Symptoms of Dehydration in a Cat

According to symptomsofdehydration.com, dehydration in cats is caused by excessive heat, illnesses, and fever. There are signs a cat will exhibit when she is dehydrated, and some are more obvious than others. If you detect any symptoms of dehydration in your cat, call your veterinarian.

  1. Panting

    • Cats do not have sweat glands like humans do, so when they get dehydrated, they will pant. If your cat is dehydrated, she will pant to help regulate his body temperature.

    Diarrhea

    • Occasional diarrhea in your cat is not usually a cause for alarm; however, if your cat has frequent diarrhea, this may be a sign of dehydration.

    Frequent Urination

    • Ironically, frequent urination may be a result of dehydration and not a result of excessive amounts of fluids. Look for other symptoms to ensure dehydration is the cause.

    Vomiting

    • A cat may also vomit consistently in response to dehydration.

    Skin Elasticity

    • A decrease in your cat's skin elasticity is often a determining factor of dehydration, although it is the most difficult to detect, according to petplace.com, especially if she is obese. Obese cats' skin will normalize quicker when you perform a skin elasticity (or skin pinch) test due to the extra fat in their bodies.