Health Archives - Page 14 of 18

Separation Anxiety in Cats

Some people think that separation anxiety a problem in dogs but not cats. Cats can suffer from separation anxiety, too.

Like most other ailments, the signs in cats are more subtle than in dogs. You’re not going to notice that your cat has separation anxiety because she ate all of your sofa cushions while you were gone to work one day. Symptoms of feline separation anxiety include:

going outside the litter box, possibly even on your bed
excessive crying or meowing after your departure
distress as you prepare to depart, such as meowing or hiding as you pick up your house keys
destructiveness
overgrooming
vomiting
poor appetite

Veterinarians suggest that cats who are anxious about their owners being away be given especially enriching environment to engage her while you’re gone, such as putting your cat’s food in a food dispensing toy to eat while you’re gone, hiding treats around the house for your kitty to “hunt,” or even putting a bird feeder outside the window to add more things to watch from the windowsill. Some cats may enjoy having another cat to keep them company, while others might find this even more stressful.

Also make sure you get plenty of quality time with your cat while you are home. It’s easy to be busy and in front of the computer or TV in the limited time you have before you have to go somewhere, but a ten minute play session just before you leave can wear your kitty out and help her be ready for a nap while you’re gone.

Leave a varying rotation of toys available for your cat to interact with when your kitty does wake from her nap to help keep her interested in that and not missing you quite so much.

If helping the cat to feel more independent through environmental enrichment, you can talk to your veterinarian about anti-anxiety medications for your cat.

Separation anxiety can be a serious problem and shouldn’t be overlooked as a potential cause when a cat is doing something that might otherwise be viewed as misbehaving. With time and patience, you can offset much of its impact on your cat and make her feel better during the time when you’re away from home.

References and further reading:

Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, Separation anxiety syndrome in cats: 136 cases (1991-2000)
Ohio State University Indoor Pet Initiative, Separation Anxiety
Dr. Sophia Yin, Separation Anxiety in Cats: When a Smelly Surprise Means Kitty Loves You

Image credit:

Eric Walli on Flickr
Eddy Van 3000 on Flickr

Know Your Veterinarian’s Hours

It’s 2 o’clock in the afternoon on a Saturday. Do you know what veterinarian is open in your town?

You probably know your own veterinarian’s office hours from trying to set appointments. (If you don’t, now would be a good time to check them out!) Our usual vet’s hours are what seem to be most common in this part of the country: 8-6 during the week, and Saturday mornings, but closed on Saturday afternoon and Sunday.

What happens when you have a seriously sick or injured cat and your vet just closed an hour ago? It’s off to the emergency vet, right? Well, not necessarily.

You Might Have Alternatives to the Emergency Vet

What if you have other vets in your area that might still be open? Do you know for sure? If you live in a tiny town with only two veterinarian offices, you probably do know. But if you’re in a bigger city, take a look into the business hours for the ones that are in a reasonable distance from where you live.

If you don’t have a list of veterinarians near you, one of the easiest ways to look them up by proximity is to search your address on Google Maps, then search for nearby veterinarians. The map will show you their locations.

Viewing Nearby Veterinarians on Google Maps

Those aren’t chickenpox on the map.We’re lucky that each red dot is a veterinarian or vet supply company in our city!

Clicking on each pin on the map displays information that usually includes the hyperlink to the vet’s web site, which should include their hours of business. If the hours of business aren’t apparent on the web site, try under an “about us” link or even a link to make an appointment to find the hours. Keep in mind that not every vet may show up on the map. We spotted at least one missing on our local map, but it’s a good start.

You might be surprised at what you learn about the hours for some of the vets you drive past every day. I recently discovered that there’s a vet near me whose office is open until 11pm on weeknights and 7 pm both weekend days. I’ve never been to this vet, but if I have a suddenly sick or injured cat an hour after my regular vet closes, I might go there instead of the emergency vet.

Now that you have gathered this information, write it down. You won’t need it until there’s an urgent situation with your cat, and you don’t want to misremember which vet was open late when you’re driving around with a cat needing medical attention. My list is on the side of the refrigerator, tucked safely behind the sheet of paper that has basic information about the cats and their main emergency phone numbers. I also have a list in the notepad on my phone, since you never know when you might need that information.

Finally, every six months or so, take five minutes to verify that the office hours for the veterinarians on your list haven’t changed. I’ve shown up with a formerly-24-hour vet with a cat hit by a car, and it’s a really bad feeling to pull into an empty parking lot after dark, wondering, “What now?” Spare a few minutes now and then to be sure nothing has changed.

That’s all you need to do to ensure that if your kitty has an urgent situation after hours, you know all of your options and can get care as quickly as possible.

Photo credit

depositphotos/photo-deti

Keeping Cats Cool When it’s Hot Outside

The upcoming Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial beginning of summer, but for a lot of us, hot weather has already arrived. Our part of the country is already seeing weather over 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius) every day.

As the weather starts to get that hot where you live, you can take a few extra steps to be sure you keep cats cool and comfortable in the heat.

Could Flame Retardants Contribute to Hyperthyroidism in Cats?

Four of the five cats in my previous generation of cats suffered from hyperthyroidism.

They weren’t all related to each other. Louie and Talia were siblings, as were Rhett and Radcliffe, but the siblings pairs weren’t related to each other, or to Cyrano. Knowing that, I always have felt like it must be a very prevalent disease rather than something that just ran in the family. I was surprised to learn that while hyperthyroidism is seen in over ten percent of senior cats. The 80% rate of the disorder among my cats significantly overrepresented the norm! It made me wonder why.

What is Hyperthyroidism?

Hyperthyroidism is a hormonal disorder in cats where the cat’s thyroid hormone overproduces the thyroid hormones. Elevated thyroid hormones can cause weight loss, hyperactivity, vomiting, and even aggression. In humans, hyperthyroidism is linked to Grave’s disease and iodine insufficiency, but it is unknown what causes hyperthyroidism in cats.

The fact that feline hyperthyroidism was first seen in the 1970s and is has grown exponentially since then correlates to the use of flame retardants in household items, especially plastics and fabrics used for furniture. It is possible that the flame retardant leaches out of the materials over time and combines with dust to deposit in a cat’s fur, which they then ingest when grooming.

Rhett had hyperthyroidism and underwent radioactive iodine treatment

A recent study of cats in Sweden found that those with hyperthyroidism had elevated levels of the flame retardants known polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). The study was not broad enough to prove that the chemicals caused the disorder, but it did show that cats suffering from it have it in their systems, meaning it could be linked to hyperthyriodism.

The study analyzed blood samples from cats with both hyperthyroidism and normal thyroid function. Cats with elevated thyroid function had elevated levels of PBDEs. All of the cat blood samples also contained another flame retardant, BB-209. BB-209 was discontinued in 2000 and PBDEs were removed from the market in the US in 2005, yet many households still have items that were purchased before then.

Talia suffered from hyperthyroidism

Links at Home?

While this study couldn’t conclusively identify PBDEs as a cause of hyperthyroidism, the results lead to wonder about to the high incidence of hyperthyroidism in my house. I would love to see this studied on a much wider scale and see if other variables make a difference. My cats were indoor cats. Did that lead them to even more exposure to PBDEs from furniture and carpets than cats who roam outside? Is there any way to avoid these chemicals when they are used to treat so many household items where cats walk, sleep, and play?

The EPA has an action plan to make rules and encourage voluntary phase-out of manufacture and support of these chemicals. Perhaps when PBDEs are removed from the market, the number of hyperthyroidism cases will drop, too. That remains to be soon. For now, I’m glad to be living in a house without carpeting. It seems like a safer option until veterinary science understands more about why cats in my house over-represent this disease.

Update: New research is available. Don’t miss reading Feline Hyperthyroidism Linked to Fish in Cat Food.

References and further reading:

Environmental Science & Technology, Higher PBDE Serum Concentrations May Be Associated with Feline Hyperthyroidism in Swedish Cats.
Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, Hyperthyroidism in cats: what’s causing this epidemic of thyroid disease and can we prevent it?
Environmental Protection Agency, Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs) Action Plan Summary