HEALTH SCARES

TRAINED VETERINARY ASSISTANT ON STAFF
Since Tricia is a trained Veterinary Assistant, we can and do board “special needs” cats. Insulin injections, thyroid ointments, and giving pills are just part of the service we provide in addition to our normal care. She constantly monitors all cats that board with us and every now and then, gets a “health scare.” Tricia will report anything to the owner that they should be aware of such as blood in the stool, diarrhea, excessive water intake and other issues of concern. However, in some cases, we have had to make a quick decision to take the cat to their Veterinarian especially if the owner is not due to return soon.

NOTE: Veterinarians in general will not treat a cat without the owner’s permission, which is why we always ask for as many contact phone numbers as possible in order to reach you---just in case!

DIABETES

A young couple adopted “Maxie” from the Shelter, and she was their first ever cat. She was an adult cat of about 5 years old. She settled in to be part of the family in no time. When they went on a short vacation, they boarded her with us, but it wasn’t long before we noticed something was really wrong. She would drink a whole bowl of water at a sitting and then soak her litter box and the floor around her litter box. When the owners returned, we questioned them about this behavior. They had noticed, but being new to cat parents, didn’t realize that this was not a healthy situation. We advised them to take “Maxie” to their Veterinarian ASAP as this was a serious symptom of either Diabetes or Kidney Failure. Sure enough, the next time they boarded “Maxie,” she was to have insulin injections twice a day as she had been tested and diagnosed with Diabetes. And what a different cat! She was active and playful and obviously happy to be feeling much better.

One of our favorite boarders is “Callie,” a 12-year old, blue-cream tortoiseshell, shorthair cat with Diabetes. You would never guess she needs insulin shots twice daily. She comes up to get her injection quite willingly, probably because she feels better afterwards. She not only is very active and affectionate, she also is boss to her two kitty roommates!

INFECTION

We had boarded “Sweetie” several times, so when she came in for a longer stay, we were surprised at how lethargic she had become. After closely monitoring her for several days, we determined that something was just not right. We took her to her Vet Clinic. The Vet kept her for 3 days running tests with no real conclusions other than an infection. Since “Sweetie” was very overweight and rotund, she was unable to reach her private parts for a proper cleaning. The Vet discovered that her anal glands were not only impacted, but badly infected. Her system was very toxic and if we hadn’t brought her in to the clinic, she would not have made it. We picked her up after treatment and returned her to her cabin and medicated her daily with antibiotics. She was back to being her active self by the time her owners returned home. Whew!

GLAUCOMA

“Michi” is an 11 year old male, white Turkish Angora, and has boarded with us many times. He is such fun because he is a people person. He comes to his name and actively enjoys his time with us in the Playroom. But the last time he boarded with us, we noticed something odd about his eyes. When a cat is frightened or stalking in hunting mode, their eyes will dilate until they appear to be all black. “Michi” was always outgoing and never scared of anything, so it seemed strange that his eyes were always dilated, even when he was resting. We reported our concern to his folks when we delivered him home again and strongly suggested they take him to their Veterinarian ASAP. Two days later, our client called us to report that they had taken “Michi” to their Vet the very next day. It was diagnosed that he has Glaucoma which is very rare in cats. Because it was caught early enough, it could be treated and he would be fine. Our client was close to tears as she thanked us for the “heads up” because, she admitted, she might not have noticed anything wrong.

ELDERLY CATS

We always feel honored when a cat owner trusts us to care for their elderly cat that has been part of their family from 15 to 20 years or longer. However, as in any elderly being, health issues can happen and often happen quickly. With a trained Veterinary Assistant on staff to monitor the cat’s condition, and care for it in a stress-free environment, the owners will have their elderly cat returned to them safe and sound.

A 19-year old, black shorthair cat, “Blackie” was slow moving, but doing fine. Then one day during her stay, we noticed she seemed really lethargic and had a little foam at her mouth. She was quickly transported to her Vet for evaluation. He stated that she would have been a goner if we hadn’t responded so quickly because she had 3 major problems. She was dehydrated, had a tooth infection, and a urinary tract infection all of which were serious for cat of her age. She was treated and released to us again with medications. When her owners saw her again, she was just fine and back to her loving self. The Vet explained to them that she would not have survived until their return without immediate treatment.

“Koty Jay,” an 18 year old (92 in human years), Persian mix, boards with us regularly. He is very healthy with an amazing amount of energy. However, he just can’t keep up with his grooming, so his folks take him to a groomer for a “lion cut” hairdo. He likes to “talk” a lot, probably about the old days. We monitor him closely, however, because we are not sure that he is complaining about an ailment due to his age.

ABSCESS

At home, she is an Indoor/Outdoor cat, but as long as she can get to a window, she is a happy camper at Hideout Cattery. “Bella” boards with us for long periods when her owner travels out of the country. She was always quiet and rather shy when she came to stay with us, but this time, she seemed unusually lethargic. After petting her head and neck area, we discovered she had large abscess. Since we knew she was an indoor/outdoor cat, she must have been in a cat fight before she came to us. Because the fur covered the abscess area, her owner was unaware of a problem. Since “Bella’s” home was in another State, we made an appointment for her at a local Veterinary Clinic. She was treated and stitched up (8 stitches!) and we were given antibiotics to administer to her during the rest of her stay. She would have crawled away to hide and the Vet said she would have died if she had been left at home, but she was just fine when she reunited with her owner weeks later.