Herpesvirus for cats

Yes - cats have their own herpesvirus, just as irritating as the human variety, and liable to flare up with stress just like it does in human sufferers. However cat herpesvirus mostly affects the eyes and respiratory system.
The great majority of cats suffer their first bout with herpesvirus when they are kittens. They get watery eyes, sneeze, snuffle, go off their food for a day or two and look very sad and fluey. Antibiotics to prevent secondary infections and good nursing pull nearly all of them through.
Although most infected cats then become carriers very few have any further trouble with the virus themselves.
A few poor cats go on to develop flu-like signs or various eye diseases whenever they are stressed.
Some just get watery eyes. Painful ulcers on the cornea, the window of the eye, and on the conjunctiva, make other cats very miserable. Occasionally a part of the cornea dies and turns black, or the eye perforates.
Any eye problem is an emergency. If your cat has watery or pussy eyes, is squeezing his eyelids closed, or the eye looks blue, red or black bring him straight in to the surgery.

Momo's war wound

Momo's had a bad week. His mum found him shivering under a bush on Thursday morning. When she coaxed him inside he didn't feel much like breakfast and curled up in front of the fire. He'd eaten dinner on Tuesday and gone out for a stroll around his domain feeling as fit as a fiddle. By the time his mum found him he had a fever and was very miserable.
When she took him on her lap for a cuddle he snuggled up until she rubbed his head - OW!  He sprang onto the floor and under the couch.
His mum realised something was very wrong and whisked him in to see us. We found a tiny wound on his head and extracted a claw. Poor old Momo had taken on an intruder in his garden. No wonder he had a headache - an abscess was forming under the wound.
We started treatment straight away. Blood tests and observation proved that it was a fresh wound so we clipped and cleaned it, started strong antibiotics (cats' mouths contain some very nasty bacteria that love the airless space under the skin) and gave him something for the headache.
Because Momo's owner had found him soon after the brawl and the wound was fresh we didn't have an abscess to lance. The earlier we can treat cats after a fight the less likely it is that a general anaesthetic and surgery will be necessary.
Cats are most active finding mates and defending their territory in late winter and spring. Poor old Momo had got caught up in the annual feline fight festival. His mum is going to keep him indoors after dinner and through the night to try and prevent another episode.

Cats, cats, cats!

Make a note in your diary - cat health and behaviour will be the focus at this year's Hall Vet Surgery information night on Wednesday 21st September.

This will be our third information night but the first to give cats the attention they deserve!

I'll keep you posted on time and place.

If you have any suggestions on what you would most like to hear about make a comment below.

Where is Dr Kate?

Dr Kate is at the annual conference of the International Society of Feline Medicine (that's the ISFM) in the beautiful city of Vienna keeping up to date with the latest information and trends in cat medicine from all over the world!
It is wonderful to concentrate on just cats and to hear the experience of vets from a wide variety of situations.
Today we heard all about cats' endocrine (or gland) diseases, so common in our older cats.
The common ones are hyperthyroidism and diabetes, but others such as acromegaly, a growth hormone disorder, and diseases of the adrenal gland are being diagnosed more often too.
There is much controversy over the treatment of hyperthyroidism in the veterinary world, but if some research work I heard about today is confirmed with further trials the arguments might be a thing of the past.
Simply controlling the iodine content of the diet in a specific way may treat feline hyperthyroidism!
This will be good news for many of you and I hope that the research work is completed and the special diet makes it onto the Australian market at a reasonable price very soon.
I'll bring you more breaking news as it happens here in Vienna.

Litter box guru

Nick boxed-in

I've just come across a fantastic site called Litterbox Guru written by an American vet. If your cat is missing or even avoiding the box or has started urine marking the walls this is an excellent place to start working out the cause.
Comb through my previous posts  for more suggestions.
When you've thought about possible causes for this unsociable behaviour come and see us to rule out medical problems. We'll help you sort out why your cat is unwell or unhappy.

Pet insurance

Should we take out pet insurance for our cats? Medical or accident emergencies are hard to predict and the cost of the best treatment can challenge many budgets. If insurance is taken out while your pet is young then you can cover most eventualities. Sally’s story is typical of many we see every week. Names and faces have been changed to protect the not so innocent!

Sally lives with her retired carer, Kathy. Besides food and sleep her life’s work is keeping a close eye on the street. One night last summer she checked out one yard too many.

A German Shepherd defended his territory and left Sally with a broken leg and a gaping wound on her back. She limped home to Kathy who bundled her into the car and straight over to the emergency centre at Fyshwick.  The casualty team treated Sally for shock. Once she was stable they anaesthetised her, sutured the wound and splinted her leg.

Next morning Kathy brought her back to Hall Vet Surgery. Dr Jim X-rayed her leg and suggested the most appropriate fracture repair. Kathy wanted the best for her little friend and readily agreed to the surgery.

Because Kathy had taken out pet insurance for Sally when she was a kitten she did not have to break into her retirement savings. The insurance meant that she did not have to compromise and could give Sally the very best and most effective treatment. The morning after surgery she was thrilled to see Sally up and walking on the leg.

Sally stayed in hospital for 5 days so we could dress her wound and continue pain relief and antibiotics. Purr therapy and constant nursing care helped Sally through her long week away from home.

Pet insurance made all the difference to the outcome of Sally’s adventure. Without it Kathy could not have afforded the emergency care, fracture repair or the hospitalisation. She may not have recovered as completely and as rapidly as she did.

Kathy visited Sally daily, delighted with her rapid recovery and the care we lavished on her. When Sally was finally allowed to go home the insurance company reimbursed her for the bulk of the cost of the emergency care at Fyshwick, and the surgery and recovery at Hall.

Special cat event coming up...

Sorry I've neglected Hall Cat Vet lately. Tabby and I are on holidays, enjoying the glorious sunny weather, but hoping for rain for the garden and the about-to-emerge crops.
I'll be back next week to tell you about an exciting event coming up in Spring - a very special cat-only event at Hall Vet Surgery! Keep your eye on this blog and in our winter newsletter coming out soon.