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Part-IV: Cat Health

Creating a Healthy Environment for Your Cat

Pets and especially cats need a conducive and friendly

environment to be healthy and happy. Previously, it was

believed that cats as a species needed outdoor ventures to

develop naturally.

Now it is established that a cat, which has never been freed

for roaming can be quite happy and natural in its environment

if you spare some time from your busy schedule to entertain

your cat. In this way, they can be even more secure from

infectious diseases and accidents.

If you let your cat be a free roamer then you definitely run the risk of losing your cat forever. Almost 70 percent of the cats

that go missing do not return home. Free roaming cats also

adversely affect the wildlife populations as they bring down

the population of birds alarmingly.

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For complete protection of your pet you have to be systematic

and organized, so that your pet finds it easy to settle in the

environment you are trying to keep it in.

It will also need a secluded place for climbing and hunting

along with a safe and secure corner, which it can use as a

hiding place in case of any danger.

Its hunting urges can be fully satisfied by introducing different games and sports. This personal contact will garner a special

bond between you and your pet.

Cats are quite sensitive about how they are treated by their

masters. Gently, touching and petting your cat works wonders

and in no time you will find your pet hovering around you and

getting cozy with you.

You have to be a bit patient about roaming. It is a natural

urge. Sometimes taking out your cat for a stroll can be

entertaining for your pet. A harness-collar will help you in

having better control over it. You can also use a carrier for

your pet to take it anywhere at anytime.

The Humane Society of the USA published a report that clearly

shows that the mortality rate of free roamers is much higher

than indoor cats. The latter maintain finer health than the

former.

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Common Cat Diseases and Health Problems

Cats suffer from almost the same diseases as humans.

Although some diseases are hereditary, you can avoid others

through regular medical care of your felines. As a pet owner,

you should have a good knowledge of all possible diseases,

necessary medications, and precautions. This can assure you

of a healthy and lifelong feline companion.

Most health problems in cats are avoidable through preventive

care and techniques. It is best to keep your cat indoors and

outdoor outings should be under strict supervision. Routine

vet checks can ensure a healthy life for your pet.

Cat Diseases and Health Problems

Cancer: Cats could suffer from different types of cancer like bone cancer, lung cancer, nasal cancer, skin cancer, and many

others. Lung cancer could cause your cat to breathe heavily

and with difficulty. Oral cancer could cause problems in

swallowing and eating, with mouth bleeding. Bone cancer

could make your cat lame or lead to stiffness in the joints and

limbs. Non-healing wounds and scars could indicate skin

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cancer while incessant nasal discharge could indicate nasal

cancer.

You should visit your veterinarian as soon as you notice any

symptoms. A small delay could cost the life of your feline.

Routine examination of your cat’s body through stroking and

massaging can help you identify any extra bulge or bump.

Some of the symptoms of cancer are the same as that of other

diseases. Therefore, get an expert opinion from one or more

doctors. At times, early diagnosis can cure cancer.

Chronic Renal Failure: The main characteristic of this condition is irreversible and a gradual decline in kidney function. This is a common ailment in elderly cats. Kidneys

consists of various nephrons that filter fluids. These nephrons

could stop functioning due to age, ill health, or other causes.

This causes accumulation of toxins like urea and creatinine in

the blood.

Difficulty in urinating is the main symptom of this disease.

There are other symptoms like weight loss, dull coat,

excessive thirst, and loss of appetite. Veterinarians diagnose

the presence of this disease through a urine analysis and

blood test to measure levels of red blood cells, blood urea, and creatinine.

Veterinarians prescribe oral medications and Epogen shots for

cleaning toxins from the kidneys. In severe cases, your cat

could require hospitalization for dehydration. You can learn to

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administer subcutaneous fluids at home. Additionally, feed a

low phosphorous and low protein diet to your cat. As such cats

lose their appetite, you can use stimulants like tuna juice,

premium cat food juices, and human baby food meat. In

severe cases, force feeding through syringes could prove

necessary.

Dental Health and Oral Diseases: This is the single most

important cause for health problems in cats. Feline Stomatitis

is often misunderstood as an autoimmune disease. This

causes severe inflammation of the mouth and throat thereby

affecting eating habits severely. Periodontal disease is due to

inflamed and bleeding gums and bad breath. This is due to

bacterial accumulation in gums. Feline odontoclastic lesions

affect enamel and dentin of a tooth. Prolonged lesions could

cause permanent loss of tooth.

You do not have to wait for dental diseases to start to care for the dental health of your feline. Instead, begin with a regular

dental brushing and caring routine for your kitten. Use special

cat toothbrushes with flavored toothpastes to keep dental

problems at bay.

Deafness and Ear Conditions: It is possible to notice

deafness in cats in the early stages itself. Common symptoms

include loud meowing, failure to respond on calling, dizziness,

clawing at ear, shaking head regularly, unpleasant odor from

ears, regular pus, or other drainage. Deafness could be due to

nerve damage or infections. Medications can correct the

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problem in many cases. Regular grooming requires cleaning of

cat’s ears of mites by putting few drops of warm olive oil into

your cat’s ears.

Eye Problems and Blindness: Cats normally have better

vision than humans do. Glaucoma causes excessive pressure

within the eye. Untreated cataracts cause glaucoma. Early

treatment can prevent further damage to optic nerves.

Surgery could be necessary in advanced cases. Eye tumors

necessitate removal of the eye.

Progressive retinal atrophy is a hereditary problem causing

decreasing eyesight resulting in complete blindness.

Hypertension could cause eye problems like sudden blindness.

Cats cope with their blindness through increased sensitivity of

other senses like smell, touch, and hearing.

Feline Arthritis: This is common among aging felines.

Excessive weight is the predominant cause for feline arthritis.

Common symptoms include change in walking patterns due to

joint pain, stiffness in joints while arising from rest, and few personality changes.

Veterinarians may suggest Chondroitin and Glucosamine to

improve cartilage formation around joints. Vitamin C

supplements could suit some cats. NSAIDs might cause

serious side effects. Simple treatments include having a

regular exercise program to control the weight of your cat and

providing artificial warmth to joints to ease pain and stiffness.

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Feline Diabetes: This disease can affect cats of any age, although it is more prevalent in elderly male cats, specifically obese cats. Common symptoms include dehydration,

excessive thirst, poor appetite, and poor quality of coat,

weakness, and breathing problems. Veterinarians check for

sugar levels in blood and urine to diagnose feline diabetes.

Common treatment options include oral hypoglycemic

medications, regular insulin injections administered at the

hospital, and maintaining specific diet control. Diet rich in fiber and carbohydrates can control weight and blood glucose

levels. You can monitor blood glucose levels in your cat

through a monitoring kit used for diabetic humans.

Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV): This is feline AIDS.

Presently, there is no cure for this disease. Infected cats could live long lives. FIV transmission is through deep bite wounds

and normally through rectum, mouth, or vagina. It therefore

affects cats during territorial battles.

House cats do not normally suffer from FIV. This disease

affects and disables the immune system of cats. It makes it

more prone to infections. Different body cells like B-

lymphocytes, CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes, and

macrophages suffer extensive infection due to FIV.

However, cats cannot transmit FIV to humans. FIV occurs in

three stages. The acute stage in is the initial two months after transmission. During this time, your cat could suffer from

fever and depression. In the second stage, all symptoms of

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the disease could disappear, although your cat remains

infected. The third stage is the final stage. Your cat finally

succumbs to the infection. This is due to complete stopping of

functioning of the body's immune system.

Feline Infectious Diseases: There are various feline

infectious diseases. Most such respiratory diseases are

through feline herpes virus, feline calicivirus or feline

rhinotracheitis virus. Bordetella bronchiseptica infection, Feline chlamydia psittaci infection and Mycoplasma infection are

some of the important infections.

Other viruses and bacteria causing infections in cats include

pasteurellae, streptococci, staphylococci, and coliforms.

Feline Panleucopenia is an infectious disease affecting white blood cells and causing enteritis. Vaccination proves effective.

Feline leukemia virus causes infection through transfer of nasal secretions or saliva, feces, urine, and milk from infected cats. An infected mother can transfer the virus to her kittens

during lactation or even before birth. This virus could cause

cancer and various blood disorders. It is possible spread the

disease through sharing of feeding bowls. There is no cure for

this disease and it is normally fatal. In the first stage, a high immune response can eradicate the virus from the body. In

the second stage, it leads to persistent infection of bone

marrow. Cats with this disease could live long lives. If your cat has serious symptoms, it may not survive for more than few

months.

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Feline Immunodeficiency Virus causes infections although

over a longer period.

Feline Cowpox causes lesions on skin of cats. There is a

vaccine for such infections. Antibiotics could prove useful. Cats can transfer such infections to humans. Simple hygienic

precautions can prevent transfer of such infections to humans.

However, if you already suffer from skin diseases, you stand a

greater chance of contracting such infections. It is best to use gloves and prevent infected material from coming in contact

with open wounds or eyes.

Gastric Tract Diseases: There are many gastric diseases like inflammatory bowel disease, gastritis, diarrhea, hepatic

lipidosis, and others. These diseases occur mainly due to

inflammation of intestinal linings. Common symptoms of

gastric diseases include chronic vomiting, loss of appetite,

lusterless coat, weight loss, renal failure, and others.

Veterinarians normally suggest controlled diet with limited

amounts of proteins and carbohydrates. Corticosteroids and

certain antibiotics can provide substantial relief.

Heart Diseases: Heart diseases in cats could be Feline

Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy, Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy,

Intermediate Cardiomyopathy, or Feline Hypertension. Most

heart diseases are due to genetic causes. Such heart diseases

are more common in middle-aged male cats.

Common symptoms of heart diseases in cats include fainting,

sudden difficulty in breathing, weakness, and paralysis of rear

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legs. Veterinarians diagnose the presence of heart disease

through ECGs, X-rays, Echocardiography, and other tests.

They recommend calcium channel blockers like diltiazem,

beta-blockers like metoprolol and atenolol and various other

inhibitors and diuretics.

Hip Dysplasia: This is due to displacement of hip joints in your cat. Due to such displacement, the femur ball no longer

fits into the hip socket joint. This leads to arthritis and

excessive pain in the joints. Affected cats would show little

interest in walking, running, or similar forms of exercise. This disease is mainly genetic. Normally cats with larger bones

develop this disease.

Although there is no specific treatment available for hip

disease, surgery can help through prosthetic installation into

joints. You can reduce the weight of overweight cats through

diet regulations. Anti-inflammatory medicines and painkillers

can give relief.

Liver Disease: Fatty liver disease is a common ailment in cats. This disease occurs due to fatty deposits in liver tissue.

There is no apparent cause for such deposits. Most

veterinarians assign this disease to the way in which certain

cats digest their fats and proteins.

Common symptoms of liver disease is a sudden drop in eating

habits of previously overweight cats. This causes continuous

loss of weight with frequent bouts of vomiting and yellowing of

the skin and eyes.

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Liver biopsy under light anesthesia can detect the presence of

the disease. Early diagnosis of the disease can prevent further

deterioration. Although your cat would be most unwilling to

eat anything, it is necessary to force-feed. This is possible

through insertion of a feeding tube directly into the stomach

or esophagus.

You have to feed small quantities of food through the tube

regularly. After a few weeks, you can offer food normally to

check appetite levels.

Neurological Disorders: Neurological disorders in cats can take the form of seizures due to tumors, hypertension,

parasitical causes, viral infections, poisoning, and others. Cats with such disorders may depict sudden and unexplainable

behavior like running round in circles, going blank for some

time, loud meowing at night, frequent mood swings, maniac

grooming, or rippling skin on the back. Ingestion of certain

toxic plants could cause neurological disorders. Some garden

sprays, cleaning products, and pest killers could cause such

disorders.

Veterinarians diagnose neurological disorders in cats after a

thorough physical examination with a CT scan, blood tests,

MRI, and cerebral spinal fluid analysis. Anti-convulsion drugs

can control seizures over a few weeks.

Parasitic Disease: Parasites like fleas and mites cause

various parasitic diseases. Fleas cause allergies, anemia,

tapeworms, and skin infections. Always use flea remedies as

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suggested by your veterinarian. Tapeworms are internal

parasites. Your cat could develop such infections through

ingestion of raw meat or fish. Veterinarians can suggest

tapeworm medications after inspection of a fecal sample of

your cat.

Roundworms, whipworms, and hookworms are similar internal

parasites causing infections in your cats. Common symptoms

of such infections include diarrhea, vomiting, dull coat color,

and a potbelly. Lack of proper treatment could prove fatal.

Coccidia are internal parasites entering a cat’s body through

ingestion of infected feces of other animals. It often causes

severe diarrhea and weight loss due to loss of appetite. Fresh

fecal samples can help your veterinarian suggest suitable

remedy.

Ear mites are microscopic parasites causing severe infections

and wax-build-up in ears of cats. They cause severe itchiness

and could lead to deafness if untreated. Use prescribed

medicines on your affected and unaffected cats, as these

parasites move from one cat to another.

Respiratory Disease: Feline asthma symptoms are very

similar to hairball attack or choking. It is best to check such

recurrent symptoms. Feline asthma is due to allergens in the

upper respiratory tract. This causes tightening of bronchi and

resultant swelling of surrounding tissues. Bacterial infections

could cause other respiratory tract diseases in felines.

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Common asthmatic allergens include dust, household

chemicals, mold, smoke, cat litter, pollen, and cold or moist

air. Cats with asthma could suffer exercise related attacks.

Thorough examinations through blood tests, chest x-rays, and

bronchoalveolar lavage can detect presence of feline asthma.

Veterinarians insert endotracheal tubes under general

anesthesia to extract fluids in lungs for examination.

Keep your home as smoke-free as possible. Do not light

scented candles or smoke within your house, specifically near

your cats. Keep all basements and other parts of the house

free of mold and dust. Refrain from plugging in air-fresheners

or using household chemicals liberally. Veterinarians prescribe

prednisone pills or injections and use of an inhaler depending

on the severity of asthma in your cat.

Skin Problems: Skin diseases in cats are due to parasites, fleas, allergies, and other things. These cause cats to scratch

their skin uncontrollably. Another type of skin disease causes

severe loss of hair on skin with many bald patches. Skin coat

is brittle and coarse. It could also cause pus formations and

other infections, most of which are painful.

Thorough examination of skin coat while grooming your cat

can prove helpful in discovering any possible skin disorders

and infections. Veterinarians often prescribe hormone shots

with tranquilizers to help cats refrain from excessive

scratching.

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Feline Acne develops as black spots and it could be due to a

specific food allergy like milk. It could also be due to improper cleaning of the chin of your cat. Acne is due to bacteria

present in food or water bowls due to improper cleaning.

Leave such spots without any picking or pricking. Thorough

washing and application of prescribed medications can help

relieve your cat of all types of skin diseases.

Thyroid Disease: Hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism are

common thyroid ailments in older cats. Common symptoms of

this disease include increased urination, increased appetite,

weight loss, hyperactivity, excessive thirst, panting, increased shedding, vomiting, and diarrhea. Simple blood tests can

diagnose the presence of this disease.

Oral administration of hyperthyroidism medications can control

the disease within two to three weeks. However, it causes

serious side effects like blood clotting, vomiting, and loss of

appetite, itching around the face and head, jaundice, and

other things. Surgery is another treatment option, although

older cats find it difficult to withstand the anesthesia.

Radioactive iodine therapy consisting of iodine injections under the skin proves to be the ideal remedy. However, such

therapy is costly and requires prolonged hospitalization.

Urinary Tract Disease: This disease normally causes a lot of pain. If untreated, it could prove fatal for your cat. Urinary

tract diseases include urethral blockage, bladder stones,

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infection, crystals, and similar others. Infection could be due