excessive licking of mouth

Question
Hi jessica,

I am hoping you can answer my question... starting this afternoon my adult male cat starting excessivly licking at his chops and shaking his head. I can't find anything wrong with mouth but he is acting very standoffish and annoyed. I tried to get him to drink  some water but he refused. Can this be a sign of something wrong or is it something simple like something caught in his teeth? He is an indoor cat but has access to a screened in porch with houseplants.

thanks for your advice,
Holly

Answer
Hi Holly.  A lot of times, licking their mouths indicates nausea or dehydration.  The inside of the mouth becomes tacky when a cat is severely dehydrated.

It can also be a displacement behavior - something a cat does to distract himself from an uncomfortable situation (sort of like us pacing back and forth).  He may be feeling pain somewhere that he's coping with by licking his chops.

I do think that if this behavior continues, he should definitely see a vet.  Dehydration and nausea should certainly be treated with subcutaneous or IV fluids, a mild diet, and perhaps anti-nausea medications.

In my experience, when a cat shakes his head, it's usually because he's got ear mites, some type of ear infection, or polyps in his ears.  And not treating these promptly can result in all sorts of complications, including a hematoma (burst blood vessel that leads to a blood pocket in the ear and must be corrected with expensive surgery), deafness, and balance problems.