Panleukopenia, also wrongly named “feline distemper”, is a highly contagious cat disease. It mostly attacks the digestive system. This disease was once widespread but, thanks to very effective vaccines, it is now a little more uncommon. Unfortunately, it still affects unvaccinated cats, especially kittens, stray cats or those that live in shelters or barns.

Feline panleukopenia is caused by a virus similar to the one that causes dog parvovirosis. The virus is spread in the environment by body excretions (like saliva and stools) during a period that can go up to 6 weeks after the infection, and it is very resistant to most disinfectants. In fact, it can survive more than a year in the environment.
Symptoms may include depression, loss of appetite, fever, vomiting or diarrhea, sometimes with blood; severe dehydration is often observed. Unfortunately, among kittens, the mortality rate is between 50 and 90%. In addition to attacking the intestines, the panleukopenia virus reaches the circulatory and lymphatic systems. It can also attack the fetus and cause fetal death or permanent cerebral damage among kittens.
For cats that are not vaccinated, the panleukopenia diagnosis is generally based on the clinical signs. A blood test (hematology) can also help to establish the diagnosis. A low number of white blood cells (panleukopenia) can be observed. The word “panleukopenia” means that the number of all white blood cells is less than normal.
As in the case of dog parvovirus enteritis, no treatment can succeed in killing the virus. Instead, one must offer a palliative support treatment to help the cat’s body to produce antibodies. The treatment consists in hydrating the animal (intravenous fluidotherapy) and administering antibiotics. Sometimes, antiemetics are used and in severe cases, a plasma transfusion may be necessary. In general, symptoms may last from 4 to 7 days. Disinfection of the area and of contaminated objects with diluted concentrated bleach (1:30) is effective.

It is highly recommended to have all cats vaccinated, not just against panleukopenia, but also against viruses that attack the respiratory tract and against feline leukemia. Kittens should be vaccinated every 3 to 4 weeks up to the age of 12 weeks.

Is my cat at risk of catching the feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) and feline leukemia virus (FeLV)?
If you answer “yes” to any of these questions, your cat should be tested.

1. Has your cat just recently been adopted?

2. Has your cat ever been tested before?

3. Does your cat spend time outside, even for short periods?

4. Has your cat been exposed to another cat with an unknown status?

5. Is your cat ill?

6. Has your cat been bitten?


WHY IS IT IMPORTANT FOR YOUR CAT TO BE GIVEN
A SCREENING TEST?
Because without diagnosis your cat cannot receive adequate treatment. Without screening tests, we cannot know if a cat is infected or not. If the cat’s status is unknown, it can be a carrier and transmit the disease to other cats.
The FIV and FeLV viruses are major causes of cat disease and death; they weaken the immune system. They are transmitted from one cat to the other and are very contagious. Often, they do not create many apparent signs and even cats that seem to be in good health can be carriers of the infection and transmit the viruses to other cats. These viruses cannot be transmitted to humans.
The spread of FIV is usually done through biting. The spread of FeLV is done by contact with saliva or urine from an infected cat, during mutual grooming, when they share food bowls and litter boxes. An infected mother usually infects its kittens.

Only a small blood sample is required and only a few minutes are necessary to get the results.

WHAT ARE THE SIGNS?
There are no distinctive signs for these diseases; sometimes, signs do not appear for weeks or even years after the infection.
Among symptoms to watch out for, there are: decrease in appetite, vomiting, diarrhea, weight loss, weakness, bite marks, infected wounds, fever, swollen lymph nodes, etc.
Your veterinarian can help you give your cat appropriate treatment. Thanks to early detection of the infection, it is possible to maintain your cat in good health and prevent transmission of these infections to other cats.

Some pets have the bad habit of swallowing everything they come across! Dogs seem to be more affected because of their eating habits which are less discriminatory. However, cats too can be attracted by certain threads or objects. Beware of puppies that nibble and may swallow almost anything!

To give you an idea, here is a non-comprehensive list of foreign objects that can cause intestinal obstructions: toys, balls, bottle caps, coins, buttons, bones, rocks, corn cobs, clothing, fabric, nylon stockings, plastic bags, plastic wrap, tampons, Christmas icicles, wool, needle with thread, fishing line, carpet, rubber bands, razors, pieces of plastic, cell phones, fruit pits, nails, hooks, etc.

Foreign objects can remain in the stomach or lodge in any portion of the intestine. MOST OFTEN, THIS CONDITION REQUIRES SURGERY AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE. In some cases, if the foreign object is found in the stomach, a gastroscopy (stomach exam with an optical instrument) can allow for the withdrawal of the foreign object without having to do surgery.

HOWEVER, IN ALL CASES, IT IS OF UTMOST IMPORTANCE THAT YOU SEE YOUR VETERINARIAN. A physical exam is necessary and X-rays of the abdomen may be suggested.

If your pet ingests a foreign object, it may present different clinical signs (symptoms). Among the most frequent are:

• Vomiting, a result of obstruction with the passing of water and/or food
• Stomach distension, abdominal discomfort
• Diarrhea
• Anorexia
• Loss of liveliness
• Dehydration

Some foreign objects can cause severe damage to the intestinal mucosa and sometimes even perforations with peritonitis. In some cases, one will not only need surgery to take out the foreign object (gastrotomy or enterotomy), but it can also be necessary to remove a portion of the damaged intestine (enterectomy) for example. The patient is hospitalized and followed closely during the post-operative period. Hydration can be maintained with intravenous solutions. Different drugs can be administered if necessary, like antibiotics, analgesics, antacids and mucosa protectants. Afterwards, an easy to digest diet is offered; then a gradual return to the normal diet is finally considered.

If you have seen your pet swallow or nibble on a foreign object or if you have any doubt, consult your veterinarian!

If your pet suddenly starts to vomit and has diarrhea, it may be suffering from gastroenteritis.

It can occur following the ingestion of food your pet is not used to, of rotten food or of the contents of garbage cans. It is sometimes of infectious origin (viral such as parvovirus or bacterial such as salmonella for example).

This disease is often seen with other problems such as an intestinal obstruction caused by foreign objects, pancreatitis, an intestinal parasitosis, an endocrinal disease or another metabolic disease.

In some cases, the gastroenteritis can be hemorrhagic and it is characterized by the presence of blood in diarrheic stools and even sometimes blood in the vomit.
If your pet has gastroenteritis, it may present one or many of the following clinical signs (symptoms) :

• Vomiting (sometimes with blood)
• Diarrhea (sometimes hemorrhagic)
• Anorexia
• Loss of appetite
• Dehydration
• Abdominal discomfort
• Occasional fever

When your pet has such signs, it is important to quickly consult your veterinarian; a physical exam is necessary. Depending on the case, different tests could be suggested to establish the diagnosis such as abdominal X-rays, blood tests, a parvovirus detection test, a stool analysis, etc.

Your pet may need to be hospitalized and receive an intravenous solution to be rehydrated. It will not be fed until the vomiting has ceased. Different drugs can be administered according to the cat’s needs, such as antibiotics, antacids, mucosa protectants. An easy to digest diet is then offered, and when it feels better, a gradual return to the cat’s normal diet will be considered.

If your pet has vomiting and/or diarrhea, consult your veterinarian!

Renal insufficiency occurs when the renal function deteriorates to a point where the kidneys are unable to fulfill their functions to eliminate waste, maintain a water and electrolyte balance, and produce hormones. Generally, chronic renal insufficiency has been present for some time (months or years) when the diagnosis is made and the disease is irreversible. Dogs and cats with chronic renal insufficiency cannot be cured but in some cases their clinical signs can be controlled successfully.

Animals are born with such an abundance of renal cells that the signs of renal insufficiency only appear when more than 2/3 of the kidneys are already damaged. Because of this great reserve of renal cells, it is often difficult to diagnose chronic renal insufficiency at an early stage. Consequently, chronic renal insufficiency is a deceitful disease that declares itself just when the renal damage is already advanced.

Typically, the first signs of chronic renal insufficiency are an increased water consumption and an increased quantity of urine. Other signs are weight loss, a dull coat and an increasingly difficult appetite. As renal insufficiency progresses, the kidneys are unable to eliminate metabolic waste and clinical signs become worse: vomiting, loss of appetite, ulcers in the mouth area, halitosis, weakness and depression. Other consequences of chronic renal insufficiency are anemia and hypertension. Anemia can worsen the loss of appetite, weakness and depression. Hypertension can cause eye damage (sudden blindness), cerebrovascular accidents, and heart and kidney damage.

The diagnosis of renal insufficiency is confirmed with blood and urine analyses. Other diagnostic tests are sometimes necessary (X-rays, urinary culture, ultrasonography, measuring the arterial blood pressure, fundoscopic eye exam, etc.).
Fortunately, some animals that have renal insufficiency can be treated (not cured however) and have a good quality of life for months or years. Depending on the stage of renal insufficiency, many treatments can be useful for the affected animal: a diet change (low in protein, salt and phosphorus), fluidotherapy and some medications (antacids, anti-vomitives, appetite stimulant, etc.).

With humans, chronic renal insufficiency can be controlled with dialysis (hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis) or a renal transplant. With small animals, dialysis usefulness is limited because of the cost involved and the decrease in the quality of life that is associated with it.
With some cats that have renal insufficiency, renal transplant is possible but very expensive. Renal transplant is reserved to cats for which the standard medical treatment does not work.

What is hepatic lipidosis?
Hepatic lipidosis is a disease that mostly affects cats. In general, it occurs following a stressful situation for the cat causing it to lose its appetite (anorexia), for example moving or acquiring a new animal in the house. Lipidosis can also occur following an underlying concomitant disease.

What are the signs that would let me suspect that my pet has hepatic lipidosis?
A cat suffering from hepatic lipidosis will show a loss of appetite and consequently develop jaundice, the severity of which will depend on the duration of the condition. A yellowish coloration of the skin at the ear pinna, on the oral mucous membranes and at the level of the sclera (the white part of the eye) can be observed. Vomiting, diarrhea and fever are occasionally observed. When the condition progresses without being treated, nervous signs may appear (mental depression, excessive salivation).

How can an animal suffering from hepatic lipidosis be treated?
Many tests are available to obtain a diagnosis of lipidosis. It is possible to do a blood test allowing us to assess the function of the liver enzymes. In addition, an abdominal X-ray allows us to see the enlarged liver during lipidosis. An abdominal ultrasonography is often useful to check the integrity of the liver and to obtain a liver sample. This last procedure is done in order to visualize the cells and to confirm the hepatic lipidosis diagnosis.

It is of the utmost importance to assure food support to the animal. For the liver to fully regain its function, the animal must eat regularly. However, animals affected by lipidosis are often anorexic and suffer from vomiting. For these animals, it is important to use parenteral route feeding, i.e. with the help of a gastrotomy tube or an oesophagian tube. This way, it is both possible to calculate the amount of food required by the animal to ensure its daily energetic needs and to administer the food adequately.

An intravenous fluidotherapy is often necessary to correct the dehydration that usually accompanies anorexia. Antibiotics are administered according to the functional state of the liver; medications to stimulate the appetite can occasionally be administered.

Can hepatic lipidosis be prevented?
It is difficult to prevent the development of cat lipidosis because the causes are numerous and sometimes not easy to control. However, it is recommended to limit stressful situations that could trigger a loss of appetite since cats are particularly sensitive to change.

External otitis is a frequent disease of the ear in small animals. It consists of an acute or chronic inflammation of the ear canal and sometimes of the ear pinna.

If your dog or cat shakes its head frequently, scratches its ears or rubs them on the ground, if its ears are red, dirty and smell bad, they are perhaps the center of a problem called otitis. This disease can imply one or both ears simultaneously. Sometimes liquid discharges can be noticed. In severe cases, the animal can lean its head towards the side that is infected.
Some breeds are predisposed. Indeed, dogs with dropping ears (Cockers, Setters, Labradors), those that have a lot of hairs in the ear canal (Poodles for example), or those that produce a lot of sebum (Cockers) are more subject to develop otitis. Shar-Peis are also predisposed because of their narrow ear canal.

Factors responsible for external otitis are numerous and varied; foreign substances such as shampoo, inadequate medications, water entering the canal during swimming and foreign objects predispose to the occurrence of inflammation. Some parasites can also colonize the ear (ear mites). Allergy problems (food and others), hormonal imbalance and auto-immune diseases can still induce the occurrence of otitis. Finally, the presence of tumors in the ear canal can also cause this type of inflammation.

An otitis that is not treated can lead to severe complications. Bacteria and/or yeast multiplication can be seen with the occurrence of infection; proliferation of these microorganisms aggravates the inflammation of the affected ear. To cure otitis, it is necessary to treat the underlying causes and complications. Your veterinarian will do a cytology by taking a sample of the secretions to examine them under a microscope. When there is a bacterial infection, a culture with an antibiogram may be necessary. After having determined the otitis cause, your veterinarian will prescribe the appropriate treatment. He/she can show you how to clean the ears and how to apply the chosen ear medicine. If the bacterial otitis is severe and/or chronic, and/or if the presence of an otitis media is detected, systemic antibiotics may be indicated. It is also good to know that when the external ear is affected and it is not treated correctly, this can spread to the middle ear and to the internal ear; dogs and cats can then have loss of balance, and become deaf. If you have doubts concerning the health of your pet’s ears, consult your veterinarian!

Dogs and cats share our everyday environment and live longer than they used to, thanks in part to preventive veterinary medicine and dedicated owners. Therefore, it should not come as a surprise that certain chronic conditions, including cancer, are commonly diagnosed in pets.

Unfortunately, cancer is one of the most common causes of death in pets above 10 years of age. Once a diagnosis of cancer has been made, treatment options exist that, in addition to prolonging the life of these pets, can greatly improve their quality of life, as this remains the main goal in veterinary oncology. The treatment options are similar to those used for people with cancer and include surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, immunotherapy, targeted therapy, and palliative therapy. It is important to realize that, because the goals of therapy are centered on quality of life, unpleasant side effects in cancer-bearing pets are much less frequent and less severe than what is known to occur in human cancer patients.

Nobody wants to discover that his/her pet has cancer. However, it is important to be able to recognize some warning signs that are relatively typical, though not specific, as it may lead to early diagnosis and possibly a better chance of survival with appropriate therapy. Below are some signs commonly seen in pets with cancer.* The presence of one or more of these signs is reason enough to recommend a more thorough exam and some diagnostic tests: