Posts in Category: Cats

As Reported on FOX News – ATLANTA –  The number of dogs and cats put to death in U.S. shelters is about one-fifth of what it was four decades ago.

“They were euthanizing about 15 million pets back in 1970,” said Betsy McFarland, vice president of companion animals at the Humane Society of the United States. “We’re now down to about 3 million every year. Of course, that’s 3 million too many. But that is tremendous progress that’s been made over the last four decades.”

During that same time period, the number of dogs and cats in the U.S. increased from 64 million to more than 160 million, according to Humane Society estimates. McFarland attributes the decline in euthanasia rates to spay/neuter campaigns targeted to underserved communities, better coordination among animal welfare organizations and changing social attitudes toward pets.

“I mean pets are really considered part of the family,” McFarland said. “And that has been a shift over the many decades where maybe pets were a little more utilitarian.”

Although the number of pets entering shelters has decreased nationwide, euthanasia rates at these shelters average close to 50 percent. But the Humane Society and other groups say their goal is to bring the number to zero, and they’re finding creative ways to head in that direction.

In the Atlanta area, the non-profit LifeLine Animal Project has helped two shelters lower their euthanasia rates from historic highs of 85 percent to less than 20 percent. LifeLine, which now manages shelters for Georgia’s DeKalb and Fulton Counties, brings its pets to adoption drives at shopping malls and other areas with large crowds. LifeLine also keeps many animals from entering shelters by offering “surrender counseling” to owners who are considering giving up their pets.

“What we found was that so many of the calls from the people who wanted to surrender their pets, they didn’t actually want to surrender their pets,” said Debbie Setzer, Lifeline’s community outreach director. “They may have had some financial hardship where they couldn’t afford dog food. They may have had a fence complaint where the dog was getting out.”

Pet owner Adrian Robinson, who’s already caring for a foster child and two adopted kids, says she felt overwhelmed when a highly energetic puppy joined her household.

“Keno doesn’t know his own strength,” Robinson said. “He was running around, jumping on the kids.”

LifeLine arranged free neutering, vaccinations and a training crate for Keno that helped calm him down and made it possible for Robinson to keep him. The mother and pet owner says she’s grateful to LifeLine’s staff for their assistance and advice.

“I love them,” Robinson said. “They did something for me that I couldn’t do for myself.”

Lifeline has helped other owners by repairing fences and helping them obtain donated pet food.

“Anything that we can do to keep that animal from coming into the shelter, we’ll try to do,” said LifeLine CEO Rebecca Guinn.

Before helping to create LifeLine, Guinn worked as a lawyer specializing in white-collar crime. While assisting a neglected dog in her neighborhood, she learned about the high euthanasia rates at her local shelter. Reducing those rates became her new passion (and full time job).

“There are more pets in American households than there are children. So, they’re a part of our lives,” Guinn said. “The idea that we use taxpayer dollars to round them up and then end their lives, to me, is not the right way to do it. And we’re working on a model where a shelter is truly a shelter — where the pets come in here, receive the care that they need and then can be re-homed — and where the community at large becomes a better community for pets to live in.”

Fox News’ Chip Bell contributed to this report.

Jonathan Serrie joined Fox News Channel (FNC) in April 1999 and currently serves as a correspondent based in the Atlanta bureau.

When his cats grew bored with scratching posts and turned their attention to his furniture and drapes, carpenter Stefan Hofmann created a feline wonderland of bridges and shelves on the walls of a room in his home. “I kept thinking, what would be exciting if I were a cat? Maybe a big risky leap from one shelf to another, or a little cove for them to snuggle into when they get tired,” said Hofmann of the design and building project. Hofmann says the cats are constantly at play in their new obstacle course. Daily News (New York)/Caters News Agency (U.K.)

In December, 2012, Linda Leek was grooming her “best friend,” Sheba, a beautiful white and gray cat with streaks of brown, when she found a lump.

”When I touched it she would kind of flinch,” Linda said. “Every time I would touch her in that area she would not bite me but put her mouth on me like ‘if you do it I will bite you’ – a warning sign.”

Linda took Sheba to Beverly Virgil Animal Hospital, which is not far from her apartment in Los Angeles’ Koreatown.  Dr. Seong K. Kim examined Sheba and determined that she needed surgery. He performed the operation and spayed Sheba. Sheba was in the hospital two days. “He just took really good care of her,” Linda said. “The surgery had to be done. I found out later that the tumor was malignant.”

Linda, who has multiple sclerosis, lives on Social Security disability benefits and has little extra money to spend. A friend paid the cost of the initial office visit and Angel Fund and the hospital took care of the rest. Linda is grateful for the help she received.

Since her surgery, Sheba has resumed her role as Linda’s best friend.  The two expect to have many more years together. “She has her good days and her bad days,” Linda said, “just like me.” A couple of months ago, Sheba added another member to the household.

“Somebody in the building threw a kitten out in the street outside our apartment and Sheba went out and brought it in,”Linda said. “It was really surprising because it’s just been me and her for 12 years. And she didn’t allow other cats around. She went out and rescued that kitten and I’m like, ‘well o.k., I guess we have another cat.’”

The black and white kitten looks like Figaro, the kitten from Pinochio, and that is what Linda named him.

Glaucoma, a condition in which the fluid within in the eye doesn’t drain properly, leads to painful pressure within the eye and can cause blindness within hours without treatment, according to veterinary ophthalmologists Paul Scherlie and Susan Kirschner. Symptoms in pets usually include signs of eye pain, such as rubbing the eye or exposure of the usually hidden third eyelid. Treatment varies and may not always be able to save the dog’s vision. The Oregonian (Portland)

One night in November of 2012, Silverton residents Shelly Brown and longtime partner Jim Sears noticed their German shorthaired pointer, Greta, acting strangely.

Greta was accustomed to staying in her kennel at night, but on this particular evening she kept scratching repeatedly to get out, which was very unlike her.

“She was acting really disoriented and confused, like she didn’t know where she was,” Brown says.

Then Brown noticed that a membrane in the inner corner of Greta’s eye, known as the “third eyelid,” was extended over her eyeball.

Brown and Sears took Greta to Dr. Paul Scherlie, a board-certified veterinary ophthalmologist at VCA Northwest Veterinary Specialists in Clackamas, who treated Greta for glaucoma.

What is glaucoma?

Fluid inside the eye, called the aqueous humor, typically flows through the pupil and drains through a sieve-like network located where the cornea and iris meet. In a healthy eye, the fluid is produced and drains at the same rate, creating a stable pressure.

Glaucoma occurs when the fluid cannot drain properly, causing pressure to build up and damaging the sensitive optic nerve.

In humans, glaucoma is a slow, progressive condition that can be caught with regular screenings. January happens to be National Glaucoma Awareness Month, established by a group of eye health organizations to promote more awareness of the disease.

For canines, the condition can come on suddenly and cause blindness within hours.

The rapid pressure change is extremely painful, resembling an intense sinus pressure or throbbing pain, says Dr. Susan Kirschner, a board-certified veterinary ophthalmologist at Animal Eye Doctor in Beaverton.

There aren’t many ways to screen for or prevent the disease in dogs.

Some are more genetically prone to the condition, including American cocker spaniels, Basset hounds, Chow Chows and Siberian huskies. Locally, Scherlie has also seen it in Labradors.

The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals offers a database of animals certified to be free of any signs of ophthalmic disease that might be genetic.

Secondary glaucoma can be caused by disease or trauma, such as cancer in the eye or inflammation due to uveitis or cataracts.

Cats typically get this kind of glaucoma, usually a result of uveitis.

Symptoms of glaucoma

The most common sign that something is wrong with your dog’s eye is what’s called an elevated third eyelid.

“It almost looks like the eye is rolling up and out,” Kirschner says. “It’s not; it’s an optical illusion, but it’s almost always a sign of pain in the eye.”

The dog’s third eyelid, also known as the nictitating membrane, is a thin piece of tissue that acts as “windshield wiper” across the cornea. It’s usually not visible, but when the eye is irritated from glaucoma or a corneal ulcer, it may become elevated and cover the eye.

This is likely what Brown saw when she noticed something was wrong with Greta.

Dogs may also squint or paw at their eye, or the eyeball may become enlarged and bulge forward.

Treatment

If Fido gets glaucoma in one eye, it’s only a matter of time before it develops in the other eye.

There is an eye drop that can help delay onset in the healthy eye for up to two years, but your pet will develop glaucoma eventually.

There are lots of treatment options, although Scherlie’s preferred method is simply to remove the eye and stitch the skin shut.

“The benefit to that is immediate pain relief, the stitches are out in seven to 10 days, and there’s no eye to have any future problems,” he says.

For older dogs like Greta, who aren’t good candidates for surgery, there’s the option of injecting an antibiotic into the eye. This procedure kills off the cells producing excess fluid.

Another technique is removing the eye and putting in a silicone implant to keep the eye’s shape, but the dog can still contract other diseases that affect the surface of the eye.

Helping pets adjust

Dogs that have lost most or all of their vision adjust pretty quickly, but there are some adjustments you can make at home that can help.

Stairs, decks and swimming pools pose the biggest threats for dogs that have recently lost their vision.

One thing you can do is put duct tape at the edge of a ledge, such as the bottom stair.

“It can be helpful to have some kind of sensory clue to let them know they reached the edge,” Kirschner says, “so when the dog touches that, it knows there’s a transition.”

Hillsboro resident Heather Blackwell’s Chihuahua, Teddy Bear, had his left eye removed at the Bonnie L. Hays Small Animal Shelter because of glaucoma.

Blackwell has done a few things to help him adjust, such as leaving a nightlight on to make sure he doesn’t tumble down the stairs at night.

“He’s very athletic, but his depth perception is not so great,” she says.

When he approaches the sliding glass door to go outside, Blackwell puts a sticker on the glass when it’s closed so he doesn’t run into it.

Like many blind dogs, Teddy Bear doesn’t seem to notice that he’s missing an eye.

He’s very friendly – Blackwell says he “doesn’t know a stranger” – and since people are often curious about him, he’s become sort of an advocate for blind dogs.

“He’s just a little clown,” Blackwell says. “You wouldn’t know anything is wrong with him.”

Tips Box: How to help a blind pet adjust

• Don’t treat your pet differently once it’s lost vision
• Make sure to seal off decks, banisters, swimming pools or anything else a pet can slide through or fall down.
• Don’t let your dog get bored. Blind dogs still want to have fun, and they no longer have the option of watching “dog TV” by gazing out the window at squirrels and passersby.
• Dogs can memorize the layout of your home, yard and daily walk, but make sure to take them on the same route every day so they can become confident.
• For walks, try passing a thin leash through a short length of PVC pipe. This creates a stiff leash that can help you keep your pet from running into trees or lampposts.
• Don’t hesitate to use more verbal cues. Dogs can learn up to 200 or 300 words, so you can use language to help them navigate where to step.

–Sources: Dr. Susan Kirschner; Dr. Paul Scherlie

Cataracts

Cataracts occur when the lens becomes cloudy and the pupil appears white or gray. They can be caused by aging, as well as trauma or diseases like diabetes.

When severe, cataracts can generate inflammation that can lead to glaucoma. About 80 percent of untreated cataracts develop glaucoma, retinal detachment or luxated lens. These conditions usually only occur as a result of untreated cataract-associated inflammation.

Cataracts can be removed with surgery; about 90 percent of dogs that undergo cataract surgery can return to good vision.

Owners may notice gradual signs that their pet has cataracts, such as a dog having trouble seeing its ball, says Dr. Susan Kirschner, a board-certified veterinary ophthalmologist at Animal Eye Doctor in Beaverton.

Elizabeth Olson of Rabbit Advocates discovered that her bunny, Amelia, had cataracts after noticing the animal’s eyes looked more pearly pink as opposed to their normal red color.

Olson and her husband are trying to modify Amelia’s so she doesn’t bump into things as often, and devise ways to keep her busy, such as building cardboard tunnels and putting treats at the end.

“So far, it has probably been more difficult for us to watch then for her to experience,” she says.

Meals on Wheels programs in several states have expanded their offerings to include donated pet food for clients’ companion animals, said Jenny Bertolette of the Meals on Wheels Association of America. Volunteers for the program, which provides meals to the disabled, poor and elderly, began seeking donations from shelters and pet organizations after noticing clients were sharing food with their pets. Participating groups solicit and deliver pet food to Meals on Wheels as well as to senior centers and nursing homes. Star Tribune (Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.)/The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES – If Meals on Wheels didn’t deliver donated dog food, Sherry Scott of San Diego says her golden retriever Tootie would be eating the pasta, riblets and veggie wraps meant for her. But thanks to partnerships between the program for low-income seniors and pet groups across the country, fewer people and pets are going hungry.

After Meals on Wheels volunteers noticed a growing number of clients giving their food away to their furry friends, they started working with shelters and other pet groups to add free pet food to their meal deliveries. Those programs, relying on donations and volunteers, have continued to grow in popularity as seniors began eating better, staying healthier and worrying less about feeding their pets, one group said.

Meals on Wheels is just one organization serving people who are poor, disabled or elderly, but it has a vast reach. It has teamed up with independently run pet partners in several states, but how many isn’t known, said Jenny Bertolette, spokeswoman for Meals on Wheels Association of America in Alexandria, Va.

Partner pet groups will solicit, pick up, pack and get the animal chow to Meals on Wheels or another agency that donates food, volunteers said. Agencies also take pet food to nursing homes, senior centers or community centers.

Those who qualify for Meals on Wheels or similar programs are almost always eligible for a free pet food program.

Veterinarian Marty Becker and his team of experts say advanced dental problems can occur beneath a pet’s gum line with no obvious signs of a problem other than a mild change in behavior. A thorough physical exam coupled with sedation and oral radiographs finally helped identify a tooth-root abscess in Dr. Becker’s feline patient who presented only because her meow changed. “It’s up to us as owners and veterinarians to be aware of changes in behavior that could signal pain or illness and to look beneath the surface for potential causes of problems,” Dr. Becker writes. This article also relates a discovery by the University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine that has implications for spinal dysraphism in Weimaraners and spina bifida in children.

Recent research adds to a growing body of evidence supporting the cardioprotective benefits of having a pet, especially a dog, according to physician Sandra Fryhofer. Pets are associated with reduced heart disease risk through lower blood pressure and in some cases lower cholesterol, as well as increased exercise among owners who walk with their canine friends. Also, dogs provide emotional support and help humans deal with stress, which also helps protect the heart.

Hello. I’m Dr. Sandra Fryhofer. Welcome to Medicine Matters. The topic: pets and heart disease risk, a new study in the journal Circulation.^[1] Here’s why it matters.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in this country. But this new study says having a pet, especially a dog, could lower your heart disease risk. High blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes are risk factors for heart disease. Previous studies have linked having a pet to having lower blood pressure. I assume that’s once the pet is housebroken. There is even a study that found that men who had dogs had lower cholesterol levels.^[2]

Now, people with dogs are generally physically more active than those who don’t have one. It makes sense if you walk the dog or if the dog walks you. No significant increases in physical activity have been linked to having cats or other pets.

Having a pet doesn’t mean you’ll weigh less, but in general, people who walk their dogs do.

Pets provide support in other ways. They provide encouragement and motivation, even in weight loss programs. Pets also provide support in a nonhuman way. Pets are companions and have a positive effect on the body’s reaction to stress.

For those with established heart disease, having a pet of any kind was linked to increased survival, dog ownership especially so.

Although this study stops short of recommending that people get a pet to protect their heart, having one does seem to provide some cardioprotective benefits. So don’t buy, rescue, or adopt a pet just to protect your own heart. You also have to be willing to share your heart with your furry friend.

For Medicine Matters, I’m Dr. Sandra Fryhofer.

The USDA’s Agricultural Research Service has developed a biodegradable cat litter from spent corn. The clumping, odor-absorbing compound is made with dried distiller’s grain, a byproduct of ethanol production, along with glycerol, guar gum and copper sulfate. Current clay-based litters are not biodegradable and are disposed of in landfills, but this new formulation could be more environmentally friendly.