It has been a magical month: lunch with Astronaut Richard Clifford, Awards Ceremony at Auburn, and my son, Jason, graduating from University of South Carolina. Whew! Then is past weekend, I drove to the mountains to visit with a long time friend who is a physical therapist at Cerebral Palsy Children in North Africa. The most blessed gift of all of these events, however, has been the graduation of my nephew, Dr. Scott Thomas, from Medical School in West Virginia one week ago. Perhaps the question arises, "How this supersede all the prior events, including my own son's graduation?"
Scott is the second son of my brother, Tommy, a pediatrician in Matthews, NC.
Approximately 12 years ago, Scott began having terrible headaches. Specialized testing revealed a brain tumor, a Teratoma, which silently develops in teenage boys. It is quite similar to the cancer that Lance Armstrong had. Scott went through surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. One shining light is in the midst of his treatment and isolation from peers was contact from the Make a Wish Foundation. He was granted his wish of a pool table and other indoor entertainment items to share with his 6 siblings and friends (when possible). A huge race car fan, Jeff Gordon invited him to tour his setup at Rockingham raceway. What an experience! Through the years, Scott has volunteered at Victory Junction, the Petty family’s summer camping experience, among other service opportunities.
But I digress. On Saturday night at the Raleigh Convention Center, the Wish Ball, a major fund raising opportunity for the Eastern NC region of Make A Wish, honored Scott as the first Make a Wish recipient to graduate from medical school. I am very proud of his accomplishments, and grateful to the Make a Wish Foundation for all they do for children with medical health challenges. By granting their wishes, they provide a shining moment of happiness.
With that, I return to the veterinary world to discuss today’s subject: Taking cats to the vet.
What is the "teaching moment" concerning cat-friendly transport in taking cats to the veterinarian ?
Many cat owners dread bringing their cats to the vet. Their cats hide when they see the carrier, scratch and & bite their owners, vocalize all the way to the clinic, and are upset with the sights and sounds of dogs nosing their carrier in the reception area. To enact a pre-emptive strike, there has to be a better way! The Catalyst Council has an excellent video on its web site about acclimating cats to carriers. Cats do NOT like change in their lives so the following are brief pointers:
-Start habituating cats to the carrier and car early by leaving the carrier out in the house on a regular basis and taking your cat on little mini-trips around the neighborhood. Feed in the crate or place special treats/toys in the cage with the door open.
- Put soothing synthetic pheromones (Feliway spray) or clothing the cat associates with a favorite person in the carrier before transport
- Cover the carrier with a towel
- Withhold food before a car trip or consider motion sickness medications for those cats that get carsick
Are sedatives available for cats that are very fearful of veterinary visits?
Yes, alprazolam at ½ of a 0.25mg tablet at 1 hour prior to visits per 10 lbs of body weight. In some cases, gabapentin, also called Neurontin, is used as a sedative tool.
Is there a separate entrance for cats at Creature Comforts by request?
Yes, there is an entrance on the south side of the building (marked with a concrete cat) with a dedicated parking spot at the door. Use the drive up call button “Fast Pass” to alert the CCAH team that you have arrived. Inside a cat room with a dedicated play area and a soothing aquarium video will help calm your cat. It is away from the noise of the practice for our special feline friends.
What can be done to decrease stress for your cat in the exam room?
- Allow time for adjustment; let your cat wander at first if it wants. Approach kitty in a calm manner while trying to avoid eye contact.
- When possible, let the veterinarian examine your cat where the cat wants to be, handling with minimal restraint, utilizing a towel sprayed with Feliway(from CCAH) to over calming and darkness
- In some cases, additional medication is needed to reduce stress or pain
- About 90% of cat exams can be done with your cat in the bottom half of the carrier on the lap or with the cat directly on the lap.
What is Feliway, Pheromone therapy?
A cat's sense of smell far exceeds our own and is important in communication, social behavior, sexual activity, and food appreciation. The scent of dogs, unfamiliar people, and the marking of another cat (even rubbing) can be frightening and arousing for another cat.
A synthetic product, Feliway, mimics the natural pheromone that is deposited when a cat rubs their face on objects and provides calming effects in unfamiliar or stressful environments such as car rides. Spray the crate a minimum of 30 minutes before placing cat in carrier for transport. It is available in both diffuser and spray.
What else can be done to ease kitty's visit?
Get cats into the exam room as quickly as possible. Cat's hearing is approximately four times more sensitive than ours, but cats don't localize sounds well. They hear higher frequencies than people, including ultrasounds. The noise from veterinary medical equipment can startle feline patients.
What can be done for hospitalized cats?
Cats that must be admitted to the hospital have an escalated need for a sense of familiar things to help make them more comfortable. Items from home, such as bedding, brushes, food, bowls, or toys are helpful to bring comfortable home smells. Placing your cat's carrier in the cage if there is sufficient space provides a familiar hiding place.
What are some basic visual cues in understanding cats and their body language?
Understanding visual communication with a range of subtle body postures, facial expressions, and tail positions is important to diffuse tension.
Brenda Griffin, DVM, MS, DACVIM, author of Maddie's® Shelter Medicine Program (University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine) has noted several important points in these areas. In order to protect themselves, cats don't display pain and illness as dogs and humans do. Thus their illness if often more advanced when presented to the veterinarian than dogs.
Any cat will try to defend itself if it feels threatened. It is important to remember that fear is the #1 cause of "misbehaving" at the veterinary clinic. This is normal feline behavior derived from predator avoidance behavior in the wild. Recognizing body postures associated with fear helps prevent escalation of the fear and possible injury to all involved.
Fearful animals usually engage in one of the Four F's:
* Freeze - a cat crouches and becoming immobile
* Flight - the cat actively tries to hide
*Fight – aggression (for suspected self-protection to avoid a frightening stimulus
*Fidget – tremor in fear
In addition, facial signals of the eyes/ears give immediate feedback as to the fear and aggression level. Similar body language is implied by tail position of a cat.
1. Erect ears indicate the cat is alert and focusing on a stimulus.
2. Ears swiveled downward and sideways indicate a defensive cat.
3. Ears swiveled to display the inner ear flap sideways indicate an aggressive cat.
4. Pupils slit indicate a calm cat
5. Pupils widely dilated signal fear and the fight-or-flight response
6. Pupils oblong signal aggression.
7. Pupil size generally correlates to the intensity of the situation and cats use it to read each other’s intent to fight or not.
8. The cat's tail is held up vertically or wrapped indicates relaxed, friendly intentions.
9. A tail held straight down or perpendicular to the ground indicates offensive postures.
10. A tail lashing vigorously from side to side indicates an agitated state.
Betsy Sigmon DVM, Hospital Director
Creature Comforts Animal Hospital
Sage, a Bengal cat owned by Martha Hall
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