Vaccine-associated sarcoma in cats

Daisy made a very good point in comments, which is that there is a risk of vaccine-associated sarcoma in cats (read more...). It's good for cat parents to know about this risk. Our vet does vaccines in a leg, because that is easier to remove if a sarcoma develops. In our state, a rabies vaccine is required for cats, but nothing else. Keeping your kitty indoors can protect them from FeLV and other communicable diseases. Our cats are all indoors and only go out on supervised leash walks.

More about Leukemia in cats

We got Baby Scout's ashes back yesterday. We are having a very hard time accepting her death. A few weeks before she was vibrant, healthy and active. 

Here is some more info to go with this post about leukemia in cats.

Confusion
It's hard to find info about leukemia in cats because most results on Google are for Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV) - which is a misnomer, it's a retro-virus, like HIV, not cancer itself, though it is suspected that it can cause cells to become cancerous.

Baby didn't have the virus. Baby had leukemia the cancer on its own. I got a little sad yesterday because I was telling someone and they scolded "Oh, well you should have vaccinated your cat!", implying I was neglectful and deserved it. I had to explain that it wasn't the same thing - but I'm not sure they believed me. It hurt because my husband and I treated Baby like she was our own baby. She couldn't have been more protected and pampered with care. Still I resisted my urge to slug this person. After all, if I thought someone failed to vaccinate a cat, wouldn't I "tsk tsk" too? I've been wondering if I should just tell people she died of "cancer" and leave it at that.

Info on standalone Leukemia in cats
There's two types of Leukemia, acute and chronic. Lots of subsets of each.
1) Chronic hits older animals, but is much slower, more treatable and the symptoms can be more subtle.
2) Acute usually strikes the young to middle aged and healthy. It kills very quickly. Based on Baby's health beforehand, symptoms such as very large, immature blasts, the extreme severity, and very sudden onset, I think she very clearly had Acute. The prognosis for this is "bad" as I highlighted below. Autopsy revealed it had already spread to her spleen.

A good plain-English article on Leukemia in cats and dogs

Therapy and prognosis for the different types of leukemia are quite different. ALL tends to have a very poor prognosis, and affected animals often succumb to secondary infection.... Unfortunately, pets with ALL often die within days to months of diagnosis.

A more medical article on Leukemia in cats with photos of blood cells

Although there are many similarities between the human and animal forms of the disease, the clinical course and outcome are very different. The prognosis with chemotherapy treatment is poor in canine and feline patients, and the average survival time is only a few months. Untreated, the estimated survival time from diagnosis is less than two weeks

Baby passed away on Friday

Scout, "Baby", lost her battle on Friday.

We did everything medically possible to save Baby, including rounds of ultrasounds, endoscopy, IV/oxygen, and brought in our other 2 cats and my mothers cats as potential blood donors. But she was unable to recover and we had her put to sleep. We had an autopsy performed. The vets determined it was leukemia (the cancer not FeLV).

It would be impossible to sum-up what she meant to us. There are so many stories. She was more than our "pet cat" she was like another person to us and our best friend and baby. My husband and I are devastated.

Instead of gifts for us this Christmas, we asked our family to give to the Springfield Humane Society in her name. If anyone else would like to give to a very good independent, non-profit, humane society please consider leaving a donation in the name of "Scout". We did so the day after Scout passed.

Their Website is:  http://www.spfldhumane.org/

I also blogged about visiting them here. I visit frequently. And I can tell you that all the animals are wonderfully cared for and they are active in the community. They are a very deserving charity.

I probably won't feel like blogging for a few weeks. We are, anonymously through our vet, giving all of Baby's diabetic supplies to a needy family whose cat was just diagnosed. I couldn't throw away her last test strip just yet. We saved it in a baggy with her hair.

I wish you, your furry friends, and family a very Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Hanukkah.

Leukemia in Cats versus Feline leukemia virus (FeLV)

Might be of interest to cat owners, the similarities and differences between "Feline leukemia virus (FeLV)", a retrovirus that causes illness, for which there is a vaccine, and  "Leukemia", a form of cancer. Baby had Leukemia alone. She was vaccinated for FeLV and was retested as negative before her death.

Leukemia is a cancer of the blood or bone marrow and is characterized by an abnormal proliferation (production by multiplication) of blood cells, usually white blood cells (leukocytes). Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases. In turn, it is part of the even broader group of diseases called hematological neoplasms. ...continue reading about "Leukemia"

Feline leukemia virus (FeLV) is a retrovirus that infects cats. As a retrovirus, the genetic information of FeLV is carried by RNA instead of DNA. FeLV is usually transmitted between infected cats when the transfer of saliva or nasal secretions is involved. If not defeated by the animal’s immune system, the virus can be lethal. The disease is a virus, not a cancer. The name stems from the fact that the first disease associated with the virus was a form of leukemia. By the time it was discovered that the virus was not the same as leukemia, the misnomer had already found its way into the vocabulary of pet owners.
...continue reading about "Feline leukemia virus (FeLV)"

FeLV can infect wild species of cats as well, as in this case of an infected Bobcat.

Please think of my cat Baby

I've been quiet because my cat, Scout, aka "Baby", is seriously ill. She has been living with diabetes for a year. But recently she spiked a fever and out of control immune response.

She's in a vet clinic on multiple IVs. They aren't sure at this time what the original cause of her illness is. The outlook is poor.

Baby is my most beloved pet, and really my best friend. Please think of her.

Skunk does not equal cat

As you may recall, Armani had a little trouble distinguishing a frog from a carrot the other day. But that isn't the end to his wildlife safari.

Armani loves cats; big ones, little ones, kittens. He hasn't met a cat he can resist yet. They are all cute and demand snuggling and licking. I love cats too and can relate; except to the licking part.

This spring Armani found a fluffy black and white "cat" in his pasture. He gave it a good snuzzle. OOPS - it turned out to be a very smelly cat.

After 5 baths with vinegar, baking soda, tomato juice I figured he'd learned his lesson. Until the other day when the barn owner called. Apparently Armani had found the same "cat".

I've heard of horses getting skunked once, but twice?!

Thoughts on some cat topics.

So when I began this series, I asked for your questions, opinions and thoughts. I'm going to include some in this post. Please do share more in comments!

Outdoor cats?

Grey Horse Matters said...

We always had cats when we were children, but haven't since my son was diagnosed with being very allergic to them. Cats are not a part of our 'inside' lives but I was thinking of getting a barn cat to live outside. I've never done this because I've always thought it was mean to make an animal live outside. We do have a heated tack room where the cat could live in the winter months but I'm still undecided. Any thoughts on outside cats.

This is such a thought provoking topic. When I was a child (20 years ago) my family was frankly "eccentric" because we had "indoor only" cats. Times have changed. Now keeping cats indoors is more popular with the folks I know. There are a lot of good reasons to keep your cats indoors. So we always keep our inside. We do take them outside on a leash.

That said, there are far too many cats who are stray. Is it better for a cat to be a "barn cat" than a stray? I think so. A barn cat will be neutered, go to a vet, get regular meals and a warm place to sleep.

My shelter is reluctant to adopt a surrendered house cat out as a barn cat. However, they do have a "Barn Buddies" program. They are former strays who won't adapt well to indoor life. They are adopted out at a reduced fee. You might find a shelter in your area with such a program. Good luck!

By the way, has your son tried the shots? I know next to nothing about them but they helped my uncle live with a house cat.

Kids and cats

Netherfieldmom said...

We also teach our kids that when the cat wants to get down (signaled by squirming, etc.), it is very important to put the cat down gently, not let it spring out of your arms to the ground. This teaches the cat to trust you. The more you try to restrain them when they want to get away, the less they will trust you in the future.

That's really good advice. We don't have kids yet ourselves. We had a dinner party at our house a month ago. A little boy came with his parents. Scout and Sprite had never seen a child before and ran away from him like he was a tornado. But Toodles seems accustomed to children. His mother showed him how to nicely pat the kitty. He picked her up, even though she is almost as big as him, and brought her into the middle of the party. He ended up sharing most of his dinner with her! Toodles says he is welcome back any time.

Toodles is let loose!

This is the final chapter of bringing home Toodles, our new cat. Part 1 and Part 2.

Days 7-10, Toodles gets more space:

After we let Sprite and Scout into the den with Toodles, we decided Toodles could start coming out to meet them. This is a big step because, in Scout and Sprite's minds, Toodles was invading their territory.

We have a door on the stairway which separates our first floor from our second. So we shut it to keep Toodles downstairs. Then we brought Scout and Sprite down with us for the evening. We played with toys and ate more treats. We continued to try to keep the "old cats" from getting too close to the "new cat". Toodles found and used Scout's litter pan. Scout, ever the "boss" kitty, ran in and bit her tail as she exited. Then Scout did some digging and used the pan too. Scout was making it clear that it is her litter pan. Fortunately we had purchased a third pan for Toodles, so that each cat could have her own. I consider 1 pan per cat a minimum, or even 1 extra. We also scoop 2x a day. This helps avoid soiling outside the box.

That night we brought Scout and Sprite back up to bed. We left Toodles downstairs, to roam around on her own. We kept everything like that for a few days.

Day 12, Toodles is let loose!:

We opened the door to the upstairs. Toodles was excited to explore the rest of the house. Scout and Sprite followed her around. After a few hours, the pecking order became apparent. Scout had already established that she was the boss. But she seemed to accept Toodles. By the end of the day they were sitting on the sofa together. However Toodles and Sprite were both jockeying for second place. Mostly they did not come to blows, however there were a few hisses and swats. We were quick to distract them with toys.

For a few days, we kept putting Toodles alone downstairs at night. Finally it looked like Sprite was settling for third place. We decided Toodles could officially join the household permanently!

A few months later: Scout and Toodles have become fairly good friends. They often share a sofa and last night they cooperatively "hunted" a bat that was stuck in the chimney. Meanwhile Sprite and Toodles have learned to grudgingly accept each other, but still occasionally argue. This was a surprise to us. We'd expected when we got a third cat that Scout would have been cranky and that Sprite would have gotten along best. But our cats' personalities are complex and they defied our expectations for them.

Toodles meets our other cats

The continuing story of bringing home our new cat, Toodles

Day 2, "Sniffing":

We encouraged Sprite and Scout to sniff Toodles under the door. As they sniffed at her, we gave them both treats and praised them. Since all the ladies were in good spirits, we played too. We put a pencil under the door and Toodles batted it from the inside, while Sprite and Scout batted it from the outside.

That evening, I read the newspaper with Toodles. Then we watched TV with the other girls like usual.

Day 3, "Moving day!":

We moved Toodles and her stuff, from the guest room to the den down the hall. Then we left the guest room open. Scout and Sprite came in and sniffed around. We patted, gave treats, and praised them again. We did this so they could smell Toodles, without the pressure of a face to face meeting. They checked out everything. Then they figured out she was in the den. We encouraged more playing under the door.

Everyone seemed relaxed. So we opened the door a crack. They all got a quick peek at each other. We praised them and treated again. Then we shut the door.

Days 4-6, "Play dates!":

Sprite is less dominant than Scout. So Sprite had the first play-date with Toodles. We carried Sprite inside the den and held her for a while. We took her back out after a few minutes. In an hour she "asked" to be let back inside. We brought in a cat-fishing-rod toy. We played mostly with Sprite while Toodles watched.

Anytime one approached the other we quickly distracted them with the toy. When they separated and relaxed we gave them treats. At this point, even a friendly "Hello" could easily be misinterpreted by the other cat, and become a fight. So we wanted to keep them happy but slightly apart.

The next day, Scout had her first play date. Scout, our dominant cat, is less playful than Sprite. We held her and let her sit on us for the evening. While Toodles sat on the floor. Scout was happy to look at Toodles from the "high-ground".

Why might they fight? What do you do if they fight? Read this 3-page article from About.com:Cats.

Coming soon, Toodles gets free rein...

Bringing home Toodles, our new cat

I am chronicling bringing home our new cat, Toodles. We already had two adult female cats.

Sprite, age 7, is the playful one.

Scout, age 12, is the boss.

So my husband and I wanted a quiet, mature female cat, who we hoped would easily integrate with our two. We described our desires in a cat to our local humane society. They recommended Toodles, an 8 year old lady, who had been a pet before being surrendered. We liked her instantly.

To select a good match for your cats see this article.

We brought Toodles home. We gave her our guest room all to herself. Keeping her separate was important. Although Toodles had all her shots, sometimes cats can get colds at shelters because new ones are coming in often. Also, throwing a new cat into the mix, without proper introductions, can cause fights. Stressed cats can hold grudges. Some even let you know by not using their litter pan.

Toodles needed:

- A litter pan. We keep one litter pan per cat. We didn't have a spare one handy. So we made a temporary pan. We placed the pan by the door. Our pans really go in the laundry room down the hall. So once we let her out it wouldn't be hard for her to find them.

I've drawn a diagram.

- Her own food and water bowls. We washed them first so they wouldn't smell like our cats. Then we positioned them opposite the room from the pan. Cats like to eat and potty in separate areas.

- Some of her old food. We would mix it in with the brand we feed our cats, a little at a time.

- A scratching post. We didn't have a spare post either. We gave Toodles an old hooked carpet mat next to her litter pan. Want to build your own? Read these how-tos.

- A vet appointment for a check up. We gave the vet all her records from the shelter.


Day 1:

We let Toodles have an hour alone to sniff around and relax. She spent some time under the bed, which is normal for a cat in a new place. Then I went and sat on the floor quietly and let her come to me. I spent a little while with her, at different times during the first day. I let her sniff me, gently patted her. No pressure.

My husband and I spent a couple hours bonding with our two original cats. We didn't want them to think they were being "replaced" in the family. It was important to make sure they felt loved. So we watched TV, played with toys, and had a few treats.

Next episode coming soon...

Horseless Series: Your new cat

I'm going to do a short series on introducing a new cat to your household. Are there any broad or specific questions you have about:

- Choosing the "right" cat?
- What equipment a new cat needs?
- Helping your new cat adjust?
- Introducing your new cat to your other pets?

Or do you have a story you'd like to share?

I'll credit you and include a link to your blog, if you have one!

Disclaimer: I'm not a vet. Just a cat owner who dotes on her felines. I'll share my experience, link to more authoritative resources, or ask for suggestions from the crowd. :)

I'll have what she's having.

I'm sure most pet owners out there can relate. Everything I eat is delicious. A couple evenings ago, I brought a pastrami on rye to the barn. I rode Armani first. Then I thought I'd have a little snack while I groomed Huey.

"Mmm!" said Huey. I always give Huey treats at chest level. So he stuck his muzzle to his chest and nickered, "Mmm MMMM!"

"Huey, you are a vegetarian." I tried to explain.
"Uh uh. Mmm!" Huey insisted.

I presented Huey with a tiny corner of my sandwich. "Huey, you'll see. We've been over this before." He slurped it greedily. Then he paused and thought. Then he opened his mouth wide and vigorously shook the sandwich out. "I told you. You are a vegetarian." I went back to eating my sandwich.

Huey put on his "cute" face made big eyes at me. "Mmm! MMM!" said Huey. So I got Huey an apple instead.

Later that evening, I ate a salad in front of the TV. Baby, my cat, pawed my leg, "Murrrph?"

"No, Baby. Kitties are carnivores."
"Murphle Muuuuurph?" I put a piece of lettuce on the floor. She sniffled it, shook her head and sniffed again. Then she snorted and pushed a magazine over it in disgust.

"I tried to tell you, Baby." I picked up the offensive lettuce and went back to eating my salad.
"Murph?" Baby asked. I sighed and took her to the kitchen for a treat.

Horseless Friday (Oops make that Saturday) - a visit to our Humane Society

This is a day late and perhaps a dollar short. I missed doing my usual horseless post this Friday.

Mom and I had a nice ride with the boys today. After that I cleaned up at home, grabbed my devoted horse-husband, and we went to the Springfield Humane Society.

"There's only room for one on this blanket!"

My cat, Scout, who we call "Baby", made me promise not to bring anyone home. We have two cats, Scout and Sprite. Baby says she'd prefer to be the only cat in the house. She'd rather not have to share her bed, sunshine, and humans, and she occasionally has to remind Sprite.

So we visited the animal shelter to renew our membership and leave a donation. No new cats, I promise, Baby!

"Can I come home with you?"

My husband and I really liked "Ginger". She had a quiet, gentle sweetness. Maybe she wouldn't push Baby's buttons.
"Buttons already pushed! NO, Mom!"

"Hello, are your bookshelves a mess? Do you need any bookends?"

Well, let's see, there are so many more cats... Here are the twins, Marco and Matthew. The folks at the shelter call them the "Brat Brothers" because they love to run around together and get involved in everything.
"Oh, no. Don't even think it, Mom. Looks like double trouble to me!"

Ok, Baby. I promise, no cats stowed away in my purse. I was only visiting, I swear. Please let my cashmere sweater go. We'll just stick with visiting and fundraisers.

Baby and I will miss the Annual Paws Around Town Walk this year because I'll be at a horse show. But I'd love to bring Armani to the Freddy Pelland Memorial Ride.

If only I had my own horse trailer... Honey?

My Blogging Space

I was reading another horse blog and saw that someone had started a "My Blogging Space" theme of posts. Here are a few entries that others have written:

* Pony Girl

* Grey Horse

...What about yours?

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My Blogging Space


That's Baby, my cat, blogging away at my laptop. You first read about her on last Friday's post. Baby is always either sitting behind me on the floor, or on the table, or right on my keyboard. So if you are reading this blog thinking, "Sheesh, my cat could have written this!", now you know our secret.



My laptop is upstairs in our loft. I originally started this blog in the basement study, but outdoor horsey people don't thrive creatively in the dank, darkness. The loft has natural light and lots of air. Plus I think Baby enjoys watching birds through the windows when she isn't helping me type.

My husband and I just got married last year. Our families have been very generous helping us feather our nest. So as you can see our furniture is hand-me-down in an interesting and eclectic color palate, and our decor is sparse. But that leaves more room for house plants! (another of my hobbies) Isn't my 7ft tall Yucca impressive? Now as I'm looking, there is a lot of space above that sliding glass door. I better start growing some hanging baskets!

Horseless Friday: Outward Bound Cats

I'm going to start doing a horseless post every Friday. We'll have to see how long I can keep up! Some topics might be cooking, other pets, humor and hobbies. This Friday's topic is enjoying the outdoors with your cat.

---

Do you enjoy the outdoors? Your cat probably does too! There are a lot of health and safety reasons for keeping your cat confined indoors. (Click here to read a few.) My family has always kept our cats indoors. But my husband came from a no-cats-in-the-house family. However, when we married we both agreed to keep them indoor-only, and outdoors only under supervision. For some folks, this debate is a sure-fire way to start an argument, but we've fortunately "married" our differences. We sit on the floor and play with our cats every day; remember to have a friend you must first be a friend. And we provide toys (ping-pong balls are cheap thrills) and a screened porch for our two cats to enjoy. They enjoy the outdoors, but only under our supervision. Most people would never think of leaving their dog for long periods unattended outdoors, particularly toy dogs. As I once told my vet (and she heartily agreed), "Cats are not second-class pets!". Cats can be an integral part of family life, and can even be trained. (Yes, my cat does tricks for cat-nip. It's ok, you can laugh.) Which brings me to the topic of walking your cat on a leash, and other safe outdoor adventures. If Fido can enjoy life on the leash, so can Fluffy!

Here are some ideas for you and your cat:

Leash walking

Walking my cat on a leash has been a cooperative adventure. Some times I pick the direction, other times she does. But we always enjoy ourselves. She often finds interesting plants and insects that I would have walked right over. We use an "H" style harness. These are much more escape-proof than a "Figure-8" style or a collar and leash alone.

When you first put your cat on a leash, she will probably do one of four things:
* Lie down and refuse to move
* Wiggle backwards and attempt to escape
* Flip-around like a fish on a line
* Be just fine

In my experience, cats who have lived indoors think "the sky is falling!" when they first go out. If she has any trouble, try having her wear just the harness part, without the leash, around the house while you supervise. Supper time is a great time to introduce the harness as a good thing. Play time in the harness or cat-nip can also help. Our cats haven't had any trouble after a few sessions. When you start going outdoors together, only stay out for a few minutes at a time, and only go as far from the house as Fluffy is comfortable with. Slowly introduce her to meeting strange humans and to road noise. Also, we don't walk even our seasoned cats in the road on a leash. The traffic could be dangerous if they get startled. For that we use a carrier.

Carrying
There are a number of pet chest-carrier-packs made for small dogs, which work great for cats too. There are also completely enclosed strollers for small dogs or cats. I bet strollers would be perfect for city-dwelling kitties with access to nice sidewalks. My country kitties ride in the carriers I mentioned first. Again it's easiest to introduce this idea indoors, for short periods, before going on excursions. My cat, Baby, learned to ride in her pack, we call it her "Land Rover", at 10 years old, so no kitty is too old to learn new tricks. We carry her if we'll be walking near traffic, or if we are going on a long hike. Just smile while the neighbors stare and scratch their heads. We took her on our Humane Society's charity walk last year and she turned a few heads.



Enclosures

If you have an enclosed porch or sun-room at home, your cat probably already really enjoys it. Cats can get over or out of almost anything, so a complete enclosure (roof and all) is safest, especially if you aren't going to have your eye on Fluffy every minute. There are also a line of "KittyWalk" products on the market. They work like snap-together, cat-sized, hamster tunnels. I haven't tried them since we already have a screened-porch, but they look fun. Or Do-it-yourself - I've also seen houses with homemade kitty kennels, just like smaller versions of doggy ones. Or if you'd rather keep things simple, look for a "cat window seat (or perch)". These hook on to your window sill.

So don't be afraid to try some thing new with your cat, as long as you can handle a few funny looks from the neighbors. You may find you and Fluffy will become better friends! I won't say best friends, because cats VS dogs is one debate I know enough to stay out of!

Further resources:
* Don't forget to have Fluffy wear identification, in case you are separated. Ask your vet about microchips and for any other tips.
* About.com has a good essay here on safe outdoor alternatives. The About.com:Cats email list is a really good resource for cat owners. You can sign up here.
* You can order the Pet-A-Roo pouch from PETCO here. This is the one we use, but there are other similar products.
* We use this Lupine "H" style harness. It's been very secure and sturdy. They are very attractive too. Baby wears "Cherry Blossom".
* Check out KittyWalk Systems here