Lifestyle

Download the Full January 2019 Issue PDF

According to a recent note in SmartBrief, a New York Times report found that Pets are increasingly thought of as family members and their owners are increasingly willing to spend more on veterinary care.....

We have a 17-year-old Tuxedo cat, Sox, who is still active, sharp-witted, and good natured. However, he has hyperthyroidism, and while he is being treated with methimazole and was doing fairly well, he has recently begun to lose weight again. In his prime years, he was a healthy 10-pound cat. Now he is down to six or maybe fewer pounds and looks boney, although he eats throughout the day and gets plenty of treats. Can you provide any advice?

Helpful ways to help kitty trim her body and stay healthy

You may notice your cat becoming hesitant about moving around the house. Or, you rearranged the furniture and your cat is bumping into things. Whats happening? Your cat may be going or have become blind.

The first study to document interactions between feral cats and a wild rat colony finds that, contrary to popular opinion, cats are not good predators of rats.

Few things tug more at our heart strings than a mother cat trying to care for her kittens in the wild. Whether or not you should intervene, though, depends on the relationship between the person and the stray queen, says Dr. Leni Kaplan, Lecturer in the Community Practice Service at the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine. Do not handle a cat that you are not familiar with. As rabies vaccination status for stray cats is unknown, the person must first and foremost protect themselves from scratches or bites from these cats.

…

A cat in Great Britain brought home a bag of illegal drugs, which the owner turned in to the police.

Effective January 1, in a divorce, the judge has specific criteria to use when deciding who gets the cat (or dog).

My 10-year-old female domestic short-haired cat has always been very nervous when I bring her to the veterinarian, to the point that her stress makes me hesitant to bring her for her regular check-ups. A friend of mine recently told me about veterinary practices that specialize in being cat-friendly, and I am hopeful that going to such a practice may make things easier on my girl. Can you tell me a bit about these practices, and where I can find one?

It requires just a little blood, but the CBC, or complete blood count, can reveal important information about your cats health. Its usually part of a senior wellness panel, diagnostic bloodwork for an ill cat, and as part of a pre-operative workup. It may also be used to evaluate your cats response to a medication or its possible side effects.