Cat Breathing Problems

Question
Hi,

My cat has been coughing quietly (almost like he's got a
hair ball, though nothing's ever come up) and his breathing
has become very pronounced and rapid. He's been to the vet
previously about a year ago (when we lived in France) and
was treated for pneumonia after an Xray was taken and it
showed a lot of white in his lungs. after a week or so his
breathing slowed down and he returned to normal though he
had to have an extended course of medication to clear his
lungs. Again last November time his breathing became rapid
and he started coughing. I took him to my local vetinary
practice in Huntingdon cambs where I was advised that it
could be asthma and was given more medication for heart
worms and something else and I think some antibiotics
incase it was an infection. After 1 week I went back for a
check up, by this time his breathing had returned to normal
and he was no longer coughing. The vet said that we could
try some medication for asthma and see how he goes but as
the symptoms had disappeared we wouldn't know whether it
would work. For the last two days he's been coughing again
and breathing rapidly. I'm unsure whether to keep the same
vet as I've done a lot of research online and it seems that
asthma is very hard to detect and I'm thinking maybe I need
to find a cat expert. Is there a way I can determine
whether it's asthma or something else??? I've read all
sorts of horrible things online about the symptoms he's
been having such as cancer or heart problems. Any advise
would be so much appreciated.

many thanks,

Georgia

Answer
Asthma in cats is not uncommon at all. Dogs with heart disease cough all the time but cats don't usually last long enough with heart disease to cough much.

If you feel you need a cat expert than by all means go to one. I would recommend another x-ray, maybe an ultrasound and a heartworm test.
Cats can cough from heartworms but their symptoms don't just go away.
They don't last years with it either.
The most common thing cats get is fungal infections and asthma. A lung lavage or swabbing might be done to determine if there is a fungal infection from another region.