These diagnostic tests are often done with severely affected cats or when lots of cats have been exposed. There are a few other agents, including feline chlamydiosis, mycoplasma and Bordetella-and some cats may be infected with more than one respiratory infection virus.įortunately, there are tests that can be done by your veterinarian to help narrow down the cause of the infection. Together, these make up almost 90 percent of the infections we see. The most common causes are two viruses-the feline herpesvirus and the feline calicivirus. What Causes Upper Respiratory Infection in Cats?

This sets the situation up for a firestorm-with contagious agents able to spread through virtually the entire population. This can happen in shelters or catteries-often these cats are somewhat crowded and stressed, which lowers their immune functioning.Ĭompounding the situation is the fact that many of these cats may be unvaccinated or under-vaccinated, which also means they have little to no protection against many of the agents causing respiratory infections in cats. The kitties who are most prone to upper respiratory infections are those exposed to a lot of other cats (like kids in a kindergarten class!). Fortunately, however, severe illnesses that are secondary to them are not often seen. Unfortunately, respiratory infections in cats are extremely common. This is an almost daily call to most veterinary hospitals. She has runny, swollen eyes and is sneezing constantly. “Please, I need to get my kitty in right away for an exam.

Danger breathing zone for cats