CAT | Top 10 common Cat Diseases and How to Prevent Them

1.Rabies

Cats also suffer from rabies, and the symptoms are similar to dogs. During the mania phase, cats will go into hiding and attack people or other animals that come near them. The pupil will dilate, the back will be arched, the PAWS will be extended, the continuous meow will become hoarse. As the disease progresses to paralysis, movement becomes uncoordinated, followed by paralysis of the hindquarters, then paralysis of the head muscles, and death soon follows.

  • Prevention

The first dose of rabies vaccine should be injected when the cat is over three months of age, and then it should be injected once a year.

2.Feline Panleukopenia

Also known as cat plague or feline microvirus, it is an acute highly contagious infectious disease transmitted through contact with viral excreta or blood-sucking insects and fleas. It can also be transmitted to kittens from mother to mother. Symptoms include sudden onset of high fever, intractable vomiting, diarrhea, dehydration, circulation problems, and rapid loss of white blood cells.

  • Prevention

Kittens are given the basic core vaccine starting at 8 to 9 weeks of age, followed by a booster every 3 to 4 weeks, with the last dose falling over 16 weeks of age (three doses). Adult cats that have never been vaccinated should be given two doses of core vaccine, spaced 3-4 weeks apart. Older cats who were vaccinated as children and haven’t received a booster for more than five years also need a booster.

3.The Cat Diabetes

Cats mostly suffer from Type 2 diabetes, in which the body’s cells fail to respond to insulin and glucose builds up in the blood. Symptoms are more than three “eat more, drink more, urinate more”, decreased activity, lethargy, weight loss. The most dangerous problem caused by diabetes is ketoacidosis, which causes symptoms including loss of appetite, weakness, lethargy, abnormal breathing, dehydration, vomiting and diarrhea, and in severe cases death.

  • Pevention

“High carbohydrate, low protein” diet is also one of the predisposition factors of diabetes. Feed high quality canned, low carbohydrate or raw food as much as possible. In addition, increasing the amount of exercise can also reduce the symptoms of high blood sugar in cats.

4. Lower Urinary Tract Syndrome

Feline lower urinary tract disease is a series of clinical symptoms caused by urinary bladder and urethra irritation, common causes include spontaneous cystitis, urolithiasis, urethral embolus, etc. Cats aged between 2 and 6 years old are prone to obesity, indoor breeding, little exercise, dry feed as staple food and high stress. Symptoms include increased use of the toilet, prolonged squatting, meowing when urinating, dripping of urine, redness of urine, frequent licking of the urethral opening or disorderly urination.

  • Prevention

1. Increase water intake. Cats need to drink 50 to 100㏄ per kilogram of body weight per day to ensure adequate urine output.

2. Control your weight moderately.

3. Clean the litter box regularly, preferably in a quiet, well-ventilated place.

4. Try to avoid stressful situations for your cat.

5.Chronic Renal Failure

Chronic renal failure is the first cause of death in felis catus. The initial symptoms are not obvious, and the two main reasons are aging and lack of water in the body. Symptoms include drinking too much, urinating too much, loss of appetite, weight loss, lethargy and abnormal hair loss.

  • Prevention

1. Increase your water intake.

2. Control diet. Cats should not take in too much protein or sodium when they are older. Insufficient potassium intake may also lead to chronic kidney disease.

3. Keep toxins out of your cat’s mouth, such as non-toxic floor cleaners or moldy feed, which can cause kidney damage.

6.Feline Immunodeficiency Virus Infection

Commonly known as cat AIDS, belongs to the virus infection caused by immune deficiency disease, and the human HIV is similar but not transmitted to humans, the main way of infection is through fighting scratch or bite saliva spread to spread each other, so the domestic cat kept in the indoor infection rate is low. Symptoms include fever, chronic gingivitis and stomatitis, chronic dysentery, weight loss and emaciation.

  • Prevention

Cats are more likely to be infected with HIV outside, so keeping cats indoors can reduce the risk. In addition, giving cats a balanced diet and reducing environmental stress can also improve their immunity and reduce the incidence of AIDS.

7. Hyperthyroidism

Endocrine disease of multiple organ dysfunction caused by excessive secretion of thyroxine occurs in mature or old cats. Common symptoms include increased appetite but weight loss, excessive energy and sleeplessness, anxiety, irritability or aggressive behavior, local hair loss and tarniness, and drinking too much urine.

  • Prevention

The exact cause of the disease has not yet been determined. Owners can only observe the abnormal symptoms from the daily routine of cats, and the thyroid examination can be added to the health examination of elderly cats.

8. Viral rhinotracheitis in cats

A common infection of the upper respiratory tract caused by feline herpesvirus (HERpesvirus). It is highly contagious and is transmitted through infected saliva, droplets, and contaminated objects. The main symptoms are cough, stuffy nose, sneezing, fever, runny nose, lethargy, anorexia, conjunctivitis and so on.

  • Prevention

1. Administering core vaccines.

2. Multiple cat families need to meet the resources and social relationships needed by each cat to avoid pressure.

3. Owners should wash their hands and change clothes when contacting other cats outside to avoid pathogen infection.

4. High temperature and high humidity will affect the immunity of cats. The temperature at home should be below 28 degrees and the humidity should be controlled at about 50%.

9. The Cat Tinea

Cat fungal skin infection, infectious force is strong, the symptoms are irregular round hair removal area, mixed with scaly spots and scars, sometimes mixed with allergic papules, more in the cat’s face, trunk, limbs and tail, etc., but also to humans.

  • Prevention

1. Exposure to sunlight can kill mold and boost the absorption of vitamin D and calcium, boosting immunity.

2. Maintain a sterile and clean environment to reduce the chances of survival of fungal spores that cause feline ringworm.

3. Strengthen the nutrition of cats to increase resistance, supplement B vitamins, omega-3 fatty acids and zinc, etc.

10. Arthritis

Aging diseases of elderly cats, due to running, jumping, overuse of sports, or due to the shape, genes, past injuries caused by joint structure instability, after a long time accumulation and wear caused by joint inflammation and compression diseases. Symptoms include significantly reduced activity, hind limb weakness, dragging, reluctance to jump or load, and reduced willingness to interact with people.

  • Prevention

1. Control your cat’s weight. Excess weight is the primary culprit of joint loss.

2. Moderate activity, daily exercise can exercise muscles and ligaments, can let the cat and toys more interaction.

3. Add glucosamine and other nutrients in the daily diet to maintain joints and cartilage and delay the occurrence of arthritis.

4. Place non-slip pads on older cats to reduce joint load.


Post time: Mar-03-2022