2 Year Old Cat Died Suddenly

Question

My neighbors cat just died - he just turned 2 years old on Christmas. He has always been an energetic kitten, friendly and healthy. He was up at 6:00am had something to eat, played for a while and then my neighbor found him (what she thought was asleep) on top of her washer where he laid looking out the window at birds at 10:00am... dead. There was no sign of anything being wrong. Is it possible for such a young cat to have a heart attack or stroke to end his short life? It was too costly for her to have an autopsy on him. Any suggested insight you might have to ease her mind would be greatly appreciated.

Kathryn

Answer

I am so sorry to hear about your neighbor's cat. The number one cause of sudden death in cats that I know of is heartworm infection. Often cats will show no signs at all and die suddenly. Sometimes there is vomiting, coughing, or asthma-type symptoms. If you are in an area that has a lot of mosquitoes, this increases the incidence of heartworm infection in both dogs and cats. If the cat was on a heartworm preventative (not a flea preventative), then the odds are against this. Young healthy cats do not have heart attacks or strokes for no reason. These are human conditions.

My sympathies,
Sara F. Jennen DVM