CAT HEALTH & MEDICINE

Car sickness affects a high percentage - perhaps as many as half - of all household cats in the U.S. In some cases, the disorder and its manifestations may be caused by a fleeting disturbance of a cats vestibular system - the complex array of nerves and other components, centered in an animals inner ear and lower brain, that governs his sense of balance and coordinates the movement of his head and eyes.

Most cats are likely to contract an upper respiratory disease at some point during their lives. Although a wide range of viral and bacterial agents may be responsible for these common disorders, perhaps the most frequently diagnosed is infection with the feline herpesvirus (FHV).

Diabetes mellitus is a frequently diagnosed disease of the feline pancreas, a relatively small, thin organ nestled in the front portion of a cats abdomen.

I have worked for local spay/neuter non-profit organization 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 referred to as puffy pad disease.

I have a cat that has a problem with a weeping eye (at the nose), a condition she has had for several years.

We all know that many cats are finicky, but a distinction must be made between choosy cats as opposed to cats that are losing or have entirely lost their appetite. Poor or decreasing appetite is one of the most frequent motivations for a cat owner to seek veterinary advice.

Digestive system disorders are among the most frequently observed health problems in cats. Many of these disorders may be directly associated with organs such as the liver, pancreas and gall bladder, all of which play a crucial role in the digestive process. Many others, however, may arise in the alimentary canal, the long tube leading from a cats mouth and extending the full length of the animals body. A signal that something has gone wrong somewhere within this passageway often takes the form of a process scientifically termed emesis - but most commonly referred to as vomiting.

Theres an abundance of kittens right now. Go visit the local shelter and have a look. Or peruse Craigslist or other Internet sites and see how many unwanted litters are out there.

A reader expresses her concerns about adopting an FIV-positive cat

Like every veterinarian, I evaluate the mouth and gums of my patient whenever Im performing a physical examination. I expect to find nice pink gums, and most of the time, I do. Occasionally, however, Ill note with dismay that the gums are pale, or even white. This finding immediately sets off alarm bells in my head: This cat is anemic. The task of making a diagnosis now begins.

When removing a malignant tumor, a surgeon cant see a single cancer cell left behind with the naked eye - or even 10,000 cancer cells. Thats a microscopic amount, which is why excised tumors currently get sent to pathologists. They can look at a few small sections of an excised tumor under the microscope and get an idea of whether the cancer was removed in its entirety. But what if a method was developed that allowed cancer surgeons to see right in the operating room, before the patient was closed back up, whether any cancer cells remained?

You sit anxiously in the waiting room while your cat undergoes surgery to remove a cancerous mass. Finally, after what seems like forever, the doctor comes out in his scrubs and tells you he was able to excise the malignant tumor and that he believes he got it all. Relieved but not yet out of the woods, you wait for the pathology report.