Health

When your lovely new purebred kitten reaches maturity, you may want to breed her, and you may already have a carefully worked-out strategy for doing so. Otherwise, there is no good reason to avoid having your new pet spayed while shes still in the early months of her life - and there are a number of compelling reasons for doing so. First and foremost among these reasons, says Andrea Looney, DVM, a lecturer in anesthesiology at the Cornell University Hospital for Animals, is that spaying - also called ovariohysterectomy - will help curb rampant feline overpopulation.

Fleas are parasites that suck blood for their food, leaving small lesions that are similar to those of mosquito bites. "They are more than a skin problem," cautions Williams Miller, Jr., VMD, professor of clinical science at Cornells College of Veterinary Medicine. "They can become a serious health problem." Cats are fastidious groomers, so healthy adult cats will keep the number of fleas on their bodies low. "But if there is a significant number of fleas feeding on the animal, they can cause severe anemia," explains Dr. Miller.

I have had whiskers all my life, but I really took them for granted until recently. Whiskers just seemed like big, fat hairs to me! So what are they, exactly? Well, all of a cats fur grows from hair follicles in the epidermal layer of the skin. Whiskers are specially modified (big, fat) hairs that grow from very large follicles in specific locations. Of course, the most prominent whiskers are those that grow on the upper lips of the muzzle.

Based on data in the Veterinary Medical Database (VMDB), 1,129 feline intestinal tumor patients between 1964 and 2004 were evaluated for inclusion in an epidemiologic study. Cases were analyzed by breed, age, year of diagnosis, tumor type and tumor location. (Note: Feline intestinal tumors are relatively uncommon and the incidence of all intestinal tumors for this 40-year time period was 0.4 percent.)

Unfortunately, our beloved cats can face many ailments that develop as they age. Chronic renal disease is among the more serious of age-related conditions. It affects many older cats, but acute renal failure can be caused by other factors such as eating or drinking toxins, or kidney infection.

Urethral obstruction (UO) is a relatively common medical condition in male cats that usually requires emergency treatment (see related article on page 3 of this issue). Standard treatment - which involves medical stabilization of cardiovascular and metabolic derangements, correction of electrolyte abnormalities with IV fluid administration, and relief of the obstruction by urethral catheterization - may require a number of days in the hospital at considerable expense. The study ("A protocol for managing urethral obstruction in male cats without urethral catheterization," Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, 2010) involved a clinical trial involving 15 male cats with UO where standard treatment had been declined by owners due to cost issues.

While youre watching your favorite television show in the family room, you hear a familiar retching sound from the kitchen. Boomer is vomiting up his dinner again. As you clean up the mess, you wonder if its just hair balls - or something more serious that requires a trip to the veterinarians office. Cats vomit for numerous reasons, ranging from benign dietary indiscretion to potentially fatal systemic diseases such as renal failure or hyperthyroidism. The experts say that cat owners should pay close attention to a cat that becomes sick to his or her stomach.

Chronic renal failure is a progressive, irreversible disease that slowly leads to impaired kidney function and serious consequences. The kidneys contain nephrons which are responsible for filtering the blood, removing waste products and regulating electrolytes. In CRF, the nephrons die, and waste products begin to accumulate in the body. Electrolytes may become imbalanced in CRF, leading to problems such as hypertension, seizures, muscle weakness and heart problems.

When a cat begins soiling the house, it is usually assumed that it is a behavioral problem or the onset of senility. However, there are several medical conditions that can cause urinary incontinence and inappropriate urination, some of which require immediate treatment. First, it is important to distinguish between incontinence and inappropriate urination. True incontinence occurs when a cat does not have voluntary control over urination; trauma, a weak primary sphincter muscle and congenital abnormalities are the most common causes of incontinence.

Japans "cat island" - known formally as Tashirojima - was found to be relatively intact after Marchs devasting 9-magnitude earthquake and resulting tsunami, according to Japan Earthquake Animal Rescue and Support. The small island is home to at least 100 people - mostly elderly - and many more cats. The animals are valued by the residents for their beauty, companionship and ability to keep the rodent population down in this fishing area.

Blood can be the gift of life not just for us, but also for our cats. "A cat suffering severe injury or trauma may require blood transfusions," says Marjory Brooks, DVM, associate director of the coagulation section at Cornell Universitys Animal Health Diagnostic Laboratory. Other indications for transfusion include surgical complications and anemia caused by autoimmune disease, renal failure, chemotherapy, parasites in the intestinal tract or fleas. "Young kittens are especially at risk for blood-loss anemia caused by flea infestation," says Dr. Brooks. Cats that need plasma proteins to combat liver disease, clotting problems or rat poisoning may also require a transfusion.

According to a recent Ohio State University, our pets can get sick from stress - just like us. The study found that otherwise healthy cats show signs of illness when stressed. And cats diagnosed with feline interstitial cystitis (FIC) became healthier when stress levels were reduced, the study showed. Twelve of the 32 cats in the three-year study were healthy, while 20 had FIC, a chronic pain syndrome that affects the cats bladder. According to researchers, lower urinary tract diseases occur in about 1.5 percent of house cats, and many pet owners cant tolerate the mess that accompanies it. As a result, millions of sick cats are put down or relinquished to shelters every year.