CAT HEALTH & MEDICINE

Managing Chronic Pain in Your Cat

Your aging cat seems to be sleeping an awful lot, he doesnt jump up on the furniture as much as he used to and he seems to be less meticulous about grooming. Sometimes hes sensitive in certain areas or displays odd behaviors. Should you assume that he is just settling into the senior years - or should you worry that something is wrong? …

Can Acupuncture Help Relieve Your Cats Chronic Pain?

Sticking a cat with needles might not seem like the best method to treat chronic pain, but Dr. Karas says acupuncture can be very useful. Chronic pain is a disease of the central nervous system, and acupuncture works by stimulating the nervous system and helping to restore the normal firing patterns of the nerves. …

Joint Supplements: Helpful for Your Cat?

Thanks to advances in veterinary medicine - including an improved understanding of feline nutrition - cats are living longer these days. Due to their extended life spans, however, many cats are also more likely to develop arthritis. This painful and potentially crippling joint disease is a predominantly age-related condition. In one study, researchers carefully analyzed X-rays of the spines and limbs of 100 middle-aged or elderly cats living in U.S. homes. The images revealed that 90…

How to Give Your Cat Pills

You bring your ailing cat to the veterinarian and initially feel relieved to hear that shell make a complete recovery. But relief quickly turns to frustration when you realize her health depends on giving her pills in the prescribed dose at certain times for a specified duration. You remember previous scenarios when your cat fled from the room or hid under the middle of the bed at pill time, or deftly spit out the pill…

Dear Doctor January 2014

Letters to Tufts Veterinarians - Hyperesthesia syndrome; virus testing

New Research Focuses on Two Deadly Feline Diseases

Attention on FIP and vs-FCV Yunjeong Kim - a research assistant professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine at Kansas State University- has developed a research approach that simultaneously tackles two deadly infectious feline diseases. Coronavirus and calicivirus infections are very common among cats, and cats tend to get repeatedly infected by these viruses throughout their lifetime, explains Kim, who is employed in the colleges diagnostic medicine and pathobiology department. Feline coronavirus can cause gastroenteritis, and…

Why You Should Microchip Your Cat

Your cat may never leave the safety of your home. She may wear a collar with an ID tag. Even so, its a smart move to have your veterinarian implant a microchip, according to Emily McCobb, DVM, MS DACVAA, a clinical assistant professor at the Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. …

Keep your pets microchip information current

Remember that your cats microchip only works if its registration information is accurate. To remind pet owners to have their pets microchipped and to keep the registration information up-to-date, AVMA and the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) created Check the Chip Day (August 15). You can join the event on Facebook. Make an appointment with your vet for microchipping if your pet isnt already microchipped. Make sure that the chip is promptly registered. Check your already-microchipped pets…

How to Register Your Cats Microchip

The easiest way to get your cat microchipped is to take him to your vet. You can then contact the registry company to sign up online. You can also look up a microchip registry online, and find either a local vet or a pet supply store that provides microchipping. One popular microchip registry is Home Again (public.homeagain.com). Home Again makes their own microchip but allows you to register any microchip with their registry. The cost is $17.95…

Limb Amputation in Cats

A frightening occurrence: A cat darts into the street near his owners home and is struck by an oncoming car. One or more of the bones in one leg are severely broken, and a quick trip to the nearest veterinary clinic yields some very disturbing news. The fractured limb is beyond surgical repair, and the cats owners are faced with a limited set of options: Either the traumatized cat should be euthanized, the veterinarian tells…

Cat Adjusting to Life on Three Legs

It started out as a quiet evening in late autumn for Renee C. - a Massachusetts housewife and part-time yoga instructor - but it certainly didnt end up that way. She, her husband, and their two-year-old daughter had just finished dinner and were relaxing in their living room when there was a knock at the front door. It was a neighbor, recalls Renee, with some very bad news. Our cat Shady had been struck by…