Ask the Doctor

I am feeding an intact feral cat with whom I have formed a friendship. Recently when I fed him in the morning, I noticed that the skin behind his ears had been ripped open, probably during a fight.

My veterinarian told me that my cat has a heart murmur. Does this mean he will die prematurely from heart disease?

My four-year-old cat, Stripe, has been diagnosed with an overactive immune system. Last year, he had surgery to remove a cranial lung lobe and the biopsy found the necrotic mass to be non-malignant. Chronic lymphoplasmacytic inflammation was the diagnosis.

Q My son and I recently adopted an older cat from our local shelter. We named him Vincent and so far, so good. He came with his necessary vaccinations, etc. so we havent needed to take him to the veterinarian yet. One night while watching television, Vincent was rubbing on me and I noticed something strange about his teeth. He is missing one of the big fangs!

Q I have been breeding Singapura kittens on a very small, informal scale for several years and will soon be ramping up the scale with three fertile females and the launch of a small online cattery.

Q There used to be a lot of talk about the dangers of BHA, BHT and ethoxyquin used as preservatives in certain pet foods. Have they been replaced by different ingredients, or are there simply fewer concerns about them now?

Q My husband and I live in an elderly community, with plenty of pet lovers. Our neighbor recently lost her toy breed dog, and offered to give us a case of small cans of dog food to feed our two cats.

We are living on a fixed income as retirees, and wouldnt object to a couple of weeks of free food! But we wanted to first make sure that the dog food - a premium brand - would be safe for our cats. Please advise.

Q Our two cats are siblings, and have long, handsome tails, which are mostly held straight up. However, the last three to four inches seem to be independent of the rest of the tail. When the tail is straight up, the end of it wags gently back and forth. But when they are stalking something, the majority of the tail is held down, but the end remains up.

I am writing in hopes that you may have a suggestion regarding my three-year-old Persian cat. I adopted her through an agency when she was about two years old, but nothing was ever mentioned about her eating issues. I have now learned that she will not eat moist cat food of any flavor, and from what I can tell, she does not drink water! I have tried many tricks, and make certain that she has access to fresh water (in different areas of the house) at all times.

Last month, a little stray kitten showed up at my house and I brought him into my home (I have three other adult cats). The following day, I took him to the vet to be examined and started on vaccines, etc. He appeared to be about 10 to 12 weeks at the time. During the appointment, I mentioned that his anus sometimes pokes out a little and looks a little red. Other times, it looks normal.

I have worked for a spay/neuter non-profit organization called Forgotten Felines of Sonoma County for the past 16 years, and we deal primarily with stray and feral cats. Over the past two years, we have been seeing a condition that is commonly known here as puffy pad disease.

Q Recently, one of our two cats has started to urinate around the house. Both are spayed seven-year-old females, who have always been very well-behaved and loveable pets. I know that the first course of action is to have a veterinary examination to rule out the possibility of illness before creating a plan of action. But here is the problem: How can we determine the culprit?