Dear Most Esteemed and Knowledgeable Kitties:

I have a 14-year-old cat whose gums became swollen, they bled and she had difficulty eating and grooming herself. My vet suggested a dental cleaning, and when they put her under, they discovered that her teeth were in perfect condition. She was then put on antibiotics and steriod injections. The condition kept flaring up and the vet suggested removal of all her molars, which I agreed to.

This has still not stopped the problem. She was put on steriod injections every 6 weeks, but after a while the injections only lasted 3-4 weeks. We then tried steriod tablets, a quarter to half a tablet a day when needed. Yet again, after a few months these became ineffective. She went in last week to have x-rays to see if the problem was in her gums or jaw bone. The tests came back clear. She has been tested for every disease relating to the immune system and nothing shows up. Can you suggest some new avenues for me to explore?

~ Akua

Siouxsie: Since your vet has tested for every disease we can think of, Akua, we think you should investigate the possibility of an allergy or environmental sensitivity.

Thomas: Cats can be extraordinarily sensitive to chemicals in their environment or in their food. This can cause any number of symptoms from skin itching and swelling to diarrhea and many others that can’t be explained by a disease process.

Dahlia: Although gum swelling and bleeding are not listed among the commonest symptoms of allergies, we still think it could be a possible indication of environmental stress.

Siouxsie: Your cat’s situation is one of those where we feel that a referral to a holistic veterinarian may be a great help. It seems to us you’ve taken pretty much every route your conventional veterinarian has to offer you, and perhaps going an alternate route will result in healing or better management of your cat’s condition.

Thomas: We must point out that we mean no disrespect to Western vet medicine, by the way! Mama relies on our conventional veterinarian to keep us healthy and diagnose and treat any conditions that may arise, and we’d never advise anyone to stop taking their cat to a regular vet.

Dahlia: But sometimes you run out of options. And trust us, when vets don’t know what else to do, they get frustrated too! They don’t like to see animals hurting and feel as though they can’t help the pain to stop.

Siouxsie: Anyway, Akua, you may want to find a holistic veterinarian in your area. You can do so by talking to friends who have used holistic vets or by consulting the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association‘s practitioner directory. If you live in the US or Canada, this directory is pretty complete; if you live elsewhere, there are probably equivalent organizations with similar listings.

Thomas: Once you locate a holistic vet in your area, you may be able to use review sites like Yelp or VetRatingz to find out more about clients’ experiences.

Dahlia: Of course, ultimately it’s going to come down to your (and your cat’s) preferences when selecting a vet.

Siouxsie: In the meantime, try to think of anything in your cat’s environment or diet that changed before her symptoms started. Did you have a carpet replaced? Change laundry detergents? Buy a different cat food or litter?

Thomas: If not, it may be that her system just got fed up with a whole bunch of small irritants. We’d recommend making your house as chemical-free as possible by eliminating things like plug-in air fresheners, heavily scented detergents, fabric softeners and kitty litter, and — of course — if anyone smokes in your house, this would be a great time to tell them they have to go outside!

Dahlia: Buy your cat the highest-quality food you can afford. The less grain, the better, because grains have a tendency to irritate cats’ digestive systems; we are, after all, obligate carnivores, and our bodies aren’t designed to be able to digest grains all that well.

Siouxsie: We would recommend that you undertake a search for a holistic vet pretty soon. Long-term steroid use, particularly at high doses, can have pretty serious health consequences for cats, including weakening the immune system and potentially causing diabetes, liver disease, and other endocrine system disorders.

Thomas: Akua, we hope that if you do decide to pursue holistic care in addition to your regular vet care, that your cat finds some comfort and relief soon so she can enjoy the rest of her life.

Dahlia: Please let us know how things turn out.

Dear Most Esteemed and Knowledgeable Kitties:

I adopted an adorable tabby from the shelter 3 months ago. She is afraid of everything and spends much of her time in hiding. I can pet her but I can’t hold her. She won’t trust me. Here’s the problem. Her claws are getting very long and they must get trimmed. I can’t do this , if I try to hold her she gets mad and wants to claw me. I can’t get her to the vet because I can’t get her in a box to take her out of the house. What to do? Help?

~Adele

Siouxsie: Well, it seems like you’ve got two problems here, Adele. First, you’ve got a cat that’s scared of everything. Second, this scaredy cat needs to have her claws trimmed. The order in which you deal with these issues is crucial to your relationship with your kitty.

Thomas: It sounds like your cat is either still suffering from “shelter shock” or that she was mistreated earlier in her life. If so, your first task is to help her feel safe and comfortable in your home. This requires patience, of course, but there are some other tools you can use.

Dahlia: We’ve found that natural remedies and pheromone diffusers are the best treatments for cats in this situation. By using a product like Comfort Zone for Cats (also called Feliway), which mimics the “happy cat” pheromones of calm and relaxed cats, you can help to de-stress your kitty.

Siouxsie: “Shelter Shock” and “Past Abuse for Cats” flower essences are natural remedies that you administer simply by adding a drop or two to your cat’s water. This product is sold by CatFaeries, a company with whom we’ve done business before and been very satisfied.

Thomas: While you’re helping her get used to her new environment and understand that she’ll be loved and not hurt, get some scratching posts and scratching pads. She can use these to groom her claws until she trusts you enough to let her hold you and perhaps even trim her claws.

Dahlia: If it’s any consolation, I absolutely hate having my claws trimmed! But I’ve been able to keep my claws in shape by using the wonderful scratching post Mama bought for us. Sisal is the best material for scratching posts because it has an ideal texture for digging in and stretching.

Siouxsie: Scratching posts need to have a wide base so they don’t fall over and should be tall enough for your kitty to get a good stretch.

Thomas: Cardboard scratching pads are inexpensive and they’re great for cats that prefer horizontal scratching surfaces. You can find them at almost all pet stores and online pet outlets.

Dahlia: If your cat’s need for a claw trim is so urgent that it can’t wait for her to adapt to her new environment, consider contacting a professional groomer or your vet’s office to see if they can recommend someone who could come to your home and trim your cat’s nails.

Siouxsie: The benefits of having a professional do the job are twofold: First, the pro will have handled difficult kitties before and because they’re experienced in the art of claw trimming, they’ll get the job done quickly.

Thomas: Second, your cat won’t blame you for the trauma of the nail trim. If you’re trying to build her trust, the last thing you want to do is traumatize her with restraint and unwanted attention.

Dahlia: If you want to do it yourself, have your vet demonstrate safe restraint techniques like the “burrito” method (rolling your cat up in a towel) that will enable you to keep your cat in one place and keep yourself safe from being scratched.

Siouxsie: You may need a second person helping you early in your cat’s nail trimming career. The second person will be the restrainer, holding the cat in the burrito or keeping her in one position long enough for you to clip her claws.

Thomas: If you want detailed instructions on how to trim a cat’s nails, you can read this page or this one (which also talks about how to get your cat into the towel.

Dahlia: Pawprints and Purrs has an article on methods of restraining cats, which you might also find helpful.

Siouxsie: If you want to see it rather than read about it, Cat Henstridge, the Pet Street Vet, has made an excellent short video on how to trim a cat’s claws, which you can find at the end of this post. And she’s got a lovely accent … for a human.

Thomas: We hope this helps, Adele. Please let us know how things turn out!

Dear Most Esteemed and Knowledgeable Kitties:

I have a 4-year-old female cat that has been fighting a urinary tract infection for months now. The vet tested her urine and found bacteria but no crystals. She has been on several antibiotics and nothing worked and I finally gave up with them. From day one she never cried or howled in the litter box, never lost her appetite. I have been feeding her either Merrick No grain food or wellness.  She has decided that she is sick of both and wants something else. I have recently changed her diet to wet food and have been adding a little water to it each time. I have also been giving her about 250mg of Vitamin C. The only problem that she has is that she strains in the litter box. She goes very little or sometimes not at all. Once in a while she will have a decent urination. She is in good spirits, still jumping, very affectionate, not hiding. I have changed her litter to Precious Cat which is pure clay, so the urine does not fall to the bottom of the pan.

I have three other cats, all neutered males. One of them seems to want to mount her, and when he does this she screams. I have tried to stop him by using a water gun and shaking coins in a can. When I shook the can I scared all of them, including her. As far as the water gun, he now just sits and looks at me and takes it and waits for me to stop. He is just about 5 years old and there is no way that I would be able to find another home for him at that age. Putting him in a shelter is out of the question.

I am baffled by this whole thing. Can you give me any help? It seems as though the vets just guess at all of this and they are just not hitting it correctly.

~ Ellen

Siouxsie: Oh, Ellen, I really feel for your poor kitty. I recently got over a UTI myself, and I know just how miserable they are.

Thomas: For the benefit of our other readers, we’ll explain how vets deal with urinary tract problems. When a person brings a cat in with symptoms like straining to urinate, crying in the litterbox, or urinating in inappropriate places, the vet will do a physical exam on the cat, take her temperature, and collect a urine sample.

Dahlia: Sometimes the vet will try to collect the sample by putting the cat in a cage with a litterbox containing some urine-absorbing pellet litter. But since cats rarely pee on command, the best way to collect a sample and make sure there are no outside contaminants in that sample is by means of a cystocentesis, or inserting a small needle into the bladder to collect some of the urine inside.

Siouxsie: The vet will then examine the urine under a microscope and look for bacteria or crystals. If crystals are present, the vet will determine which of two common types of crystals they are.

Thomas: Crystals are treated differently than urinary tract infections. The presence of crystals or stones in the bladder is potentially life-threatening, particularly when the crystals block the urethra.

Dahlia: Some cats develop a condition called idiopathic interstitial cystitis. This means that the tissues of the bladder become inflamed and the cat develops symptoms much like those of a urinary tract infection. However, a culture and sensitivity test will reveal that there are no bacteria or crystals in the cat’s bladder.

Siouxsie: Now, back to the subject of bacterial infections. The treatment of choice for this condition is a round of antibiotics. Some vets will administer a pain control or steroid injection in order to decrease the swelling and discomfort.

Thomas: Mama has had a lot of experience with cystitis and urinary tract infections. Our sister Sinéad (may she frolic forever in the catnip-filled fields) got UTIs pretty regularly, and here are some of the tips our vet recommended to help her stay healthy:

• Do not give your cat tap water or mineral water. Instead, invest in a filter pitcher and run your water through that. This eliminates extra irritants like chlorine or other “hard water” elements that can cause irritation. It’s a lot less expensive in the long run than buying bottled water, and it’ll make you healthier, too.
• Do not feed tuna-based cat food. For some reason, tuna cat food seems to aggravate sensitivities that cause bladder inflammation.
• Do feed other kinds of canned food. The extra water in the food helps flush any crystals out of the urinary tract.
• Keep the litterbox very clean.
• Minimize stress in the environment.

Dahlia: It sounds to us like you and your vet are doing everything right in terms of diagnosing and treating your cat’s urinary tract infection. However, it’s possible that her urinary tract symptoms are being complicated by the stress in her environment. Stress is bad for the immune system, too; it lowers resistance to infections.

Siouxsie: The male cat’s behavior is clearly a stressor for your kitty, and there are some ways you can minimize that stress.

Thomas: Sometimes vets will give cats with stress-based cystitis an anti-anxiety medication like amitryptiline. This may help your cat, but unless you resolve the behavior issue her problem is not going to go away.

Dahlia: We commend you for not wanting to rehome the male cat that’s causing the problems. But you need to understand that he’s behaving this way because he, too, is under stress.

Siouxsie: Mounting is generally a dominance issue. We suspect that there’s some jostling for position in the feline hierarchy, and for some reason the male that’s acting out is trying to move up the hierarchy by dominating the female.

Thomas: We strongly recommend that you use a feline pheromone diffuser such as Feliway. This product has been very effective in reducing stress in cats. Mama has used it in our household, not only to resolve behavior problems but to help us get through our recent move to a new home, and it’s worked very well.

Dahlia: Also, make sure that there’s plenty of territory, both horizontal and vertical, so that every cat can have his or her own space. Cat trees, window seats and the like can work wonders.

Siouxsie: Give all the cats plenty of active play time. Use “thing on a string” toys and other products that can help us cats enjoy using our hunting instincts and use our energy in more constructive ways.

Thomas: Distraction by play is another effective way to stop bad behavior in its tracks. Instead of reacting when the male cat is already mounting the female, monitor him and when he starts acting like he’s about to attack and mount your female cat, get out the thing on a string and play with him.

Dahlia: When you get him to play instead of mounting the female cat, you’ll help him to realize there are other ways to relieve his stress.

Siouxsie: Talk to your vet about the male cat’s behavior issues, too. Your vet may have some other ideas about how you can help the male feel less insecure. A feline behaviorist can be a valuable ally in your efforts to restore harmony in your home.

Thomas: Holistic remedies can help in resolving tough behavior issues. Homeopathy, for example, works on an energy level and can relieve any imbalances that cause emotional and chronic physical problems.

Dahlia: To find veterinary homeopaths and other holistic vets in your area–as long as you’re in the US or Canada–we recommend checking the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association website and using their holistic vet directory.

Siouxsie: Most conventional vets are willing to work with holistic vets. Your vet wants the best for your cat, too. It’s frustrating for the vet as well as the caretaker when an animal is sick and standard treatments don’t work.

Thomas: Good luck, Ellen. Please let us know how things turn out!

Dear Most Esteemed and Knowledgeable Kitties:

One of my cats had major dental surgery in January. When we adopted her, we found that her teeth were all rotten and had to be removed. Since being on the antibiotic regimen back then, she has had chronic diarrhea. She was put on antibiotics twice to treat it at first and has been on probiotics as well (Culturelle and others), but to no avail. I have her on a chicken and rice diet, and she eats WD dry as well, despite having no teeth. She is hungry all the time, but she has gained weight–before her surgery she was very sick with her infected teeth and was unable to eat well. Any ideas as to how to get rid of the diarrhea? Do I just have to wait it out, as I had to do with another cat a couple of years ago after a similar reaction to antibiotics? I am at a loss.

~Trish

Siouxsie: Antibiotics are certainly known to cause diarrhea in cats. As well as killing the bacteria that cause infections, they kill the normal bacteria that live in the intestines and help to digest food.

Thomas: Parasites, food intolerance, and chronic conditions like colitis or malabsorption syndrome can also cause diarrhea.

Dahlia: In cases of simple, acute diarrhea, vets often recommend a 24-hour liquid fast, in which you feed the cat only beef broth so it can get the electrolytes and nutrition it needs while allowing the intestines to rest for a while. After fasting the cat for 24 hours, you would gradually transition the cat to canned food and then to solid food.

Siouxsie: You did the right thing by giving your cat probiotics, but we wonder if it would be more effective to feed her yogurt rather than giving her probiotic pills. Plain yogurt without any artificial sweeteners or other additives will provide the probiotics your cat needs in order to get her intestines back in order. And it tastes good, too!

Thomas: Have you had a stool sample examined by your vet? Parasites, particularly roundworms and hookworms, can cause diarrhea because they irritate the intestines. Giardia, a protozoal parasite, tends to cause a cat to have watery, incredibly stinky diarrhea. If parasites are part of your cat’s diarrhea issue, proper treatment of the infection will rid your cat of the diarrhea as well.

Dahlia: If your cat is suffering from food intolerance, diarrhea can result. Since you’re feeding her chicken and rice, it’s probably pretty unlikely that she’s having a food intolerance reaction. But you never know!

Siouxsie: However, if food intolerance is suspected, your vet may suggest that you change the type of food you’re feeding her: when using canned food, substitute rabbit or game bird formulas for the common tuna, whitefish, or beef formulas. There are also dry foods that are hypoallergenic because they’re made without grains such as corn that commonly cause food intolerance.

Thomas: Your vet will be able to tell you about prescription diets available to settle your cat’s intestines. You can also try premium cat foods such as Merrick’s Before Grain (our current favorite) dry and canned food, Eagle Pack, or Innova/Evo.

Dahlia: These foods cost more than most, but we eat less of them and absorb more nutrients. As a result, our stools are smaller and don’t smell as bad. And our vet, Doctor Sarah, always raves about how healthy we are and how beautiful our fur is when we go for our checkups!

Siouxsie: Whatever you decide to do, you need to talk to your vet about your cat’s chronic diarrhea.

Thomas: Diarrhea can cause health problems by getting your cat’s electrolytes out of balance. Electrolytes are substances that become ions in solution and acquire the capacity to conduct electricity. The balance of the electrolytes in our bodies is essential for normal function of our cells and our organs. Usually electrolytes are lost from the body by sweating, diarrhea, or vomiting.

Dahlia: Diarrhea can also be a symptom of other health problems such as pancreas or digestive system disorders.

Siouxsie: Dr. Richard Pitcairn, in his bookDr. Pitcairn’s Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats, suggests a couple of holistic remedies that might help. Please use these remedies only after you’ve talked to your veterinarian and eliminated any possibility of parasites or disease causing your cat’s diarrhea.

Thomas: Slippery elm powder, available in most health food stores, is a good treatment for diarrhea of any cause. To make this remedy, thoroughly mix 1 rounded teaspoon of slippery elm powder into 1 cup of cold water. Bring the mixture to a boil while stirring constantly. Then turn down the heat to simmer and continue to stir for another 2 to 3 minutes while the mixture thickens slightly. Take it off the heat, cool to room temperature, and give 1/2 to 1 teaspoon to your cat. Give this dose 4 times a day or about every 4 hours. Cover the mixture and keep it at room temperature; it will keep for a couple of days.

Dahlia: You’ll probably have to give your cat this remedy with a liquid medicine syringe or a plastic eyedropper. Maybe you have some left over from administering liquid antibiotics. She almost certainly won’t lap it up from a spoon.

Siouxsie: The homeopathic remedy Natrum Muriaticum 6X is approprite for longer-lasting diarrhea of cats. The diarrhea is usually dark and offensive-smelling, and the cat who needs Nat. Mur. will act uncomfortable after eating, sitting hunched up on all fours because of the pain of stomach cramps. Give one pellet or tablet every 4 hours for a total of three treatments. Provide no food for 10 minutes before and after treatment. If your cat is not noticeably better in 24 hours, this is not the remedy you need.

Thomas: Homeopathic remedies are available at most health food stores in the U.S., and in the United Kingdom you can find them at many pharmacies.

Dahlia: The 6X after the remedy name refers to the potency. If you can’t find the remedy in 6X potency, you can use 12X or 30C if that’s what’s available. Ideally you’ll be able to use the 6X potency, but use what’s there rather than using nothing at all.

Siouxsie: Homeopathic remedies are not drugs, they’re simply a tiny bit of some naturally occurring substance in a pill made of milk sugar. They affect the body on an energy level rather than killing bacteria or changing our body chemistry.

Thomas: While this may sound “woo-woo” to people unfamiliar with energy medicine, we know homeopathy works. In the United Kingdom and western Europe, homeopathy is a well-regarded type of medical treatment for people and for animals.

Dahlia: We’ve never heard of harmful interactions between homeopathic remedies and prescription drugs, so you need not fear that.

Siouxsie: Although technically you’re not supposed to touch a homeopathic pellet or tablet with your fingers, Mama has had good luck giving us homeopathic remedies as she would give a pill. And the remedy works even when given by hand.

Thomas: So, Trish, we hope this information helps you to treat your kitty’s diarrhea. We’re sending purrs and head-bumps to help her feel better. Please let us know how things turn out. And before we go, we’ll extend a belated “Happy A-Day” to Dahlia. September 19 was the second anniversary of the day she adopted Mama.

Dahlia: Awww, thank you, Thomas! And all that snuggling we’ve been doing today just makes me even happier. This is the best A-Day ever!