talking to a wide range of people and getting a wide range of advice information and opinions is awsome and grounding. but oh god the average American (expecially over 40) really has no idea whats happening huh

my cat was also checked (so many times my vet told me Stop coming in 😔) and showed as fine, and it faded with time! so dont worry too much but yea you can still check to be 100% safe when you find a closer vet

if they crouch low and keep coughing without actually retching/ throwing anything up it could be asthma, my cat had it when he was younger. if it happens again try to record it and see if you can find any vets around to check if its anything