A breath of foul air?

Q: Our one year old cat has very smelly breath, and he keeps having fits of sneezing and coughing. He is fed dry food only, but he has been a fussy eater recently. What could be wrong?

A: Your cat may have gingivitis. This is inflammation of the gums, and can be associated with a viral infection such as cat flu. His mouth will be quite uncomfortable, and so you should give him soft, tinned food rather than hard dry food. A vet will be able to provide medication which will help his gums return to normal, but this can be a difficult, chronic problem to treat.

Tags: breath, cat, cat flu, coughing, gingivitis, gums, inflammation, smelly, sneezing