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Anaplasmosis in cats

The temperature is rising, the days are longer and the sun is actually around! Summer is one of the best times of the year for many of us but with all of these good things also come some particular dangers.

Ticks are parasites that consume our pets’ blood and in exchange, they drop nasty microorganisms in their bloodstream. A lovely deal!

There are many diseases that can be transmitted by ticks and one of them is called anaplamosis caused by Anaplasma phagocytophilum in cats. This bacterium is from the Rickettsiales order which includes other important blood parasites like Ehrlichia and Rickettsia. It has a pretty vast geographic distribution because its tick vectors are found through a wide area and climate, so it’s definitely something that you can stumble upon.

After a tick bite, the bacteria are inoculated in the blood stream where they will infect white blood cells and replicate, killing the original cell and moving on to infect other cells.

Infected cats might present with non-specific signs like fever, anorexia, lethargy and dehydration and sometimes lameness, swollen joints, nose bleeding and abdominal pain have been reported. The course is generally mild and can be resolved quickly, especially with a little help from friendly antibiotics which is good news for our fuzzy buddies.

It’s important to keep in mind that prevention is the best way to make sure nothing bad happens so staying on top of flea and tick treatment is paramount! Talk to your vet about the best way to control these nasty bugs that best fits your pet and their lifestyle.

Would you like to know more about cats? Check our Feline Courses:

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Horses

Gastric ulcers

Ulcers! The medical term for an organ or body surface that had a chunk torn off of it due to a damaging influence.

In this case, gastric ulcers are when the surface of the horse’s stomach has been eroded and there have been damages to this organ. This, understandably, is quite a problem.

The equine stomach is essentially composed of two parts, a part that secrets several compounds including stomach acid called the glandular mucosa and a part that doesn’t produce any compounds called the squamous mucosa. In between the two there is also a border structure called the margo plicatus that is also not glandular.

Gastric ulcers happen as a part of a disease called Equine Gastric Ulcer Syndrome or EGUS for short. Despite being a very common occurrence, the reason for why the ulcers happen is still under study but we know it to be a complex interaction of situations in the horse.

Both foals and adult horses can have gastric ulcers, though they tend to present differently and affect different areas of the stomach. In foals, there is a tendency to primarily affect the glandular portion while adults suffer more damages in the non-glandular portion.

What to expect from adults affected with EGUS? Unfortunately, nothing too specific. You may see your horse not eating as much, poor body condition, loss of weight, mild or recurrent colic, loose faeces and poor performance.

There are several risk factors that were identified, like stress, transportation, high-energy feed and intense exercise. Sports horses are particularly at risk of ulcers, they have a chance of having them that is nearing 100% because of how they are exercised.

Do you feel your horse might be having issues with ulcers? Contact your vet and they will be more than happy to help you out to diagnose and then manage this condition.

Would you like to know more about horses? Check our Equine Courses:

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Cats

The sneezing cat

Have you noticed your feline companion is sneezing more than usual, and you’re a little worried? In that case, this post might help!

Just as it is with us, sneezing is a normal mechanism our pet’s body uses to clear any irritants from their nose. This means an occasional sneeze from time to time is quite normal, but if your pet is sneezing more than usual, maybe even showing some nasal discharge, cough, or any other symptoms, there might be something else going on.

Sneezing can have several different causes. The most common cause is without a doubt upper respiratory tract infections, particularly in younger cats. You have probably heard of this already as it is commonly known as ´cat flu`. These infections usually have viruses as a primary cause and the viral agents typically involved are the feline herpesvirus and calicivirus. Although it’s not as common, bacteria such as Bordetella bronchiseptica, Streptococcus canis, Mycoplasma spp., and Chlamydophila felis can also be directly responsible for these infections.

Upper respiratory infections tend to be more common in kittens, young cats and in free-roaming cats that frequently come in contact with other outdoor felines. These viral infections are easily-spread, as these agents can be passed on from cat to cat, through any objects in their environment, or even through their caregivers.

In many of these infections the clinical signs can resolve in about 2 to 3 weeks, even without treatment. However, some cats may be more severely affected and veterinary assistance is necessary. These cats may also present thick and purulent discharge from their nose, depression, fever and lack of appetite. Some are left with recurrent nasal discharge and eye disease.

Other possible causes of sneezing involve nasal obstruction, nasopharyngeal polyps, nasopharyngeal stenosis, inhaling foreign bodies, trauma, chronic rhinitis, neoplasia (typically in older animals) and even dental disease.

Cats have tiny noses, but in some cases the sneezing is due to an inhaled blade of grass or grass seed. This is more common during warmer weather, and in cats with outdoor access. It also worth pointing out that if a cat’s sneezing is also accompanied by cough, feline asthma might also be a possible cause.

The best way to protect your cat from upper respiratory tract infections is to keep your cat’s vaccination plan up-to-date, as this provides protection against herpes and calicivirus. The vaccine does not always prevent infection, but it will dramatically reduce the severity of its clinical signs.

If you are planning to bring a new cat into your household don’t forget to keep the new cat separated from the resident cats for 7 to 10 days, for quarantine purposes. It is also recommended to provide your cat with adequate dental care.

If you notice your cat is sneezing more than usual and possibly showing other clinical signs, or if you are at all concerned, take your pet to the vet.

Would you like to know more about cats? Check our Feline Courses:

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Cats, Dogs

Spinal walking

Did you know that paraplegic animals with irreversible spinal cord injuries, especially in the lumbar portion, can sometimes recover locomotion?

It might sound a bit impossible – If the communication between brain and the muscles in the legs is severed than how can our pet still walk? That’s where the sensational spinal cord comes in!

The brain and the spinal cord are two more or less separate entities that communicate with each other, and together they make up the central nervous system. The brain controls much more complex functions but the spinal cord has some aces up its sleeve, one of which allows for what is called ‘Spinal Walk’.

Spinal walk is a type of acquired involuntary motor function seen in animals with varying degrees of spinal cord injury, even sometimes in cases of complete injury! In essence, even though the brain is no longer sending any signals to the pelvic limbs, there are specialised structures in the spinal cord that can generate patterns and replicate a functional gait. We call this an involuntary motor function because the hind legs are not being controlled by the brain but instead there is a spinal cord reflex that allows for walking. This type of walking is a bit uncoordinated and jerky but animals are able to walk unaided for as long as they want, and can get themselves back up in case they fall down.

Will all animals with spinal cord injuries develop spinal walk? Unfortunately, which animals will develop the capacity for spinal walking is quite variable. It will depend, for instance, on the type of injury to the spinal cord and if there are other diseases that might affect nervous system structures.

A recent study in dogs that attempted to correlate physiotherapy with acquiring spinal walk has had promising results that show that perhaps physical therapy techniques may aid our lovely pooches to spinal walk. Other studies have attempted to better characterise spinal cord injuries and figure out what treatment best fits what type of injury.

Have questions about spinal cord injuries and treatment options? Give your vet a call, they will be more than happy to walk through the best options for your four-legged buddy!

Would you like to know more about cats and dogs? Check our Feline and Canine Courses:

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Cats

Sun’s out Cats out: The Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Beautiful sunny days are right around the corner! And nobody loves that better than our purring partners who will undoubtedly lounge on the best sunny spots for hours on end.

But, as with everything, the sun can also have its ill effects. Like people, cats are susceptible to sunburns and some forms of cancer come from chronic exposure to the sun’s ultraviolet light. Who is at the highest risk? Because fur protects from the sun’s rays, white cats, especially short haired cats and obviously, cats with very little to no fur are at the most risk.

Squamous cell carcinoma is a form of cancer that arises from the squamous epithelium. This cell type forms most of the skin, lines the oral cavity and also the oesophagus. When these cells are hit with UV rays, they might get damaged at a DNA level and start having errors when they multiply – this situation may lead to an uncontrolled proliferation of cells.

Most cases of this carcinoma are caused by chronic exposure to the sun, especially in areas with low fur density like the nose, ears and eyelids. Carcinomas that do not originate due to damages by UV radiation can happen anywhere, including inside the oral cavity and oesophagus. It’s a disease of older animals, showing up usually at around age 10 or 12.

This type of cancer is locally invasive and can do severe damage to facial and head structures if left untreated though it has very little chances of migrating to other areas of the body that are far away from the original site. It often starts as small scabs that do not seem to heal that will progress into larger lesions with ulcers and rearrangement of bone and other structures.

How the disease progresses can vary a lot and treatment will depend on the cancer stage, location and cause. Animals with smaller lesions that can be submitted to surgery tend to have the best outcomes.

A couple of things that can help avoid this nasty situation are:

  • High risk cats should avoid at high sunlight hours;
  • UV light blocks for the windows in cats that love to sunbathe;
  • Sun block, especially on ears. Make sure you keep an eye on your cat, so they don’t clean it off before it gets absorbed!

If you notice odd wounds on your cat, especially that seem to be getting worse or that don’t seem to heal at all, don’t hesitate to contact your vet!

The sooner this is treated, the better the chances your fuzzy friend has.

Image via: “White Beauty Visiting” by Pinti 1, was built upon and is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Would you like to know more about cats? Check our Feline Courses:

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Horses

The Pituitary and You: Cushing’s Disease in Horses

Do you own an older horse? Then this post is definitely for you. Neurodegenerative diseases that can afflict elderly humans, like Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s, are fairly well known and this has proved to be true for our faithful horses as well.

Cushing’s Disease is also called dysfunction of the pars intermedia of the pituitary gland. It’s a much harder to remember name, but it’s very handy at describing what this pathology is actually about.

The pituitary gland is a small gland in the nervous system that sits in a small bone protrusion on the floor of the skull. It’s a very important gland as it works in tandem with the hypothalamus and produces an immense number of hormones that will affect organs and functions all over the body.

So, what does it do? A better question would be what doesn’t it do! It helps regulate growth, the metabolism of carbs, lipids and proteins, kidney function, the immune system, milk production, stress responses and even the reproductive system.

The pituitary gland has 4 different sections, each with cells involved in the production of different hormones. One of them, the pars intermedia (plainly put, the middle portion of it) is the portion involved in this disease.

Unfortunately, we are not sure why Cushing’s Disease happens in horses. Due to the destruction of the neurons responsible for producing dopamine, a neurotransmitter, the pituitary gland becomes unregulated and produces an excess of hormones in the pars intermedia. Why is there destruction of the dopaminergic inhibition system in the first place? We are not sure yet but we suspect oxidative stress may contribute to neuronal death.

How does all of this affect your horse? With the pituitary pumping out way more hormones than it needs, many organs downstream will be deregulated. You can find clinical signs like problems with shedding, hirsutism, atrophy of the muscles, laminitis, increased production of urine and water intake, sweating excessively, abnormal fat distribution, immunosuppression, changes in behaviour and infertility, among others.

Double unfortunately, the diagnosis is quite complex and it’s very easy to get inconclusive results. This is in part because it’s a progressive disease. Testing too early on will commonly end in false negatives, and because the pituitary has a fluctuating activity and is more active in the autumn, so testing during this period might net false positives.

Despite all of this, treatments do exist! Beyond addressing the issue in the pituitary, your buddy needs solid hoof and dental care, good nutritional management, tight parasite control and generally keeping a keen eye on any changes that might occur.

Think your horse might be suffering from Cushing’s Disease? Give your vet a call and they’ll help you figure out the best treatment plan for everyone.

Image via: “morganHead” by tintedglass, was built upon and is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Would you like to know more about horses? Check our Equine Courses:

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Cats

How Environmental Enrichment Benefits Cats

When we talk about environmental enrichment for indoor cats (and for many other pets), the conversation is about more than just getting toys for your cat. Due to their nature and depending on their home environment, domestic cats can be exposed to a lot of stress.

The discomfort can come from a wide variety of sources. Many cats often live in a very comfortable house, but struggle to be able to do what they would normally do in their natural environment. Climbing, resting in high spots, playing, scratching and hunting with all its different stages (seeking, capturing, and consuming) are just a few examples of their normal behaviour. Domestic cats often struggle to find structures to climb and areas to scratch (without annoying their owners), ´toys` to play with, and ways to display hunting behaviour.

When discussing stress inducing factors, poor human-cat relationship and conflict between cats should also be on the list. A cat living with another cat or cats often has to share food bowls, common areas and the litter box with his or her feline housemates. Cats tend to avoid cats they don’t get along with to prevent more serious conflict and over time, this affects their access to important resources. A cat might actually drink less water for example if getting to the water bowl means crossing paths with another less friendly cat.

Other factors include unpredictable schedules, less interaction with their caregivers and even unexpected physical manipulation.

Cats have different personalities and some cats may be more affected by these daily occurrences than others. However, after several studies it is pretty clear for the scientific community that lack of environmental enrichment can lead to domestic cats suffering from numerous disorders such as anxiety, stress, obesity, behavioural changes (urine marking, house soiling, some forms of aggression), and feline idiopathic cystitis.

Providing cat towers, a wide variety of toys, scratching areas, resting spots, feeding toys, and enough food and water locations as well as litter boxes taking into consideration the number of cats in the household will have a very positive impact on your cats’ health and welfare.

Would you like to know more about cats? Check our Feline Courses:

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Dogs

Mycotoxin poisoning in pets Keep your pets away from any mouldy leftovers!


Did you know that your waste bin can hide dangerous and unexpected poisonous substances for your pets? Let’s talk about mycotoxin poisoning in pets.

Most humans know that eating decomposing mouldy food is not the best idea, not only because the flavour might not be very pleasant but also because it can make you sick. The same cannot be said for our four-legged canine companions, who will often eat the most surprising things with a very happy look on their faces.

Not all moulds are poisonous but the mould that normally grows over certain decomposing foods such as bread, cheese, pasta, walnuts, and other decaying matter like compost can be life-threatening if ingested by our pets.

When these foods start decomposing inside our rubbish containers they provide the ideal environment for the proliferation of different types of fungus such as Aspergillus flavus and Penicillium spp.. These fungi don’t take long to grow and they produce toxins which can be very poisonous if ingested by our pets, even in small amounts. All it takes is for a curious dog to lick some mould residue from the inside of an unwashed food caddy for the toxins to cause serious illness.

Mycotoxin poisoning is an acute toxin induced gastroenteritis that can also cause neurotoxicity. Affected animals present abdominal pain, vomiting, liver damage, uncoordinated movements, muscle tremors, seizures, and a dangerous increase in body temperature.

Affected animals can show signs within just 30 minutes of eating the poisonous mouldy food. Depending on the amount ingested and how early the animal is treated, this type of poisoning can be fatal.

If you notice any of these signs on your pets it is very important to take them to the vet immediately. The sooner they are diagnosed and treated, the better are the chances for a full recovery.

The best way to avoid your pet from ever having to go through this is to go over your daily recycling routine and ensure your dog never has access to any potentially dangerous leftover foods, rubbish bags or waste containers.

Image: “jedi puppy kitchen tricks” by lecates, was built upon and is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

Would you like to know more about cats and dogs? Check our Feline and Canine Courses:

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Horses

Tight nosebands in equestrian competitions raise welfare concerns

A recent study focused on collecting noseband data from 750 horses competing in Ireland, England and Belgium. What they found could have serious behavioural and physiological implications for horses and important consequences for the riders.
The noseband is the part of the horse’s bridle that goes around the nose and jaw. It is recommended to keep some space between the animal’s skin and the noseband. The general recommendation is to keep the noseband loose enough to allow space for 1,5 and 2 adult human fingers to fit under a fastened noseband.
However, according to a recent study only 7% of the horses had their noseband fitted to include the extra space for two fingers and more than half of all the nosebands tested were excessively tight (0.5 fingers or tighter). This can have negative consequences for the horses and for the riders.
Among the possible harmful consequences for the animals are discomfort, pain, stress, preventing normal oral behaviour and tissue damage. It also impacts how the riders are communicating with their horse, influencing the horse’s present and future behaviour and performance.
Riders use the bridle and all its bits (the bit, the straps, and the noseband) attached to the reins to connect and communicate with the horse. Tight nosebands prevent the animal from opening its mouth to evade the pressure of the bit and this increases their sensibility to the bit. As a result many riders often rely on the tightening of the noseband to get a better response from their horse in terms of behaviour and performance on competitions, rather than taking the time to address the underlying issue causing their lack of response and putting the necessary time into training their horse to respond to the required action from a rein cue.
Previous studies have shown that excessively tight nosebands can cause a physiological stress response and compromise welfare. Ill-fitting tack is often the source of health issues and behaviour problems in horses. Ultimately, the use of excessively tight nosebands may be counterproductive in competitions and lead to long term behaviour problems.
Noseband tightness is barely regulated in equestrian events which contributes to the lack of data on this matter and on the possible consequences of resorting to very tight nosebands as an attempt to improve the horse’s performance.

Image: “Gray dressage horse” by barnimages.com, was built upon and is licensed under CC BY 2.0

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Cats, Dogs

Keep your pets safe and have a great Easter!


We bet you are all looking forward to the Easter weekend! Spending quality time with your family, your friends and with your pets is always a happy thought, especially during such a lovely time of the year. Don’t forget that there are several traditional Easter foods that can be dangerous for our pets!

In order to avoid any accidents or unscheduled visits to the vet, we would like to remind pet owners of all the foods that should be kept away from pets during this time of the year.

The first item on our list is definitely chocolate. From Easter eggs to chocolate bunnies, chocolate seems to be everywhere during Easter. This is great for humans with a sweet tooth, but it’s not so great for our furry companions since chocolate is dangerous for dogs. Chocolate contains theobromine, a substance that is toxic for them and the consequences of this type of poisoning depend on the type of chocolate and the amount ingested. The higher the amount ingested and the higher the cocoa content, the more toxic the chocolate.

Our dogs can easily take advantage of a moment of distraction and snatch a chocolate egg or a box of chocolates. Common signs of chocolate poisoning in dogs include digestive upset (vomiting, diarrhoea), restlessness, incoordination and seizures.

Next on our list are grapes, raisins, currants, and sultanas. These are also toxic for dogs, often leading to kidney failure. It is still not known what is the substance that causes these effects and some dogs are able to eat these foods without any side effects. However, it has been proven that grapes, raisins, currants, and sultanas are in fact poisonous for dogs and many have sadly died after eating them. They are commonly used in cakes and hot cross buns so please make you keep your dog away from these.

It is also recommended to keep sweets in general away from our pets. Many sweets contain xylitol, an artificial sweetener often used in chewing gum, tea, coffee, baked foods, and even in some types of peanut butters. Xylitol is poisonous to dogs affecting the liver, the digestive system, the heart, the nervous system and it can lead to death.

Last but not least, please remember to keep your cats away from lilies. These plants are very popular during spring. Unfortunately, some lilies (particularly the Lilium and Hemerocallis genera) are extremely toxic for our feline friends. All parts of these plants are poisonous, including their pollen. This means a cat can simply brush by the flower and then lick the pollen off the fur to be affected. Clinical signs of lily toxicity in cats include salivation, vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, tremors, seizures, and kidney injury which can lead to death.

Image: “Basket full of trouble” by BigDuff, was built upon and is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Would you like to know more about cats and dogs? Check our Feline and Canine Courses:

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