Is the Cat a "Second Class" Pet?

Poet Jean Burden once said that a cat “is still only a whisker away  from the wilds” and for many cat enthusiasts, this is the exact reason  they love their self-sufficient felines. But for all of our professed  affection for these animals, our cats aren’t seen by veterinarians  nearly as often as our dogs.  Is it because we value dogs more or are there other reasons for this inequity?


Nationwide, cats are 30% less likely to visit a veterinarian than dogs.  We  see that in Oconomowoc as well. Many cat owners dont see the need to vaccinate indoor cats.   Some owners are afraid that we might find something untreatable or expensive to treat and would rather not know that their cat is sick.  Others dread putting their cat in a carrier and listening to the meowing on the car ride or they think their cat will be stressed if they see a dog in the waiting room.

During my first year of veterinary school, one of my professors led a seminar discussion challenging the notion that cats need annual vaccinations. Another professor argued that the vaccine reminder got people to bring their cats in for the more important annual exam. Eight years ago Hallett Veterinary Hospital was one of the few practices in the area to recognize the research and adopt the notion of vaccinating for feline distemper every three years. Clearly this has been the correct medical decision as this is now considered the standard of care. But are our patients healthier because of that policy? Only if we can convince cat owners of the value of the physical exam, even if no vaccine is given during the visit.  Don't get me started on the value of the annual rabies vaccine in preventing rabies if your house cat finds a bat indoors or in preventing a huge hassle with the health department of your cat bites someone.

I believe that an annual (or semi-annual exam for older cats) is essential for keeping cats healthy. When we do examine cats, many times we find problems that could have been prevented or treated in earlier stages, resulting in better quality of life. Cats are experts at hiding their illnesses so many owners are not aware that their cat has been living with kidney failure or broken teeth or other treatable problems for months or years.

Our doctors perform a complete physical exam on all patients, working slowly and gently. Sometimes labwork is recommended to check internal organ function. A simple urinalysis, for example, can diagnose diabetes and give us important information about kidney function. Many people ask, "what if my cat is having kidney problems, can we do anything about it?" Actually, the earlier it is diagnosed, the easier it is to manage with special diets and sometimes medication to slow the progression of the kidney failure.  Diabetic cats that are diagnosed early are more likely to go into remission where they can be managed with diet alone without needing lifelong insulin injections.

Sometimes we find holes in teeth or broken teeth and the owners had no idea there was a problem. After the problem teeth are removed, many owners comment to me that their cat is more active and playful. They just hadn't noticed the gradual decline that was caused by dental pain.

So, if we agree in the value of the physical exam (and possibly screening lab tests), how can we make it less stressful for the feline patient? Try leaving the carrier or crate out in a room or area where your cat likes to hang out.  If the cat only sees the carrier when they go on a car ride, they just might run the other direction next time that carrier appears. Spray some Feliway (calming pheremone) in the carrier ahead of time to make them feel more relaxed. You could even try putting some cat food or treats in the carrier periodically. When you arrive at our office, the receptionist will take you directly into our "cats only" exam room where you can open the carrier and let your cat come out and explore when they are ready. There is even a windowsill where they can sit and watch the birds in the rosebush outside. We leave a Feliway diffuser plugged in 24/7 in the cat room. One of our techs will weigh your cat on a tabletop scale right in the exam room. Subtle changes in body weight might not be noticeable to the eye but can indicate medical problems.

Experts believe that cats and humans have interacted with each other for  more than 10,000 years.  From their humble beginnings chasing rodents  away from our food, cats have vaulted into our homes and hearts.

Cats are definitely NOT second class pets, they are family members! Let's work together to keep them healthy and comfortable.

Toxic Chewing Gum? One stick could kill your dog!

This reminds me of a joke my father used to tell. "Did you hear about the poisonous rock? One drop can kill you!" And then he would laugh really hard, forgetting that we had already heard the joke about a million times before.

Sugarless gum making dogs sick is no joke though.

A couple of years ago I came home from a wonderful vacation with Heidi and the boys and immediately went to pick up our Labrador Retriever from our friends' house.  As always, Birkie greeted me with exuberant unconditional love, even though I didn't take him with us on our trip.  He loves staying with Jeff and Vicki and their Golden Retriever, Deuce, but he is always happy to get home and sleep.

As Vicki handed me his toys and food, she said "Birkie was pretty good this time. The only thing he ate was some gum that was in the car this afternoon."  I laughed, pleased that he didn't destroy anything important or eat anything that might get stuck in his stomach. I have had to remove things from his stomach twice with the endoscope. "That wasn't sugarless gum was it?" I asked. "Yes, it was." Vicki replied. She retrieved what was left of the wrapper and estimated that there were three or four sticks that Birkie might have eaten. I tried not to look alarmed but I could see the worried look that Vicki gave me as I drove away.

Sugarless gum can contain an artificial sweetener called xylitol.  Xylitol triggers insulin release in dogs which causes their blood sugar to drop, sometimes to dangerously low levels. It can also cause liver damage in some dogs. Xylitol does not have these effects on people.

At home I looked up the brand of gum and found that the manufacturer doesn't list how much xylitol is in each stick. Further research indicated that the amount of xylitol in a single stick of gum can vary from 0.9 mg to 1,000 mg depending on the brand or even the flavor of the gum. Toxicity depends on the weight of the dog and how many milligrams of xylitol were ingested.  Some quick calculations told me that Birkie could possibly get sick from the gum later that night.

This meant yet another after-hours trip to our animal hospital for Birkie. First, I checked his blood sugar and it was normal. Next I gave him some medicine to make him vomit. Nothing in the vomit looked like gum. His blood liver tests were normal.  At this point he was looking at me like he wanted to take back that nice greeting he gave me earlier. He loves visiting our hospital but he is certain that nothing good is going to happen when I make him hold still. Fortunately, everything checked out ok so we headed back home to unpack the suitcases.  The next day his liver tests were still normal so there must not have been much xylitol in the gum that he ate.

If Birkie's blood sugar had been low, we would have placed an IV catheter and given him fluids with dextrose (a type of sugar) added. Left untreated, low blood sugar can cause loss of consciousness, seizures and even death.  The symptoms could be delayed several hours after eating the gum or even a day or two later if there is liver damage.

Everyone knows that chocolate is not good for dogs an most people have heard that grapes and raisins can occasionally be bad for their dog. One problem with sugarless gum is that most dog owners are not aware that it can be toxic.  Another problem is that some gum manufacturers consider the amount of xylitol in their gum to be proprietary information and they don't publish it. This makes our job as veterinarians more difficult and causes unnecessary anxiety in dog owners when gum has been ingested.

Later that evening I called Jeff and Vicki to tell them about the sugarless gum and that Birkie was just fine.

Toxic Treats or Internet Hype?

Earlier this week one of my clients brought an article that said the brand of jerky treats she had been feeding were making pets sick. Her  dog seemed lethargic and was vomiting intermittently so she was a little scared. My technician, Kelly, searched the FDA website for recalls and didn't find any listed for that brand of treat. My physical exam was normal and there hadn't been any weight loss. No increase in thirst or urination either. We ran a chemistry profile just to be sure everything looked good on the inside (he was due for some screening labwork anyway). All tests were normal. She will stop feeding the treats and save the package in case more information becomes available in the future. She thought her dog might just be tired from a big weekend and the vomiting could be caused by eating leaves but she was worried after reading the article. I treated with some anti-nausea medication and she is fine today.

Later, I started digging for more information. Is it all hype, or is there a new round of contaminated pet food lurking in the near future?
 
I found that there are reports of pets getting sick after eating treats made with chicken from China. The FDA has been investigating for several years but has not found any toxin or bacteria responsible. According to msnbc.com and Foodsafetysummit.com, treats being investigated include Waggin' Train or Canyon Creek Ranch jerky treats or tenders, both produced by Nestle Purina PetCare Co., and Milo’s Kitchen Home-style Dog Treats, produced by the Del Monte Corp. 

This brings back memories of the 2007 recall of many pet foods contaminated with melamine, a chemical added to protein supplements by Chinese producers. The melamine contaminated food caused illness and even death in many pets in the U.S., including a few of our patients. I think I read that two executives in China were executed for their roles in that mess. The contaminated protein supplement had even been used in baby formula sold to developing countries. 

Is there truly a link between the sick pets and the jerky treats, or are people just overly suspicious of pet food products imported from China? Coincidence or truly a cause and effect relationship? Nobody knows yet. Since no definitive toxin has been found with the jerky treats, there have not been any product recalls.  For now, the best action for pet owners seems to be to avoid treats made with chicken imported from China.  This can be difficult unless you read the extremely fine print on the packaging. Many products will have "made in U.S.A." on the label but they actually list the chicken as being imported from China. 

How can this be? It is either made in this country or not. Well, the labeling rules say that  if the product is substantially altered in a country, then it is a product of that country.  So, Chinese people favor dark chicken meat, therefore white meat is very cheap and is sold to U.S. manufacturers for use in pet treats.  Those U.S. companies process the chicken into jerky treats and put the U.S. label on. Apparently, they still list China as the country of origin of the chicken, just in very small print. 

If you have been feeding one of there products listed and you are concerned, what should you do? Stop feeding them, save the product packaging and freeze the remaining product (just in case).  If your pet is not losing weight, vomiting, having diarrhea or drinking excessively, then there is probably nothing to worry about. If you are still concerned, come in for an exam and chemistry panel. We will check for elevated liver enzymes or elevated kidney tests since the reports have shown liver or kidney damage in affected pets. If everything checks out ok, then we have baseline lab results to compare to in the future. Screening lab-work is very helpful in assessing internal organ function even if you aren't worried about toxin exposure. 

If more information becomes available, we will continue to post recall notices and links on the Hallett Veterinary Facebook page and at hallettvet.com.

For more information:
food safety summit
Msnbc

Pets Returning Home After Tornado

Here is a great story about pets returning to owners after the Indiana tornado last week. A shelter is housing pets while owners get their own housing figured out. This is an excellent reason to microchip your pets, even if they don't leave the house!

Check out our disaster preparedness page at hallettvet.com!