My cat seems to be having asthma attacks due to litter dust

Annahhh

08/03/2021, 22:17

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Evening all,

When my cat kicks up his litter too much, he sometimes has real trouble breathing when he hops out, which seems like an asthma attack to me. These attacks last for about a minute at most, then he just goes back to playing as if nothing's happened. I think it’s down to the dust from his litter, even though I chose this one specifically because it was labelled as low-dust (it’s silica litter). This is the third time it’s happened now.

Is it just a simple reaction to the dust or could my cat be ill? Does anyone have any advice on how to stop this from happening again?

Thanks for your help

Translated from French

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Provetojuniorconseil Icon representing the flag French

Expert verified

10/03/2021, 08:59

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Hi there, If you’ve recently changed your cat's litter and they weren't having these bouts before, then it really does seem like the litter is the cause of the breathing difficulties and it would be best to switch. Also, as mentioned before, while this type of litter produces less dust, it isn't completely dust-free and can even be dangerous (it can lead to inflammatory lung conditions). The best option to avoid dust and nasty smells seems to be natural plant-based litter (either wood fibres, which are a bit messier as they stick to their paws, or wood pellets). If the problem carries on after you've changed the litter, you'll need to have a word with your vet as it could be an underlying health issue. Hope this helps, Anais

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Landoras

09/03/2021, 10:34

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Silica dust isn't great for a cat's health; it can even trigger allergies...

I'd recommend trying a plant-based litter brand. Most of them are less dusty than mineral ones and clump just as well.

For my girl, who had similar issues to yours, I use this one (and I've had no problems with smells):

https://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/cats/cat_litter/cats_best/12721

By making sure to scoop out the waste every day, I only need to do a full litter change once a month. It doesn't bother my cats at all, even though they can be quite fussy.

Plus, if you give the scoop a good shake, the waste can be flushed down the toilet (no more than two clumps per flush).

I used to only buy the biggest bag (40L) because it worked out cheaper. But I noticed it was finer and dustier than the smaller size (20L), which hardly produces any dust at all. So, even though it costs a bit more, I only stick to the 20L bags now.

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Kelinda

09/03/2021, 03:32

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I WOULD RECOMMEND SWITCHING to a sensitive cat litter or a 99.9% dust-free one to see if it makes a difference.

I recently used silica litter as a stopgap and found it was really too dusty, though I suppose it depends on the brand.

Silica dust is more harmful than some other types, though I can't remember all the details now.

Your cat is probably breathing in too much of it at once when they’re digging around, which is why they’re struggling to breathe.

Is your litter tray open or covered? If it’s a hooded one, it’s not ideal because they’ll breathe in even more of the dust.

An open tray and dust-free litter is what I’d suggest.

Otherwise, have a word with the vet; they can run some tests to see if your cat is actually asthmatic or not.

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