Health

Your cat has several rows of whiskers, usually 12 arranged in rows, and a few over her eyes. You may also see them along her jawline, near her ears, and on the back of her front legs. All these whiskers, or vibrissae, are stiff tactile hairs that help your cat learn about her environment.

A recent study out of Italy looked at survival and prognostic factors for cats with restrictive cardiomyopathy. The researchers looked at 90 cats who had been diagnosed with this cardiac condition via echocardiography between 1997 and 2015. There were 53 more males than females in the study.

We round up our series on when to use an emergency clinic with a look at common feline injuries. Believe it or not, cats have their own set of accidents to which they are prone. In this article, we discuss some of the more common problems seen in veterinary emergency clinics. Obviously, not every possible emergency scenario is listed here, so if youre not sure, always err on the side of caution and take your cat to the ER if your cat has been injured.

Finding crystals in a urine sample can be a warning that painful urinary stones and/or deadly blockages may be forming. Persian and Himalayan cats have an increased risk for urinary crystals and stone formation.

Angelos Pizza in Matawan, N.J., is delivering more than just food, according to CBS NewYork Channel 2.

I recently lost a cat to feline infectious peritonitis (FIP), and this was a dreadful experience. No matter what we did, he continued to accumulate fluid in his chest and abdomen, and my veterinarian told me that there is no cure for this condition. All we could do was repeatedly remove the fluid until his quality of life became so poor that we decided to have him euthanized. Are you aware of any research that is being done that may improve this situation for other cats afflicted with FIP?

Mirtazapine, a tricyclic depressant for humans, has been shown to have appetite stimulant benefits for cats. Since cats who have a decreased appetite can develop life-threatening conditions such as hepatic lipidosis, this medication can have important uses in cats.

Many cat lovers know the awful feeling of waking up from a deep sleep to the sound of their cat gagging and retching to throw up a hairball or stepping on a fresh hairball on the carpet with bare feet. Not pleasant! While most hairballs are a nuisance, some can signal or cause serious health problems.

In one large study, slightly over half of the cats that suffered from a urethral rupture had been subjected to direct and intense trauma, primarily by being hit by car and suffering from pelvic injuries. Just under half had experienced a partial rupture while being catheterized for a urinary blockage. Male cats are more commonly afflicted because they are more susceptible to urinary blockages, which may require catheterization, and are more likely to be outside, which increases risk of trauma.

In January, we wrote about the recent American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) updated guidelines on feeding cats to make feeding programs more natural, emphasizing a cats natural desire to hunt. Hunting keeps the cat active, which burns calories and promotes a healthy body weight and lean muscle mass. These five things will help you make feeding time more like a hunt.

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A 45-year-old Singapore man was arrested for trying to smuggle four kittens past immigration, according to Channel NewsAsia. Security noticed the man’s pants were “meowing.” He faces a possible fine and one year in prison.