Disease

Medical News Today reported that a new study found that an infection with the cat-borne parasite Toxoplasma gondii makes people more risk-prone and likely to start a business. T. gondii, a protozoan parasite that infects 2 billion people a year, is found in domestic and wild cats. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say 11 percent of the U.S. population over the age of 6 may be infected.

Lymphoma is the most common feline cancer. Over the years, however, with increased testing and vaccination for retroviruses like feline leukemia virus (FeLV) and feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), the exact type of lymphoma seen in cats has changed.

Normally your cat is an amazing athlete. She can do flips and land right side up, even after a tumble from a tree or window, and can leap from floor to countertop in just one bound. But when vestibular problems strike, that same cat walks like the proverbial drunken sailor.

KTVB in Boise, Idaho, reported in June that a cat tested positive for the plague. This occurred a month after a child tested positive for the plague, also in Idaho.

While Cushings disease, which is technically called hyperadrenocorticism, is more common in dogs than cats, feline members of your family can have this health problem.

Your cat has a ravenous appetite but never gains weight and might even be losing weight. In addition, you may notice the litter box has more deposits than ever before-often soft and slimy with a worse odor than usual. Your cat may be suffering from a malabsorption/maldigestion disorder. Malabsorption means the cat cant absorb the nutrients. Maldigestion occurs when your cat is not producing the enzymes needed to digest her food. Digestion Gone Awry …

A team led by Cornell dermatologist William H. Miller, VMD, Medical Director of the Companion Animal Hospital at the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, researched the medical records of 1,407 cats with dermatologic diagnoses and noted that Himalayan cats are much more likely than other cats to be diagnosed with a skin disease. Why is not clear, but it may be due to breeding practices that can increase the frequency of genetically-influenced diseases like allergies.

While studies have looked at the connection between periodontal disease and kidney failure in dogs, it is only recently that such a connection has been evaluated for cats. In the March 2018 issue of the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, a cooperative study between the Banfield Pet Hospitals centered in Vancouver, Washington, and the University of Minnesota looked at associations of these two health problems in cats.

When the topic of intestinal parasites comes up, people immediately think of worms, such as roundworms (ascarids) and tapeworms. However, other parasites may be more common and equally debilitating for your cat.

A study in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery looked at using Chinese herbs to treat cats with urinary-tract problems. As we wrote in our September 2017 issue (go to catwatchnewsletter.com archives to read the article), lower urinary-tract problems are common in cats. The cause might be infection, crystal formations, or may be without known cause-the infamous idiopathic cystitis.

The section of Oncology at the Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine needs cats for a clinical trial on injection-site sarcomas (also known as a fibrosarcoma), a tumor that can arise following injections. Although the cause is unknown, treatments are available, such as the anti-cancer drug carboplatin.

The first fungal infection that comes to mind when we think of cats is ringworm. As you likely know, it doesnt involve a worm, but rather the fungus Microsporum canis. This is a skin infection that often has round, ring-like lesions. It is not life-threatening, although it does require exquisite hygiene and weeks of topical and/or oral medication to cure.