Short Takes

Complete genomes - genetic blueprints - of numerous cats DNA have been sequenced in what has been described as a new era in veterinary medicine. Cornells Veterinary Biobank, as one example, is a database of DNA and tissue samples from several species. The biobank is supported in part by the Cornell Feline Health Center.

Its now generally accepted that feline healthy aging is achievable just as it is in humans where the field of aging is dedicated to optimizing mental, social and physical well-being and function in older adults, the report says. What has been less well defined, however, is what healthy aging actually looks like in a cat; in other words, what changes would be considered normal for age … as opposed to deteriorative changes.

The disease takes several forms: hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, where the walls of the heart are thick; restrictive, where the walls are stiff; dilated, where there is thinning and weakening of the heart muscle, and arrhythmogenic right ventricular, where fat and scar tissue replace heart muscle, primarily in the right side of the heart.

Pets were evaluated as ideal, overweight or obese. The APOPs survey also found that 54 percent of dogs were overweight or obese. The findings were nearly the same in 2014, when the association cited a fat pet gap, in which another of its surveys revealed that 90 percent of owners of overweight cats and 95 percent of owners of overweight dogs incorrectly identified their pet as normal weight. No one wants to think their pet is overweight, and overcoming denial is our first battle, said APOP founder Ernie Ward, DVM.

Winn Feline Foundation has awarded a grant for the evaluation of DNA variants associated with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, or HCM, in Persians. HCM is the most common cardiac disease in cats. Previously, genetic mutations have been found in Maine Coons and Ragdolls, which led to genetic tests for screening before breeding.

Feline infectious peritonitis, or FIP, a viral disease that is nearly 100 percent fatal, has been successfully treated in a research project at Kansas State University. Collaborators in diverse fields developed an antiviral compound for the feline coronavirus associated with FIP. Manuel Martin-Flores, MV, , ACVAA, of the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine will present preliminary results of his research on safer anesthesia for cats at the annual meeting of the American College of Veterinary Anesthesia and Analgesia in September. Dr. Martin-Flores is one of only 220 anesthesiologists board-certified worldwide by the college.

The researchers say cats with the boxes adapted to their surroundings more quickly than the group without boxes - at least in the short term. Stress may cause more infectious diseases in shelters by raising cortisol levels, which may suppress the immune system, researchers note in explaining the studys importance.

At last count, at least four cats at a Northwest Indiana animal shelter have tested positive for canine influenza - one of the first times the flu strain H3N2 has jumped species in the U.S. Other cats and dogs at the Humane Society Calumet Area showed similar signs of the respiratory disease, as well as lip smacking and excessive salivation, and the shelter temporarily closed.

Services such as pet sitting saw the biggest growth. They increased 11.8 percent to $5.41 billion. Supplies and over-the-counter medication grew 3.9 percent, to $14.28 billion. Veterinary care was second in spending at $15 billion, up 2.5 percent. while pet food continues to be No. 1 in sales. Owners spent $23 billion on food last year, a 3.5 percent increase, which the association attributes mainly to higher prices rather than a larger volume of sales.

Researchers at the University College of London School of Pharmacy and neurologist Dr. Mark Lowrie at Davies Veterinary Specialists in Hertfordshire in the U.K. previously identified an epilepsy syndrome in geriatric cats. They named it Feline Audiogenic Reflex Seizures (FARS), a condition triggered by high-pitched sounds such as crinkling tin foil and clanging metal spoons.

These are among key 25 signs of pain in cats identified in research at the University of Lincoln in the U.K. Dr. Isabella Merola and Daniel Mills, Professor of Veterinary Behavioral Medicine, surveyed international academics and practitioners with specialties in internal medicine, anesthesiology, oncology, dentistry, behavior, dermatology, ophthalmology and neurology. They say in PLOS One that the resulting list could lead to faster diagnoses and ultimately reduce suffering.

Diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and diabetes mellitus may have a genetic basis, and by comparing DNA from affected and healthy cats, the Biobank hopes to locate the responsible genes. Its work could lead to identifying cats at risk of disease and aid in developing more effective treatments.