Meet Sassafrass, aka Sassy! Two weeks ago, she came to visit us for a senior wellness exam. She was hissing and growling. When Dr. Demos tried to examine her mouth, she bit the tongue depressor in half!
Today, she came back to visit us after being treated with Gabapentin the night before her exam and the morning before. She only gave one hiss when Dr. Demos touched her hind leg in preparation for giving her distemper vaccine. The doctor got a good look in her mouth, we were able to check her blood pressure, and she even let us snuggle her!
Congrats, Sassy! You get a gold star, today!
Since we've been posting about so many things that are toxic for your cat, here's something you may not know that is SAFE for your cat!
We had a client bring us some valerian-filled catnip toys. In the video, you can see one of our technician's senior citizen cats enjoying a valerian-filled fish.
Valerian is stinky to people, but cats think it smells a lot like catnip! In fact, in a 2017 study of cats, tigers and bobcats, about 80% of domestic cats responded to silvervine, while only 68% responded to catnip, and about 50% responded to Tatarian honeysuckle and valerian. All four of these plants contain the monoterpenoid chemical called nepetalactone, which is the main chemical that cats like about catnip. They may also like a chemical called actinidine, but the study did not completely analyze this response.
These other plants are very safe, and could be a great way to give your cat some life enrichment. Or, if your cat doesn't like catnip, they may like one of these alternatives!
We'd love to see your cat enjoyinhg some catnip, or a catnip alternatives.
Reference: Responsiveness of cats (Felidae) to silver vine (Actinidia polygama), Tatarian honeysuckle (Lonicera tatarica), valerian (Valeriana officinalis) and catnip (Nepeta cataria)
Sebastiaan BolEmail, Jana Caspers, Lauren Buckingham, Gail Denise Anderson-Shelton, Carrie Ridgway, C. A. Tony Buffington, Stefan Schulz and Evelien M. Bunnik
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12917-017-0987-6
Tipsy isn't as off-balance after surgery as you might think she should be!
Devoted Friends Animal Society, Inc. introduced us to this adorable little lady named "Tipsy". She was found by Animal Control with her leg caught in a wooden fence, where she had been stuck for a couple days. When she was found, her leg was wounded, the compression from the fence had caused a huge amount of swelling, and she was unable to move the leg. After the swelling resolved, it was evident that the nerve damage was going to be permanent - blood flow to the leg was normal, but she still could not use the limb, and there was a question about whether the wound on her leg would heal appropriately.
Today, Dr. Demos performed surgery to amputate her leg at the shoulder, and here little 3-pound Tipsy is, less than an hour after surgery, acting like nothing happened. She spread food all over her cage like a typical kitten, and she is purring and affectionate, saying "thank you" to her foster mom, Devoted Friends, and Animal Control for finding her and helping her. We wish her a quick recovery, and a loving family to care for her from now on!
Tellula is FIV+ but still deserves a loving home!
TELLULA, the Beat Up Boy Cat needs an INDOOR home!
His foster mom says,
"Tellula was spotted on May 21, 2018 as a stray cat, very hungry, looking for food. He has frost bite on his ears and scars on many places, esp. above his right eye. He was also limping and super skinny. His fur looked wet all the time. On May 31st, I was finally able to lure him into a giant carrier with food in it. It was 10 day since he was 1st seen and a scar above his eye looked fresh. No sign of healing. I can also see an infection there too.
"My original plan was to treat his wound with antibiotic where I can monitor his progress and any reaction to medicine, if any. In addition, I took him inside to give him food and place to rest to gain more strength and be ready for a neuter surgery.
"I recently encountered a FIV positive stray cat in the area. So, I took him to AAAR on Sat (Jun 2nd) for Combo Test and to get him Advantage Multi for treat Fleas and certain parasites. He’s also on antibiotic since Jun 1st. He scars seem to dry out and form scab nicely. It turns out that he’s FIV + (FeLV Negative).
"Tellula gains more trust in me and in human in general. He’s fully alert and didn’t scare of dogs (so many high energy dogs at AAAR on Sat). The whole time during a vet check up and blood draw, he didn’t hiss at all. The vet said, apart from him being so skinny, he appears to be in a good health. He’s around 3 year old, she said.
"In his kennel, he also loves to be petted, head butts my petting stick, rolls on his tummy and enjoys head and checks rubs. He has a soft sweet meow and doesn’t demand much of anything.
"I won’t be able to keep him for long as my husband is not happy with more cat in the house, even on a temporary basis. My male cats are very aggressive toward him too. Plus, Tellula would gain more strength with good food and a little more exercise. At least a place that has a room for him to walk around a little bit. I don’t have a spare room to keep him
Mr. B about 1 hour after dental surgery
Mr. B had a cavity so he had a dentistry, today. When we discharge our dental patients, we talk about the side effects of the pain medication we give when we extract a tooth. Most cats act very affectionate and social when treated with Buprenorphine, and their pupils become very dilated. As you can see in this video, Mr. B is enjoying his pain medication very much!
Homeless kittens are waiting for YOU!
Three little kittens have lost their mittens...we mean momma. They are all 10 week old boys with classic tabby markings. The one with the pink collar in the video was neutered about a half hour before this video was taken, so he is a little unsteady on his feet, but still wants to play! One of them may have a home already, but the other two are looking for homes and there are more to come! People interested in adopting should call Donna Biron at 248-417-6918. We met 5 little 5 week old kittens, today, from a different litter who will also be looking for homes when they get to be a little older. In the meantime, enjoy some videos of kittens being adorable!
He still sits funny, and periodically falls to the right, but it seems like every day he gets a little better. Today, Olaf carried his tail upright for a few minutes, which is new. He climbed up on the lower levels of a cat tree and a cardboard house the children constructed for him, went under the coffee table and couch, under Doc McStuffins's exam table, chased a sparkle ball and a feather wand, pounced on the Cat's Meow for 20 minutes straight, and did some running laps around the room!
One of our techs took Olaf home overnight to give him some extra attention. Here he is, learning that he can jump...sort of.
Olaf is playing now!
Today, we were able to encourage Olaf to play for the first time. He is wearing a Fentanyl pain patch, which gives him continuous pain control for 5 days. You can see in the video, a small shaved spot where it is stuck to his skin. We are very encouraged by the fact that he is playing, but he is not gaining weight like he should, after his initial weight gain, and he is still not using his hind limbs normally (called "ataxia"). He leans on the wall or on people if he is standing, and if he has nothing to lean on, he stumbles or falls to one side. We will be re-x-raying him tomorrow to see if we can learn anything new about his condition.
Olaf is feeling better, today. He has started walking around, purring, and interacting more with people and his snuggle buddy.
This is Buddy's video, but Meow Meow doesn't want to get left out! Please contact us at 248-666-5287 if you are interested in meeting this adorable pair!
