she is obviously a cat that reacts very strongly to catnip and the reaction she had was quite normal. I have a video on my website that illustrates the effect catnip can have on some cats. Here

https://www.our-happy-cat.com/catnip.html

The dribbling in the carrier would suggest that either there is something in the carrier wich is causing the dribbling or she is simply very nervous and is displaying an unusual behaviour towards her fear.

It is odd that it stopped at the vets though , perhaps it was the car journey which was causing her to feel sick and this can make cats dribble.

I wouldn’t worry too much and unfortunately many cats do not like going to the vets but sometimes it is very necessary in to help them in the long run.

She sounds like a very healthy cat otherwise and is a very lucky girl to have been found by yourselves.

I wish you many happy years together.

Best wishes kate

---