Cats keep secrets when they’re sick

Has your cat ever had a fight? I don’t mean with a spouse or HOA but with a marauding feline neighbor or housemate. Squabbles may start and end with spitting, verbal putdowns, and posturing but when it’s game-on, an altercation can turn dangerous.

Feline behavior is complicated and, in many ways, quite different than our species or our dogs.’ Some cats prefer to be part of a group (colony) but they can just as easily go it alone. Except for females and their young, kitties don’t need each other to survive. Unlike us and our dogs, they don’t cry out to their comrades when they’re sick or hurt. They hide-out in hopes of getting well on their own. Our cats and dogs come from different planets.

When the politics between pussy cats goes sideways, everybody’s adrenaline surges. Claws and canine teeth inflict multiple deep, contaminated stab wounds in just a few seconds. Penetrated skin seals over quickly, trapping a veritable army of bacteria.  If a robust immune response quells the threat, no one is the wiser. But defenses can get overwhelmed. Deep infections fester, gradually forming a pocket of pus. An abscess.

Relief means lancing and draining that thick, nasty fluid. Irrigating the pocket with a diluted disinfectant is essential. At-home follow-up means keeping the wound open to avoid a reoccurrence. All of that bacteria can still kill. Back in the day, before the advent of antibiotics, abscesses were sometimes fatal.

Treatment can start with an injectable antibiotic but then our cat parent is stuck with several days of oral medication. In 2008 we were gifted with a long acting version called Convenia (cefovecin). Wowsers! One and done! Not so much anymore, campers. Convenia has been overused, often in pets who didn’t really need antibiotics in the first place. This wonder drug is now losing its value.

Today’s lesson: easy isn’t always better. All cat people should gently and slowly entice their pets to sit on their laps, eager to take a dropper in their mouth for the tasty food smeared on its end. When your fuzzy student is licking happily you can slowly dribble a few drops of yummy liquid. Everybody will be ready, just in case.

·

For help with behavior problems, you can sign-up for a Zoom Group Conference on my website, drjeffnichol.com.

Dr. Jeff Nichol is a residency-trained veterinary behaviorist in Albuquerque. He provides consultations by Zoom group and individually/in-person. Sign up for his weekly blog or post questions (drjeffnichol.com) or by US Post to 4000 Montgomery Blvd. NE, Albuq, NM 87109.