Happy Pets

Wounds are injuries which disrupt or destroy tissues, usually the skin. Severe wounds may also affect underlying structures such as bones or internal organs and gun shot wounds, in particular, can cause massive damage to adjacent structures.

Wounds vary enormously, from small and superficial to extensive and deep, and can sometimes be very deceptive in appearance. For example, bite puncture wounds are often much more serious than large but superficial skin tears, yet a puncture wound may be so small as to be hardly noticeable on the cat’s hairy body. Initial impressions might be that the gaping shallow skin wound is the worse injury, it certainly looks more dramatic. However it is often the small but deep bite injury, combined with the crushing effect on surrounding tissue that causes the most pain and carries most risk of serious complications. (more…)

Adverse effects of vaccination

Modern vaccines are very safe in the vast majority of patients, nevertheless, as with all medical products and drugs, a small risk remains in their administration. This small risk is considered preferable to the larger risk imposed by the disease being protected against in most cases; in other words a ‘risk-benefit analysis’ is usually seen as coming out in favour of the vaccine, since some of the diseases being protected against can be fatal. A recent comprehensive review’ of vaccination in cats and dogs continued to support the administration of vaccines and their annual booster in most cases.

Adverse reactions can be variable in nature, from the temporary slight increase in temperature and sleepiness, sometimes associated with lameness, often noticed in kittens at their very first vaccine, to rarer symptoms such as allergy/hypersensitivity type reactions and even anaphylaxis (an unusual severe allergic reaction which is treated as an emergency). (more…)

The operation

Make arrangements with the vet in advance. Castration takes only a few minutes, spaying less than half-an-hour. Today both are performed under general anaesthetic, so the cat should not be fed for twelve hours beforehand, or given water or other fluids for six hours before. Usually the cat will be allowed home the same day and must be kept quiet and indoors for about forty-eight hours.

A female will have a small patch of fur shaved where the incision is made — it will soon grow again — and will have to be taken back about a week later to have her stitches removed. You should not encourage the cat to play energetic games but to rest as much as possible. Keep an eye open for the rare occasion when she might pull out some of her stitches before time. Ring the vet if she does and he will tell you whether to rush her in to him or whether it is really still quite safe. (more…)

Cats have gained a reputation for excessive sexuality, perhaps from the attention that their mating calls attract, but is this reputation in any way deserved? They do not have the drastic battles over sex that occur with rutting stags, for example, nor do they make the extended public display common with dogs - though I remember one occasion when a female dragged her boyfriend in from the rain and straight under the table in the middle of a dinner party. Have you ever seen a tomcat work off his frustration with another in the street like brazen dogs? The gay tom stays definitely in the closet. A cat may jump on a visitor’s lap, but it does not rape her legs! (more…)

Vomiting

Cats, like us, are sick from time to time. There is no reason to panic; overindulgence may easily be the cause. You should, however, check the vomit to see whether it really is the result of eating something indigestible. If the vomit is merely a sausage shape of food then the cat probably ate its last meal too fast — and may well have done if another cat was trying to make off with its favourite titbit. All cats bring up balls of fur that they have swallowed when washing their coats, and sometimes feathers if they have been eating a bird. (more…)

Nephritis

Kidney damage, reducing the cat’s ability to eliminate wastes, may have several causes, including bacterial infection, but a chronic nephritis of unknown cause is most common, especially in elderly cats. It usually develops over a long period so that symptoms may not be

noticed until the ailment is well advanced, with the kidneys becoming scarred and smaller. Cats may lose appetite and drink noticeably more water; they will therefore urinate more frequently and may show signs of pain, arching the back when doing so. Sometimes there will be vomiting or diarrhoea, yellowing of the gums and ulcers in the mouth, and the breath may become increasingly unpleasant; the cat itself may begin to develop a urine-like smell. Blood and urine samples will confirm a diagnosis. Treatment may include a special diet and measures to reduce strain in the cat’s life to improve its general condition and slow down the development of the disease, but a complete cure is impossible. (more…)