Dear Dr. John,

Our 10-year-old cats, brothers named Bill and Ted, had their annual exams two months ago. They were found to be in good health. We informed our vet that one of the cats had developed some intermittent sneezing. The only thing that was figured out was that perhaps he sneezes after sniffing the composting that we have. The sneezing has not abated and recently increased slightly. Other than that, all seems normal. What should we be looking for in case something is not right? Could he have allergies? Are there any tests that might help us figure out why he is sneezing? E.S.

Dear E.S.,

Cats sneeze for various reasons. While allergies are a possibility, cats with allergies usually manifest clinically with pruritic or itchy skin issues. If an allergic problem were present, you might also see tearing from the eyes, wheezing, and coughing. More often than not, sneezing is due to respiratory infections, foreign bodies that have gotten into the nasal passages, or various irritants found in the environment.

As suggested, my guess is that perhaps there may be something in the composting that irritates his nasal passages, or he might have inhaled something that could be in there as a small foreign body. Other considerations would be the development of nasal polyps or some kind of growth there. The things that you might be looking out for if there was a problem would be any nasal discharge, swelling of the bridge of the nose, a lack of appetite, and decrease in energy.

First, I would try removing the composting. If that does not resolve the problem, then your veterinarian might consider taking radiographs or doing an endoscopy of the nose, along with other diagnostics including bloodwork to look for signs of infection. Since things seem quite normal otherwise, I am hopeful that there is nothing too serious going on and the problem will resolve. I guess this is your Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure!

Dr. John de Jong is President of the World Veterinary Association. He owns and operates the Boston Mobile Veterinary Clinic and can be reached at 781-899-9994.