Veterinary bibliotherapy: All My Patients Are Under the Bed

 

"All My Patients Are Under the Bed" by Dr Louis J. Camuti, Marilyn Frankel and Haskel Frankel.

I’ve been delving into veterinary history for a couple of projects, and stumbled upon the veterinary biography of one Dr Louis J Camuti, written with support from his clients and friends Marilyn and Haskel Frankel. The book, AllMy Patients Are Under the Bed: Memoirs of a Cat Doctor provides a fascinating insight into veterinary practice in the 20^th century.

Dr Camuti was born in 1893, and worked until his death – likely due to a fatal arrythmia when driving – in 1981. He was aged 87 and had been in practice for over 60 years.

The book is intended for a non-veterinary audience, focused mostly on anecdotes about quirky cat owners and their cats. But it contains some fascinating insights into veterinary practice in a different era.

Dr Camuti graduated from New York University in 1920. He lived through the great influenza pandemic in 1918, contracting the virus in 1919 when he was a second lieutenant in the New York Cavalry. When the flu struck his camp, over 100 men died. He made it home – with a fever – and married, but as a precaution didn’t kiss his new wife.

When the horses were struck by shipping fever, Dr Camuti was given the job of destroying all of the sick horses - one that caused significant distress.

"I told myself over and over again that the animal was sick and could not be saved. Wasn't I really sparing it pain? yes, but it was something I had to remind myself of everyday. I knew that bringing the peace of death to an animal was as much a part of being a veterinarian as helping a dog to give birth to its puppies, but still I suffered. I guess I was still a kid, and like all kids who think of becoming
doctors, the first thought is of life. It is only later on that you have to face death as part of the job" (p51).

We now know that killing animals can be a source of moral stress for veterinarians. And moral stress can indicate there are systemic animal welfare issues that need to be addressed. In Carmuti's case there was no alternative to killing the horses, he was a subordinate given the order. But he did endeavour to change the method of killing to ensure it was as humane as possible in the circumstances. Perhaps these traumatic early experiences drove him to focus on companion animals.

He later discussed a request for euthanasia of a seemingly healthy St Bernard. This didn't occur because Dr Camuti, who purchased a bottle of chloroform from the pharmacy on the way to the housecall, accidentally anaesthetised himself when he opened it in a poorly ventilated bathroom. Both the vet and the dog survived.

Early in his career, Dr Camuti established a few practices, but his penchant for feline patients became known and he performed house calls in New York City. In the latter two decades of his life he set up an exclusively house call practice. He would begin his evening rounds from about 4pm, sometimes until well after midnight, often getting to bed at 4am. His wife Alex would book appointments – before people had mobile phones or email. She also rode alongside him and waited in the car, ready to move it if the parking inspectors or police turnedup. He would attend up to 30 housecalls a week.

Many of Dr Camuti’s clients did not have cars or cat carriers. Getting to the vet was impossible. And Dr Camuti felt that his patients were more relaxed in their homes – though he did spend a lot of time trying to find his patients in their homes (that aspect of house calls remains unchanged).

He would ask clients to have his favourite hand-soap ready (Cashmere Bouquet), and boil syringes (they were glass then) on the stove tops of his clients. He practiced when there were no analgesics registered for use in companion animals, when Nembutal (pentobarbital) was used as a sedative, and when blood tests weren’t routinely performed. If a patient needed surgery, a spey for example, he would often perform this in the owner’s home, on the kitchen table or similar. Veterinary practice is very different now.

After he survived a cardiac arrest, Dr Camuti couldn’t climb the stairs to reach patients in apartments above the first floor. So he took to examining many cats in the hallways of huge apartment buildings in which they lived (I would have been terrified of a patient escaping). On the day he died, he was still seeing patients.

The book makes much of the “quirky” relationships people had with pets. It was written before anthrozoology was established as a field of scholarship, well before James Serpell’s book In the Company of Animals put the human-animal bond on the academic map.

When I read about practice, at a time when there was no pain relief for veterinary patients, when there was little awareness about animal welfare, when humane euthanasia could not be guaranteed, it reminds me how far our profession has come.

That is not a criticism of Dr Camuti. He was the first feline-only veterinarian in the USA. Despite limitations in practice, Dr Camuti was deeply concerned about animal welfare, expressing his views about declawing: 

"People who have cats declawed usually do so for one of two reasons: to prevent being scratched by an aggressive cat or to preserve their furniture. Such people are obviously thinking only of themselves, not of the pets they are supposed to love. For their own selfish reasons they put their cats through a surgical procedure which is severe, both physically and emotionally. Very often a cat is declawed without any attempt on the part of the owner to train the animal first to use a scratching post. The cat never had a chance. In fact, I've known of cases where a prospective owner demands a cat to be declawed before he'll adopt it. I certainly would never give a cat to such a person because the request itself is an indication that the household is not suitable to a cat". p91. 

And he goes on. This passage reminds me of important positionstatements on declawing in cats, published more recently by the American Association of Feline Practitioners and the International Society for Feline Medicine.

He was also against ear cropping and tail docking in dogs, and raised concerns about the neglect of long-haired cats, the impact of inbreeding, failure of many people to recognise (and control) their cat's reproductive potential, and the hoarding of animals. He treated a range of exotic pets, back at a time when people could acquire a primate on a whim without any sort of license, permit or clue as to how to meet the animal's welfare needs.

Veterinary biographies like these are such important historic records, often for the minor, seemingly routine details they capture about past veterinarian’s daily routines and habits. This biography is worth a read. Especially if you do appreciate cats. 

On another note, if you are tempted to write your own veterinary (or non-veterinary) biography, the Vet Cookbook is hosting a writing workshop on narrative non-fiction with award winning author Brendan James Murray. Check it out here.  

Free international congress for veterinarians, veterinary nurses and animal health technicians working with cats

One silver lining to emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic is the accessibility of high-quality continuing education for veterinarians, animal health technicians and veterinary nurses. While face to face events have been shelved, which is disappointing, the environment also wins with the reduction in international airline traffic (for the time being). And CPD is more affordable when we need it to be.

The International Society of Feline Medicine (ISFM) is hosting the world’s first free virtual feline congress for those of us who provide health care to feline patients. This means that you will be able to watch over 30 hours of CPD from your home – or your practice, or your car – even, finally, in the company of your cat (or dog, or horse).

The Congress will run from Saturday August 8-11, with content remaining available on demand until September 11 (for those of us in different time zones or attending to the real-time needs of our feline patients on weekends).

I’m excited to have been invited as one of the speakers.

Thanks to generous sponsorship the Congress is free to ISFM members and non-members. It is a very good opportunity to attend an international meeting of veterinary professionals from around the globe who share a commitment to improving cat care.

For the conference program and information on how to register, visit https://icatcare.org/isfm-international-congress/.

Cats and Covid-19

There remains no evidence of transmission of Covid-19 to humans from companion animals.

Yesterday some articles were published which suggested that cats should be kept indoors because of Covid-19. This is not correct.

International Cat Care and the International Society for Feline Medicine have put out a joint statement which you can read here. 

In particular, it states:

There remains no evidence of transmission of COVID-19 to humans from pets. Emerging reports of very few animals show potential transmission to dogs and cats from humans with the virus, but more research is needed. Similarly, it is currently unclear if cat to cat transmission is possible in natural infections, with limited data from experimental studies only available.

Therefore, it is not recommended that all cats are kept indoors. Cats used to outdoor access could suffer significant stress due to confinement and several serious health conditions are associated with stress. This confinement may also cause stress for cat owners, again to be avoided at this difficult time. If you are at all worried, do not pat or stroke any pets other than your own.

I would add that decisions to allow cats outdoors, including timing, should take risks to the cat (e.g. cat fights, motor vehicle accidents) as well as risks to wildlife (i.e. predation) into account. Restricted or supervised outdoor access may be a reasonable compromise.

For those of you working from home, you may feel that your cat is genuinely stressed. Some cats are being extremely clingy and demanding, others are avoiding their owners.

International Cat Care has provided a webinar on meeting your cat’s needs and managing feline stress during lockdown (if you have kids, there are some small projects they might like to take on).

Register (free) then view it on demand. https://icatcare.org/event/international-cat-care-webinar-open-access-covid-19/

Goodbye, Michael

Michael (left) with a younger Hero - the first moment they sat together.

Today’s post has been extremely difficult for me to write.

Less than a week ago I said goodbye to Michael, the cat I’ve cohabited with for most of my adult life. At 17 years and 7 months old, after several years of very stable, well-managed chronic kidney disease, Mike got worse. Her appetite reduced over the last few weeks, and despite medication, fluids and lots of TLC her quality of life took a nosedive very quickly.

It was paramount to me that she did not suffer. She died in her family’s arms, in a room full of people she loved and who loved her. She was a uniquely outgoing cat – she would approach visitors (one – a cat lover – said she could be “intimidating” in her enthusiasm!). She chased large dogs out of the house. She would solicit a chin scratch or belly rub from anyone. Inspect any suitcase/handbag/backpack or shopping bag. Conquer paper bags and cardboard boxes. Go through the groceries before they were put away.

Boxes were also fair game.

I adopted her when I was a veterinary student undertaking a volunteer, live-in position in a local veterinary hospital. At just four months old she had been picked up by a good Samaritan, having attempted to cross the treacherous Parramatta Road by herself. She was put up for adoption, but quickly moved into my bedroom.

I did a cursory examination and thought she was a boy. I named her after Detective Mike Hoolihan, the lead character in the Martin Amis novel I was reading at the time: TheNight Train. This was fortuitous. Detective Mike Hoolihan was female – as Mike turned out to be.

She put up with a lot of time away on my part doing prac work, sat in on study groups (sat on where possible), and was always there at home when I was working long hours to comfort me after a day at work.

When the vet clinic I was living in was broken into, she was the one who woke me, with her hackles up and her coat so puffed up she looked twice her size. She was growling at the door and ready to take on the intruder, who fortunately fled the scene.

She’s moved house with me, supported me through several intensive periods of study, and motivated me to try to improve the world for companion and non-companion animals alike.

I really believe that until her last day she enjoyed a life worth living. It was the right time to let her go, although being in a home without her feels empty. She would normally wake me. Realising his food source was sleeping in, Hero eventually woke me this morning and we both looked for Mike. Normally Michael would herd me down the hallway and into the kitchen. It was always about food, except when her kidney disease really kicked in. In the last few months she would usher me into the bathroom first, demand I fill the bath a little with cold water, and have a drink before breakfast. And then chase that with a glass of water on the coffee table, before heading back to bed.

Like other cats with kidney disease, Mike was constantly drinking. She preferred drinking from glass - preferably someone else's.

There are a hundred daily routines she won’t be part of anymore and each one, right now, is an unexpectedly painful reminder of her absence.

Grief is a very personal thing and people experience it differently. Losing someone after almost 18 years, someone I connected with on a daily basis in a very real and tactile way, is hard. Being a vet possibly made the decision easier, and I was able to euthanase her myself, respecting her preferences. She deserved that – she put in at least as many hours in the study as I did over the years (if she wasn’t in the kitchen, we’d say “Mike is in the office, doing the hard yards…).

If you could learn by osmosis by sleeping on textbooks, Michael would have been an honorary professor by now.

But it hasn’t made grieving any easier, nor has knowing she was old and “had a good innings”. Despite what I know about grief, I think I really thought it would. 

In our work, veterinarians experience the loss of patients far more frequently than doctors do, but it doesn’t give us mastery over grief.

I’ve been flooded with memories. Michael, the times we lived through, the patients she met and comforted, and the losses she comforted me through. The friendly head-butts, the gentle paw in the face to get me up in the morning. All I could do the day she died was look at every Michael photo I had. She was in the midst of every family gathering. She put up with Hero through his annoying kittenhood phase. She helped teach veterinary students – she appeared (photographically) as a case study in classes, her tufts of discarded fur were donated to a research project on humane rodent deterrence. She spent much time being warmed by this very keyboard and it still contains tiny traces of her fur.

A colleague sent me a paper about the dual process model of grieving, which holds that we tend to oscillate between loss-orientated and restoration-orientated processes for a while, and I’ve found myself fluttering about in this space. Loss-oriented processes are things like grief work, intrusion of grief, denial/avoidance of restoration and breaking bonds or ties. Things like poring over old photos or formally recording Mike as deceased on the Companion Animal Register. Restoration-oriented processes include attending to life changes, distraction from grief, doing new things, and establishing new roles, identities or relationships(Williams and Green, 2016). This is the bit I am working on at the moment, but its still a bit raw. A veterinary colleague who lost his dog late last year said to me "its like feeling demyelinated". 

In Michael’s honour I am raising funds for the Cat Protection Society of New South Wales. They do an extraordinary amount of advocacy for cats, from rehoming cats to making important submissions on animal welfare policy. Thousands of cats and kittens have enjoyed better health care and welfare, and avoided suffering, due to their work. Donations over $2 are tax deductable. If you wish to donate you can do so here.

 

UPDATE: before I finished this post, Michael’s page raised over $1500 which was our modest goal. I am so grateful to the people who have donated. If you would like to make a donation to the Cat Protection Society via Michael’s page you can still do so.

Michelle de Kretser, in the Sydney Morning Herald this week wrote a beautiful article about losing her dog Minnie.

You can read the full article here.

I am very grateful for the kind words from clients, colleagues and others who have shared the impact of losing animals they bonded with over the years.

Reference

WILLIAMS, B. & GREEN, R. 2016. Understanding bereavement in animal owners. In Practice, 38, 140.

The Declaration of Responsibilities to Cats

Cats. They're complex.

The world seems divided between those who care about the welfare of cats and those who would rather see them gone. Welfare of cat populations – owned, semi-owned and feral – is a complex, emotive issue.

What is beyond doubt is that cats are sentient beings, capable of suffering. In the words of Professor John Webster, they have “feelings that matter”. And if we are going to address problems associated with cats – particularly semi-owned and feral – responsibility needs to be taken by Governments, NGO, cat owners, cat breeders and sellers, those who feed cats and veterinarians.

International Cat Care has released an “International Declaration of Responsibilities to Cats”.

I was interested in all of it, but as a veterinarian particularly interested in my responsibilities to cats. These include ensuring cats in my care have their welfare needs met, refusal of declawing (fortunately not an issue as declawing for non-medical reasons is not legal in Australia), stress-minimising veterinary facilities and handling, encouraging them to microchip and desex cats, providing pain relief when required, providing humane euthanasia, striving to keep up to date about cat welfare and working constructively with local authorities and NGOs on cat welfare issues. All of which I am happy to continue to do. 

You can read the full declaration here.

If you agree, you can sign the declaration here.

Here is a message from International Cat Care:

We’d be really grateful it you would read and sign the Declaration. You can also support this initiative by posing for a photo using one of our signs and sharing this photo on social media. If you do this, please use the hashtag #catdeclaration, as we’d love to see your photos!

At present, after a ‘soft launch’ of the document, we have just under 6,000 signatures from 80 different countries.

In addition, we need help in translating the Declaration into other languages, so it can be used worldwide. Can you help? Currently we volunteers for Hebrew and Portuguese translations, but would be very grateful if anyone could help with others – it would make a big difference.

Accessorising to save lives - and acknowledge amazing cats and the people who care for them

Cat Protection Society Martyn models the "Zac".

When it comes to animal shelters, cats are seriously over-represented in Australia. They’re much less likely to be reclaimed by their owners than dogs, and many more times likely to be killed.

The Cat Protection Society in Sydney (a no-kill shelter) alone takes in around 1000 cats every year. One of the cats I am fortunate enough to live with, Hero, was one of them. 

The organisation is behind responsible cat ownership (including early age desexing and the importance of being a good neighbour) and the importance of meeting feline welfare needs.

They’ve created a fundraiser, #ninelivesnewtown, which commemorates cats that have been rehomed through their shelter. Some of the most well-known cats re-homed by CPS have been immortalised in a series of nine brooches being sold in their fundraising drive.

The project was the brainchild of CPS Feline Services Manager Nerida Atkin who noted that since everyone is going mad for feline themed accessories right now, they might like jewelry featuring cats with real stories behind them.

Nerida and Bishop, also modelling the "Zac".

And the stories have happy endings.

“The cats have been adopted by loving people, but these cats have all had difficult times,” said Kristina Vesk, CPS CEO.

“Jaffa had a leg amputated, Husky had arthritis and Bella’s eye disease was so severe that both her eyes had to be surgically removed. But Bella bounced back and now shares her life on facebook and Instagram. She and the other cats have all recovered from their challenges and gone on to enjoy full and happy lives.”

Sammi models Bella. 

CPS has also launched a one-minute video clip on YouTube to promote the project, made by Charles Penfold, featuring the very talented Paul Capsis as the voice of Jitu the cat.

“It just takes my breath away that Charles managed to tell the Cat Protection story in one minute: that we’re no-kill, that we love our cats, that we remember them even when they’ve found homes – and that the cats themselves are incredibly resilient and brave,” said Ms Vesk.

You can watch it here. 

Isabella and Raani model the "Bella" and the "Steve and Charlotte".

Brooches are available over the counter at CPS (103 Enmore Road, Newtown) or for $50 online, including postage. 

We LOVE this idea for a fundraiser. Not only does it acknowledge the individual personalities of these cats while promoting awareness about responsible cat ownership, but its just wonderful that an organisation embraced the ideas of people working within it, and really validating of the bond that shelter staff have with animals. And to see the staff modelling the merch is fantastic.

How do you find a missing cat? Interview with Brigid Wasson.

Has your cat ever gone missing? Did you ever find out where he/she went? Often, it isn't far at all.

Do you or have you lived with a cat? Ever had a cat go missing? It is a traumatic experience. Sometimes there’s that moment of panic, then you find them later – curled up in a wardrobe or hiding in the garden. But when they are missing for days, weeks, and months on end, it is extremely upsetting. This is when you wish they could just text you and let you know they’re sleeping a few houses up the road, or they can’t find they’re way home but they don’t think they’re far. Unfortunately, they can’t.

Brigid Wasson is presenting at the Getting 2Zero conference on reuniting owners with lost cats as quickly as possible.

Brigid is a lifetime animal welfare professional and retired animal shelter director. She has held positions of leadership in both government and nonprofit animal service agencies, focusing on implementing lifesaving programs and increasing live release from as low as 60% to over 90%.

Brigid became interested in lost pet prevention and recovery in 2008 when she discovered Missing Pet Partnership, and in 2014 was invited to join the Board of Directors. She currently serves as President of the organization and manages the animal shelter initiatives including Mission Reunite, which teaches animal shelter/pound management, staff, volunteers, and community partners to work together to increase owner reunions and decrease shelter intake.

Getting pets back home quickly saves resources that can be better utilized for animals truly in need of a new home such as cruelty or neglect cases. Brigid lives in Sonoma County, CA and is the CEO and Principal Consultant of The Path Ahead Animal Shelter Consulting.

What’s your day job?

I provide consulting for animal pounds and shelters and their community partners on best practices and lifesaving programs.

Why did you become interested in the fate of missing cats?

I have been a cat lover all my life. Since I was a child I connected with them. As an adult working in the animal shelters, I was horrified to see what happens to cats there. There are tens of thousands of healthy, friendly adult cats that are rarely reclaimed, either being euthanized or sitting in cages for weeks or months before being adopted. On the other side of the door you have cat owners grieving for their missing pets, not knowing how to find them, and often starting their shelter search too late, or giving up too soon. There’s a huge gap between what owners need to do and what shelter leaders need to do to keep cats at home and stop this madness.

Where are people most likely to find a missing cat?

Hiding close to home, sometimes even in the home! Generally, cats do not travel far like dogs, so they are often found under decks, in bushes, in sheds in the yard of the owner or a close neighbour. Sometimes they are just scared, other times they are stuck or hiding because they are ill or injured. This is why it is so important to start a thorough search quickly.

In what time frame are most missing cats found?

It varies. Some are found a day or two after going missing, while others are found weeks later. I don’t think there’s any magic number, it’s just a combination of the owner actively searching and the cat coming out of hiding and revealing his location.

If someone loses a cat, what advice would you give them?

Start looking right away. Don’t assume he’ll come home. Follow the advice on our web site and seek the assistance of a professional if you feel you can’t do it alone. Learn the shelter (pound) system and check them frequently. While most cats are recovered close to home, someone may have taken your cat to a shelter because they believed they were lost, or because they appeared ill or injured. [Ed. Its also good to contact vet clinics in the area as strays can be brought in there].

How can we prevent cats getting lost in the first place?

Keep them confined to your property. Microchip and register.

If someone finds a cat (that isn’t theirs), what should they do?

In most cases, nothing. The majority of cats one will see outside are owned pets not in need of any kind of “rescuing.” If you are concerned, you can check with neighbours to see if anyone is missing a cat or has brought a new cat home. Bringing a healthy, friendly cat to a shelter takes him out of his home environment and almost ensures that he will never see it again.

That said, if you have free roaming, breeding cats in your neighbourhood, you may want to get in touch with an organization in your community that offers low cost spay neuter (desexing) and vaccination to reduce and improve the health of the population.

Kittens – preferably waiting till they are eight weeks of age, unless you are certain that the mother is gone – and cats that appear ill or injured should be brought to the local veterinary hospital or shelter/pound for medical attention.

What non-human(s) do you share your life with and how did you meet.

Many! In fact, I chose the city I live in based on, among other things, the fact that it does not have a cat limit. We have a large cat family, each with his or her own story. We have four dogs of varying sizes and personalities, and two horses.

Any advice you’d like to share with veterinarians and future veterinarians?

As highly respected professionals, your word is gospel for many in the animal world. Because of that, you have an obligation to educate yourself and, consequently, the public with whom you interact, on animal welfare issues. We hear too many stories of veterinarians not questioning new pets recently found by “owners,” not scanning for microchips, and in some cases taking in stray pets and giving them away without making any attempt to find the owner. A few words of advice for both owners and finders of missing pets would go a long way, as would office policies that favour pet and rightful owner reunion.

Thank you Brigid for your time. You can read more about Brigid on her website or on facebook. You can register or find out more about Getting 2 Zero here.

Help set the One Welfare agenda, and feline-friendly home modifications

These carpeted stairs enable a 17-year-old cat to continue to sleep in his favourite spot - on the bed.

Would you like to help set the agenda to move the One Welfare concept foreword? The One Welfare concept acknowledges the inextricable links between the welfare and wellbeing of humans, animals and the environment.

One Welfare World is consulting with people around the world to determine appropriate terminology and parameters for One Welfare. You can have your say until April 30.

If you want to learn more about the development of this concept, download the papers here.

A recent project I’ve been involved with is a discussion about the welfare needs of cats. As part of this I’ve been visiting households where people have made modifications to better accommodate the needs of their cats, including outdoor enclosures for otherwise indoor cats, variations on the standard litter tray to accommodate cats who like privacy or those who like to party in the litter, nooks to hide and places to climb.

Sam and Atticus enjoy use of litter trays with high sides.

This cat-proofed balcony ensures that cats can enjoy the view without succumbing to "high rise syndrome".

It’s been a fantastic experience. If you have any photos of feline-friendly modifications you’re happy to share, drop us a line.

Surviving summer with pets

A dog catches a frisbee in the water.

The festive season provides opportunities to spend time with friends, family and loved ones – including our non-human companions. But holidays can be hazardous, so we need to take precautions to keep companion animals healthy and happy.

HEAT

Summer temperatures can make our lives uncomfortable. While we have the freedom to move into air conditioned comfort or relocate to the shade, some animals do not. Ensuring that all pets have access to a cool, comfortable area to rest is vital to prevent heat stroke. All animals should have access to fresh, cool water. Dogs should never be left in cars as the inside temperature can increase to potentially fatal levels in minutes on a hot day. Walk dogs early in the morning or late in the afternoon/early evening to avoid over-heating.

TICKS

Paralysis ticks are responsible for the deaths of many dogs and cats on the East coast of Australia every year. There are a range of tick preventatives available which are very effective. Ensure your pet’s tick prevention is up-to-date. Daily tick-checking is recommended. This is much easier in pets with a shorter coat, so a summer crew cut can be helpful.

FESTIVE SNACKS

Dogs, in particular, are prone to overindulging during the festive season. Overfeeding leads to obesity, while eating the wrong foods can lead to severe illness. For example, fatty foods like sausages or the leftovers of the lamb roast are associated with pancreatitis in dogs. Chocolate is potentially fatal to pets. Artificial sweeteners in baked goods can cause hypoglycaemia and liver failure in dogs. Some dogs will eat sausages directly off the BBQ which can burn them; onions can cause toxicity when eaten in large amounts eg a plate of onions off the barbie, an onion bhaji. Even part of a corn cob thrown on the compost can cause a gastrointestinal obstruction. Ensure food and rubbish are kept well out of reach of pets and instruct guests not to feed pets.

DECORATIONS AND GIFTS

Consider what festive decorations may look like from an animal’s point of view. If a tree covered in dangling items suddenly appears in the living room, its really asking for exploration. Fragile glass baubles may smash, causing lacerations or becoming embedded in pets’ feet. Ribbons, string and tinsel are readily swallowed by cats, and can become lodged in the gut, cutting through intestines. And food items should never be left under the tree. Animals can smell them through the gift wrap and won’t hesitate in opening these and ingesting the contents.

FIREWORKS

When you expect them, fireworks can be a visual delight. For pets who have no idea they’re coming, fireworks can be terrifying. Many pets injure themselves trying to escape. If your pet has a known noise phobia, talk to your veterinarian in advance. Medication may help. I’ve stitched up dogs that have run through solid fences and glass to escape the noise of fireworks – it’s best not to leave these animals alone on occasions like New Year’s Eve.

CAR TRAVEL

Many companion animals suffer from car-sickness. Your veterinarian can prescribe medication to reduce car sickness. If you are travelling with your pet, avoiding breakfast is recommended. Remember that when you stop for a nature break, your pet is in an unfamiliar environment. Ensure they are kept on a lead and avoid areas with dense foliage as these may contain snakes. Before you travel, ensure that your pet’s microchip details are up to date.

HOME ALONE

The festive season always seems to get busier than we anticipate. There are relatives and friends to catch up with, people visiting from interstate or abroad and parties to attend. Remember that in all of this companion animals may receive less, not more, of our attention. Their routines can be significantly disrupted. If you’re unable to get home to feed or walk pets, and you cannot take them with you, ask a neighbour to check on them – and offer to do this for your neighbours. Pets left alone for long periods of time may experience separation-associated distress or boredom. 

Will your cat still love you if you put him or her on a diet?

There are only two treatments for excess weight in cats: less calories in (diet) and more calories out (exercise).The weight here is in kg, so this male indoor cat was almost 12kg.

Ever considered putting your cat on a diet? Worried how your cat might respond? According to reports, some owners believe their cats will be vindictive if their calories are restricted. But a recent report found that cats exhibited more affectionate behaviour when fed a calorie restricted diet. Some reports have gone so far as to declare “cat’s won’t hate you” if you diet them. How will this impact on the human:feline bond? Let’s break it down.

First, the background. Part of the issue of course is how we keep cats. So why do cats get fat in the first place? We confine them and that’s quite a reasonable thing to do – for their safety and that of prey species. We’re not in the midst of a rodent plague, so we don’t need cats out hunting. In the wild they’d ideally subsist on a diet of 12 mice each day - but each mouse has to be caught, which 

requires expenditure of calories.

Instead, we serve our cats calorie-rich meals. Risk factors for obesity in cats include living in an apartment (not much room or incentive to exercise), being the only cat in the household (no one to play or fight with), being male, being castrated (no testosterone to stimulate behaviours associated with mating, such as going out and looking for a partner, getting into scraps with other potential partners and so on), and being fed a prescription diet (high nutrient density). 

Ad-lib feeding is also a risk (and so common with calorie-dense, dry foods).

So how come people don’t just put overweight cats on a diet? After all, we control what they eat. Unlike people, they can’t duck off to McDonald’s or stash some Maltesers when we’re not looking (they can, however, get into your stash of Maltesers if you’re not careful).

Well, if you’re asking that question perhaps you’ve never experienced a hungry cat. As the authors of the study note, pre-feeding behaviours include begging, following meowing, and pacing. These can be seriously disruptive. For example, if I want to make it to the bathroom in the morning before feeding the cats, I have to navigate the hallway while two meowing cats simultaneously figure-eight around my legs, while crying loudly, without tripping over. If I happen to hit snooze on the alarm clock, I am nudged with a closed paw. Hit it again and the claws come out. That or a three legged cat dive-bombs me from the top of the wardobe. I reward this behaviour by waking up, getting out of bed, and…once I get down the hallway…feeding him.

Let’s go back to the lab. For the study, they enrolled 58 obese cats and fed each cat one of three diets (all equal calories) – a high-fibre diet; a low-carb, high protein diet; and a control diet formulated to maintain weight in adult cats. They compared weights at day 1, week 4 and week 8. They also compared behaviours at weeks 4 and 8. They looked at pre-feeding behaviours: prefeeding begging, following, meowing and pacing, as well as post-feeding behaviours: jumping in the owner’s lap, purring, resting, sleeping and visiting the litter tray. The owners were asked whether they thought their cat’s affection had changed with the feeding of the new diet.

The great news was that 3 out of 4 cats had weight loss recorded at 8 weeks, with the high-fibre diet fed cats losing more weight over 8 weeks.

BUT…the pre-feeding “blackmail” was dialled up, regardless of the diet. Cats didn’t necessarily beg for longer, but when they did it, they did it more. However, they also ramped up the post-meal behaviours- most notably, jumping on their owners’ lap. Owners felt their cats were more affectionate.

The way this story is being reported is that this is great news – owners will feel more bonded with cats because they showed more post-feeding affection. Not much has been said of the amping up of the pre-feeding behaviour. I speak to owners of cats with polyphagia – an increased appetite –  due to conditions like thyroid disease and diabetes. The pre-feeding behaviour can occur frequently and can be extremely difficult to cope with (these cats are usually much easier to live with when they are treated).

Interestingly, owners saw pre-feeding begging as affectionate behaviour. So whether or not this is factored into overall increase in affection documented is hard to say.

Anyway, it’s great to see a study that addresses both nutrition and behaviour and raises important questions about the way we feed the feline members of our household.

You can listen to a podcast of VetTalkTV’s Brian and Kaye chatting with me about this and another cat food study at this link here.

Reference

Levine ED, Hollis NE, Schoenherr B & Houpt KA (2016) Owner's perception of changes in behaviours associated with dieting in fat cats. Journal of Veterinary Behaviour 11:37-41

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jveb.2015.11.004

Who loves you more: your dog or your cat?

Do cats really love us less than dogs do? I am not convinced. 

Recent reports in the media suggest that science has proved that dogs love humans more than cats do.

The finding comes from an experiment performed by neuroscientist Paul Zak by a BBC documentary, Cat v Dog. Zak is known for his research on oxytocin, what he calls the attachment neurochemical or “the moral molecule” because it motivates us to nurture offspring, and treat others with care and compassion.

When humans engage with each other socially, our bloodoxytocin levels may increase by 10 to 100 percent – with greater increase correlated with greater amounts of attachment or pleasure involved in the interaction. For example, our oxytocin levels may increase by 5-10 per cent when a new acquaintance shakes our hand, but they shoot up by up to 100 per cent if your own child hugs you.

According to reports, for this experiment Zak took saliva samples from 10 cats and 10 dogs at T=0 (ie before they interacted with their owners). They then engaged with their owners for a short period of time and he repeated the tests (T=1), in both cases measuring oxytocin.

After the experiment, dogs had an average increase in oxytocin of 57.2 per cent while for cats it was around 12 per cent – and some had no oxytocin at all.

What is fascinating is how this study – for which I cannot locate a peer-reviewed journal article – is being reported. In The Times of India, the headline reads “YourDog Loves You 5 Times More Than Your Cat: Study”.

In the Daily Mail, its "Proof Your Cat Loves You FIVETimes Less Than Your Dog”

Some reports, such as this one, suggest that the results are based on blood and not saliva tests. But the word "proof" is being thrown around as if the result of a single experiment is the definitive last word on a matter which may impact the way humans interact with animals and therefore impact their welfare. 

Before you give your cat the cold shoulder, remember there are limitations to every study. This one involved a small sample size, measured a single parameter, didn’t provide details about selection criteria (were there key differences in cats selected as opposed to dogs?) and didn’t measure cats in their own environment. 

As noted by Dr Zak, cats are territorial and may be secure in their own territory, but are often terrified when removed from their homes (the saying goes, “dogs love people, cats love places”) – which may have impacted the results. 

Methods can also impact results, particularly when different species are involved in a study. Measuring parameters in feline saliva is challenging for a number of reasons, not least of all because it can be difficult to collect an appropriate volume of saliva. False negative results may occur because of this methodology and there is still significant work to do to refine this modality.

On the other hand, blood tests (if they were performed) are stressful. In my experience, cats are generally more stressed than dogs about having blood drawn, although there is major individual variation (some cats don’t show any overt signs of stress, some dogs get very stressed). This might also impact results.

Is it fair to compare cats and dogs in a context that favours the dog in the first place? Is it fair to compare cats and dogs at all? What are we seeking to achieve here? And is the question who loves us best a tad anthropocentric? What does it say about us? As someone who works and lives with dogs and cats, reports about experiments like these don’t change the way I view my relationships with animals. And when it comes to cats, I think as a species we often read (and study) them wrong.

How did you react to the findings?