Spotted Cat Designs

Last year our beloved first cat, Panther developed diabetes. So we learned about injecting insulin and glucose curves. Last fall, he vomited violently 3 times, and we rushed him to the pet emergency clinic on a Saturday night. We learned about pancreatitus (again) and giving subcutaneous fluids.

Panther has had several more episodes of pancreatitus. So we keep an I/V unit with a pouch of Ringers Lactate ready in the closet. We already had one cat chew through the tubing, so the closed closet is safest. When his fur looks bad and I tent his scruff which doesn’t go down quickly — with Steven’s help I give him subQ fluids from 50 to 150ccs at a time. Sometimes once a week, sometimes twice a day.

When Panther meows and makes me follow him, then jumps on the “insulin perch” I know to give him his 1/4 unit of Lantus/Glargine. But only after he eats!

We learned that Panther has a “sensitive” pancreas. That’s the organ that produces insulin and various digestive enzymes. So he eats prescription Hills Science Diet I/D and canned Purina Proplan salmon/fish or turkey and giblets. The canned food is amongst those recommended for diabetic cats.

During this time Panther has willfully downgraded himself socially from top male cat to the bottom of the social scale. So no more energy expended in boxing matches with Charger.

Panther is wise enough to direct us in what he needs and when. And we have become wise enough to listen. That is why he is still alive and experiencing a decent quality of life.

For travel by car, RV, motor home or plane in the U.S.:

Traveling With Your Pet, 9th Edition: The AAA Pet Book

The Pet Travel and Fun Authority of Best-of-State Places to Play, Stay & Have Fun Along the Way: 35,000+ Accommodations, Pet Sitters, Kennels, Dog Parks … Tons-of-Pet Fun & More Guide! 12th Edition

The Portable petswelcome.com: The Complete Guide to Traveling with Your Pet

10-Minute Tech, Volume 3: Over 600 All New Time and Money Saving Ideas from Fellow RVers has a number of handy pet specific tips in their “In Camp” section

For Boaters:
Cruising With Your Four-Footed Friends: The Basics of Travel with Your Cat or Dog

First Aid at Home or on the Road:
Pet First Aid: Cats and Dogs by the American Red Cross

The First Aid Companion for Dogs & Cats (Prevention Pets) Rodale Press

The web site of the American Association of Feline Practitioners is primarily for veterinarians. If you use their “find a practitioner” it will only show you member veterinarians, not all veterinarians that care for cats.

If you go to their Practice Guidelines page, you will find a few really large .pdf files detailing their suggestions to all veterinarians on many subjects including feline pain management, zoonoses and assisting aging cats. This group and the European Society of Feline Medicine which is linked with the Feline Advisory Bureau(UK), publish the bimonthly Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery. While a large part of the site focuses on technical matters, the Feline Advisory Bureau web site also has practical information about catteries, boarding facilities, and useful information for those who are owned by their cats.

I had previously written about some videos that showed cats having asthma attacks. I have found some more useful videos that I thought important to share with you.

These How To Health Videos are from the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine Feline Health Center web site. These videos are:

• Caring for your Diabetic Cat
• Giving Your Cat a Pill or Capsule
• Giving Your Cat Liquid Medication
• Trimming Your Cat’s Claws
• Taking Your Cat’s Temperature
• Brushing Your Cat’s Teeth

While browsing the Internet I came across some useful freebies and important safety and emergency information. While some focus on dogs, the basic information is applicable to all pets.

There is no substitute for being prepared for an emergency. A basic first aid kit for humans and pets seems a sensible thing to have. So does making sure that everyone old enough for the responsibility of caring for a pet, knows the basic signs of a medical problem, what to do and who to call. Talk with your vet, your family so you know what to do before something goes terribly wrong.

We have our veterinarian’s phone number in the kitchen and on all our cell phones.

Cornell University’s Feline Health Center “Max’s House” covers detailed instructions on what to do in a given medical emergency, including recommended components for a first aid kit, normal respiration counts, how to restrain a frightened cat, and immediate first aid for breathing difficulties, bleeding, bone or soft tissue injuries and shock.

The same site offers the most detailed list of cat-toxic plants that I have found (by Common Plant Name), including the ASPCA toxic plant list. Cornell also lists the plants by the Latin Genus/Species. This second listing provides poisoning symptoms and treatment.

The ASPCA has a number of useful articles:

Non-Toxic plants

What to do if your pet ate or drank something that may be poisonous

The phone number for Animal Poison Control Center of the for ASPCA is (888) 426-4435. FYI they state “There is a $55 consultation fee for this service“.

Be ready with the following information:
- the species, breed, age, sex, weight and number of animals involved
- the animal’s symptoms
- information regarding the exposure, including the agent (if known), the amount of the agent involved and the time elapsed since the time of exposure.

Have the product container/packaging available for reference.”

Pedigree has a free first aid guide for pet owners. Go to the page and click on “downloadable” by the upper right icon. Their disaster preparedness brochure has very useful tips for evacuting your pets — in part based on lessons learned from the Hurricane Katrina devastation.
Other canine related safety information can be found on their “First Aid and Safety” web page.

Other useful links:

Contents of a Feline first aid kit

Another list for a feline first aid kit If you scroll down, you will also find information on giving your cat pill or liquid medication, some poisonous houseplants, and some basic warning signs of illness.

Cat Channel discusses what to do for burns, broken bones, electric shock and insect stings. Good to know before anything goes wrong.