Undetected Rib Fractures
About half of rib fractures suffered by cats result from the kinds of mishaps you would expect — getting hit by a car, falling from a tree or other high spot, or a tussle with another animal. Diagnosis is pretty straightforward, and supportive care is given to the cat to get him through the pain […]
Curbside Care on the Uptick
Curbside care for cats — taking your cat from the car and examining her in the office while you wait outside — became more commonplace for veterinary practices during the pandemic. Some vets now feel the practice is working so well for them that they plan to continue it post-COVID, says the American Veterinary Medical […]
How Long is the Recovery Time?
When I come out of the operating room to tell clients how an operation went, one of the most common questions I get is ‘How long will the recovery time be?’ says Tufts veterinary surgeon and Catnip editor-in-chief John Berg, DVM. “I always ask, ‘What do you mean by recovery? When the cat can go […]
New Treatment for Deadly Cancer
Oral squamous cell carcinoma is the most common oral cancer affecting cats, hitting the gums, tongue, palate, and tonsils. It’s hard to remove all of the tumor surgically because it embeds in the mouth tissues so deeply. Average survival time is 3 months. But that may change as a result of a new treatment being […]
Limb Amputation in Cats
One of the last things you want to hear is that your cat needs a limb amputated, either because an accident left it damaged beyond repair or because of cancer found in a leg. But despite the fact that nobody wants to see a pet disfigured, cats tend to do remarkably well on three legs. […]
No Time to Lose
You know that if your cat starts eating less or keeping to herself more, something might be amiss and you should schedule a doctor’s...
How Serious is the Heart Murmur?
Your vet tells you on each wellness visit that he detects a slight heart murmur when he listens to your cat’s heart beat with...
A Cat’s Three Major Poison Threats
On average, a cat is brought to the emergency room at Tufts’s Foster Hospital for Small Animals at least every other day as a...
Cancer Warning Signs
One in five cats ends up diagnosed with cancer, often in his geriatric years. Moreover, cancer in cats is three to four times more...
Gentle Into That Good Night
Your cat’s heart disease has progressed to the point that there are no more medicines to try, no higher dosages to give, no more...
Should Your Cat Need Blood
In human medicine, anyone can receive blood donated by someone who is type O. Type O’s are known as universal donors; people with other...
Cancer After a Rabies Vaccine?
Periodic rabies vaccinations are the law in most states, yet some people are nervous about getting a rabies shot for their pet because they...