As a matter of fact, cats do snore. Particularly fat cats

Today’s question: My cat snores. It doesn’t snore very often, and it isn’t loud, but it is snoring. I know some dogs snore, but is this normal in cats? I’ve had other cats in my life, but I never had a cat before that snored. I gave a talk once at an event where dogs were welcome. There was a lady in the front row with a big dog that fell asleep and snored so loud the microphone picked it up.

It turned out OK, because I discovered the audience was more interested in listening to the dog snoring than me talking.

Anyway, yes, some cats snore. It is not necessarily common, but it is not unheard of.

Cats go through much the same sleep cycles that you do, albeit they do it a lot more than you — 18 or more hours a day.

A sleeping cat goes through an REM cycle just like you.

Its brain is sort of active and its paws or whiskers or eyes might twitch.

After that comes a deep-sleep cycle during which you and the cat are pretty well out of it. This is when snoring is most likely to occur.

Cats that are overweight or that have flat faces and short noses are more likely to snore than others. This is called brachycephalic airway syndrome and turns up sometimes in breeds such as Persians or Himalayans. It is harmless.

However, in some cases snoring can be a sign of problems.

If the cat is snoring and later breathing hard or coughing when it’s awake, you’ve got a problem.

Or snoring could indicate allergies to food or parasites or whatever. Ask your vet.