# Cat with swollen tongue



## kpiette (May 29, 2008)

I am wondering if any cat owners have ever had any experiences with their cat's tongue swelling up, and if so, what the cause was? A couple weeks ago, my cat started doing an excessive amount of licking and stretching of his mouth after he ate. One week later, he was having the most difficult time getting food into his mouth and I knew that was the sign of a swollen tongue because we saw this once before with him back four months earlier. When this first occurred, the base of his tongue had swelled up and the vet had never seen anything like it before. He was given a steroid shot and put on meds to make the swelling go down, which is did. I racked my brain for weeks trying to figure out what would have caused it and thought maybe it was a bug bite or something he licked or was exposed to??? He is an indoor cat and has a pretty controlled diet other than the new soft pouch food he was introduced to a few weeks before the first tongue swelling.

After four months of not having any symptoms, his tongue swelled again last week and the vet had to administer a steroid shot this time as well. She felt it was an allergic reaction because of the coloration of the swelling under the tongue. We just don't know what the cause was?? I am hoping someone may have had a similar experience out there? I guess allergic reactions usually result in vomiting, excessive itching, sores around the mouth, etc, but he had none of those symptoms. It was solely the swollen tongue.

I have gone through every inch of my house trying to come up with the cause. I am worried it was the pouch food that he was exposed to in January and has had since then, but I don't understand why it would be two isolated instances. If he was allergic to some part of his diet, wouldn't he be showing symptoms more regularly? I am sticking with the same dry food he has always had, but I have taken away the soft pouch food in case that is the culprit.

I would appreciate greatly any insight any cat owner's may have about what may cause a cat's tongue to swell. My cat is better now, but I am just worried we could see the same thing happen again if I don’t hunt down the cause. Thanks so much!


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## Smirkitty (Apr 19, 2008)

No house plants he might have gotten into? Anything you have changed recently like your soap? Laundry detergent? Dish washing liqiud?


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## kpiette (May 29, 2008)

We had a house plant that I have since removed, but I never saw him bother it or chew any leaves. No changes in household detergents or chemicals that I can think of.

Do you think if he licked a detergent or something that it would cause this sort of reaction? He likes to jump on the washer and dryer in our basement.

Thanks for your reply  !

-Krystle


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## Smirkitty (Apr 19, 2008)

Well, I'm not sure about laundry detergent making his tongue swell, but I know it would irritate his digestive tracts and could cause some diarrhea in small amounts, and a host of things too terrible to mention in large amounts.

But I googled "swollen cat tongue" and found this:

http://www.hdw-inc.com/safety.htm



> If you see a piece of yarn, audio tape, string, tinsel, etc. protruding from your cat or kitten's mouth or anus, do NOT attempt to pull it out! It could be wrapped around your cat's intestines and by pulling, you might inadvertently kill kitty!! Instead, take your kitty in to your vet IMMEDIATELY!! Other symptoms that might occur even if nothing foreign is showing: your kitty is having difficulty breathing, vomiting or trying to vomit, coughing, bleeding from the mouth or anus, convulsing, frothing at the mouth or intensive salivating, or has a swollen tongue. Any of these symptoms require IMMEDIATE veterinary care and intervention. If your regular vet is closed or unavailable, take your kitty to the closest emergency veterinary hospital.


Did your vet do any xrays or scans to check for ingested objects? I had a cat (Salvador, since passed) who once almost died because some neighbor thought they were being nice by feeding him bologna without removing the casing....


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## kpiette (May 29, 2008)

Thank you for the website information. The vet did not do any x-rays because they felt it was an allergic reaction. But maybe they should have. He could have swallowed something...and it's scary for me to think what it could've been if that was the case. Would something ingested like a string, rubberband, etc show up on an x-ray though? Thanks again for the info! 

-Krystle


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## Smirkitty (Apr 19, 2008)

I can't remember what the vet did for Salvador, it was so many years ago. I do remember him palpating the abdomen, but then Salvador's symptoms were different. He didn't have a swollen tongue, he was just lethargic and non-whiney (he was usually a HUGE whiner, so when he stopped, I was worried). I am pretty sure they did some kind of scan, but I think xrays probably only show calcified things like bones, I could be wrong....

They kept him overnight and have him super strong laxatives to see if he could safely pass it, otherwise we would have had to do surgery to remove it.


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