| T.R | Title | User | Personal
Name | Date | Lines |
|---|
| 406.1 | more questions and a suggestion | USHS01::MCALLISTER | TARDIS Sales and Service Co. | Wed Nov 26 1986 13:43 | 17 |
|
Have you considered having her blood tested. There are some problems
that can cause this, the particular one I'd have to consider is
diabetes. Are there any other symptoms, excessive water drinking,
litter box problems, personality changes?
On the tapeworm front. Tapes are quite easily missed (according
to the Cornell Newsletter). However, if you see particles that
look like rice where your cat likes to sleep, that is indicative
of tapes. With the flea problem you described, I'd guess she has
had tapes at some time; have you ever had her treated for such?
(Tapeworms and fleas run in a cycle).
You're right to be concerned, I'll check and see what else I can
come up with.
Dave
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| 406.2 | Hope It's Not This | INK::KALLIS | Support Hallowe'en | Mon Dec 01 1986 09:11 | 5 |
| Also have her checked for cancer. Karamaneh had two malignancies,
both removed. She's still thin, but not as bad.
Steve Kallis, Jr.
|
| 406.3 | | MAXWEL::BROSNIHAN | BRIAN | Wed Dec 03 1986 14:05 | 7 |
| I don't know if your cat has lost a little weight or is extremely
thin, but I change my cats diet in the cold weather. I give him
more food than usual because he burns off more calories in the cold
weather to keep him warm. Maybe he needs a little fattening up due
to the winter?
/BB
|
| 406.4 | Tapeworms - Yuk! | CANVAS::SAUTA | | Thu Dec 04 1986 16:45 | 28 |
| Both our cats tend to get tapeworms at one point during the year
and is most likely due to infected fleas. Fleas are a real problem
in California, since it never seems to get cold enough to kill them
off and even with an exterminator and flea dips, our cats always
seem to get them in the summer.
Anyway, we just treated them with tapeworm medication about 3 weeks
ago and I've already noticed that they look a little heavier. Like
your cat, they've always had good appetites and go through a fair
amount of water. We now know what the tapeworm eggs look like,
so tend to get them to the vets fairly quickly, which has seemed
to keep the weight loss to a minimum. The eggs look like teardrop
shaped rice granules and are a little smaller and darker than rice.
They are very hard.
Our vet doesn't like to prescribe the med. unless we know for sure
that they have worms, so our preventative care usually consists
of battling the flea problem. The med. consist of 1 to 1 1/2 tablets
depending on the kittie's weight and does the job with one dose.
We haven't noticed any side effects at all.
Tapeworms are pretty disgusting, but at least are easy to get rid
of!
Good luck,
Lynne
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| 406.5 | Why not? | NIMBUS::OHERN | | Fri Dec 05 1986 10:17 | 7 |
| Are there any dangers associated with treating the symptoms without
having a positive lab test confirming the diagnosis....or, what
are the dangers associated with giving a cat de-worming medication
if the cat doesn't have worms?
I'm inclined to suspect the accuracy of the lab test...the symptoms
point to worms!
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| 406.6 | | USHS01::MCALLISTER | TARDIS Sales and Service Co. | Fri Dec 05 1986 16:04 | 10 |
| worming medicines are, for all practical purposes, poisons that
are delivered in proper amounts to not harm the animal. But they
are still poisons.
If you suspect the results, I'd try another vet.
(I have given my cats tapeworm shots without being absolutely sure,
but I still get nervous about it.
Dave
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| 406.7 | How about trying a different kind of food? | DSSDEV::EPPES | Dignity, always dignity | Fri Dec 05 1986 17:51 | 17 |
| Last spring, my Persian, Jasper, got very skinny and his fur got
really thin for apparently no reason. He seemed otherwise healthy --
he had a good appetite, was playful and alert, etc. I took him to
the vet and she did a battery of tests on stool, blood, etc. Nothing.
She suggested switching to a different kind of food, which I did.
Now, a few months later, he is huge, hefty, and his fur is amazingly
thick and silky (in fact, it doesn't really get matted anymore, whereas
before it would get matted constantly, even though I combed him
regularly). In fact, I may have to put him on a diet!
We still don't know what the problem was, but it sure seems to have
been taken care of. I had been feeding him Tami-Ami, and switched
to IAMS. Jasper's montrous now! But very cuddly...
So, you might try changing to a different kind of food. You never know.
Good luck!
-- Nina
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