Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for August 6th, 2008

Mandatory spay neuter

Posted in Feline nutrition and health, tagged , on August 6, 2008| 2 Comments »

This would be fantastic! Ironically, I heard of the proposed legislation from some people complaining about it. So many people just don’t get it! There are over 20,000 companion animals put to death a YEAR in Chicago for lack of homes. More than 8,000 of these are young, healthy, dogs and cats that behave perfectly even when dumped in a shelter and poked and prodded.

The complainers were saying it doesn’t exclude purebreds. No it doesn’t. Do you really think purebreds don’t show up at shelters? Do a quick search on petfinder.com – they most definitely do. The proposed legislation DOES exclude registered breeders. So, the only “issue” would be for those backyard breeders – which I personally would LOVE to force to cease and desist! Can you say “puppy mills”? Well, don’t for one second think they aren’t “kitten mills” as well.

Voice your support!

http://pawschicago.org/animalwelfare/petordinance.htm

Read Full Post »

Feline hyperthyroidism

Posted in Feline nutrition and health, tagged on August 6, 2008| 14 Comments »

I’ve been opining on feline hyperthyroidism a LOT in the past 18 months or so.  It all started with Latifah.  Something seemed amiss with her back in January/February 2007, as although her diabetes was well controlled, even went into sporadic remissions, she had a ravenous hunger and her fur/coat wasn’t as smooth and glossy as I’d expect in a cat on an all-wet diet.  Bloodwork looked pretty good, but I had this nagging feeling – and she just “felt” hyperthyroid, I’d tell the veterinarians.  They’d usually dismiss the idea, saying her T4 values (in her bloodwork) were well within the reference range.

In a conversation with Dr. Hogkins, I noted my misgivings and I got quite the education.  T4 values in an older cat (over age ten) should not *just* be in the reference range, but in the lower half to third of the reference range and decreasing over time.  Other ailments, such as CRF (kidney disease), IBD (inflammatory bowel disease), etc. deflate T4 values as well as age. 
(more…)

Read Full Post »