Capturing and Restraining in Cats

By: Christian Yost

March 26, 2009

Capturing a roaming injured cat can be difficult. Though injured, some can still run quite fast. Unfortunately, some cats will run away and not be found. If you notice a collar, especially if there is a tag, remember to keep this with the animal. If the collar is broken and the animal is being transported to another location, take the collar and tag so someone can contact the owner.

For those cats that try to get away from you but stay nearby, here are some suggestions on how to catch them and offer care:

If you have a leash, make a loop out of the leash by passing the end that would normally attach to the leash through the handle loop.

Stand along side or just behind the injured animal.

Loop the converted leash over his head and gently tighten.

Be prepared for some struggling since most cats are not used to a leash.

If you do not have a leash or the leash technique is not working, a large towel or blanket can also work.

This technique also works well with cats if you are unable to use a leash.

Drop the blanket or towel over the pet.

Be aware of the animal’s position under the blanket so you don’t go near the mouth.

Wrap the blanket around the animal and scoop him into your arms. Be aware of where the mouth and claws are. Some animals can be very determined and will bite through thick blankets.

Some cats that are used to pet carriers will crawl into an empty box. After inside the box, the cat can be easily transported. Make sure the lid is securely fastened, but still allows air to flow.

Cats can be difficult to restrain. Remember, cats can bite as well as scratch. Even though they are small, cats can cause significant and serious injuries. There are two popular cat restraint methods: scruffing while sitting and lying down restraint. These are typically used if there are two people involved. If you are alone, you may want to consider capturing and transporting the cat to an animal shelter or veterinary clinic. Be aware that some cats do better with minimal or no restraint. If restraint techniques are becoming difficult, stressful and making the situation worse, try talking soothingly to the cat and work without restraint.

Scruffing Restraint

The skin at the back of the neck is called the scruff. This is a good way to restrain cats. As Kittens, the mother would use the scruff to hold the kitten to comfort or discipline. Cats seem to remember this and usually do not object to scruffing.

Grasp the skin behind the neck. Hold firmly. Use your dominant hand to hold the scruff.

With you other hand, hold the cat in a sitting position.

Be wary of front claws. You may need to grasp the front arms with your other hand instead of holding in a sitting position.

Cradle the cat in your arms while you scruff and hold the front arms.

Try not to let go of the scruff. This is an important part of cat restraint.

Lying on Side Restraint

Grasp the skin behind the neck. Hold firmly with your dominant hand.

Grab the rear legs and tail with your other hand.

Gently lay the cat on her side. You may need the other person to help you get her front legs out of the way. Cats tend to use the free front legs to prevent lying on their side.

Once the cat is on her side, do not let go of the scruff or the rear legs. This will allow the cat to right herself and fight back.

Please visit us at www.siamese-cattailscattery.com

Animal Bites, Rabies and Quarantine in Cats

Animal Bites, Rabies and Quarantine in Cats

By: Christian Yost

March 24, 2009

Unfortunately, animal bites are a common injury in cats, especially those that spend a lot of time outdoors. Although infection is the most common result of these bites, rabies should also be a concern. Any animal that has bitten a person or that is under the suspicion of being exposed to rabies is often required by law to be quarantined for a period of time. The amount of time, as well as the quarantine site, depends on the bite, the Pet’s vaccine status and local laws.

Rabies

Rabies is a deadly virus contagious to all warm-blooded animal species, including people. The virus is most often transmitted from one animal to another through bite wounds. It then travels through the nerves, the spinal cord and eventually the brain. After reaching the brain, the virus causes death within 10 days, although it can take weeks to months to reach the brain. Once signs of rabies develop, there is no cure and the disease is fatal.
What To Do If Your Pet Bites Someone

After biting a person, most pets are required by local law to be quarantined. The site of quarantine and the length of time vary on your pet’s vaccination status. Pets unvaccinated for rabies may have to be euthanized and tested for rabies. The rabies test requires microscopic examination of brain tissue and is not a test your pet can survive.

If local laws allow, you may be able to place your pet in isolation at an animal control center or veterinary hospital for 6 months. If signs of rabies do not develop, the pet is vaccinated for rabies one month before release from quarantine and is then allowed to return home. Usually, the cost of quarantine is the responsibility of the pet owner.

For pets with expired vaccinations, quarantine may be required. These situations are usually handled on a case-by-case basis. Oftentimes, the animal is immediately vaccinated for rabies and monitored at home under quarantine for around 45 days. Animal control officers may visit your home to make sure you are following the quarantine rules and to officially release your pet from home quarantine.

For pets with current rabies vaccination, sometimes quarantine is not required but some areas require a quarantine of 10 days. The purpose of the 10 day quarantine is to determine whether or not the pet was transmitting the virus at the time of the bite. It does not mean the pet does not have rabies; it only means that the pet could not have transmitted the virus to the person bitten.

Rabies can take weeks to months to travel up the nerves to reach the brain. Prior to entering the brain, the pet is not contagious and usually does not act ill. Once the virus reaches the brain, and then the salivary glands, the pet is considered contagious. Once the virus reaches the brain, death usually occurs within 10 days. If your pet is normal and healthy at the end of the 10 day quarantine, then it is determined that your pet was not contagious at the time of the bite.

What To Do If Your Pet Is Bitten

If your pet has been bitten and the other animal cannot be located, your pet should be observed for 6 months to watch for signs of rabies. If he has not been vaccinated for rabies, you may be required to quarantine your cat at a veterinary hospital or animal shelter. Vaccinated pets typically can be quarantined at home. A rabies control officer may have to check on the pet periodically and officially release him from home quarantine.

If your pet has been bitten and the animal has been located, the above guidelines are recommended, based on vaccination status. If the animal is a wild animal, oftentimes euthanasia and rabies testing is recommended.

For more information or information specific to your geographic area, contact your veterinarian  or local animal control/rabies control facility.

Please visit us at www.siamese-cattailscattery.com

Bartonellosis (Cat-scratch Disease)

Bartonellosis (Cat-scratch Disease)

By: Christian Yost

March 24, 2009

Cat-scratch Disease (CSD), also known as Rochalimaea henselae or Bartonella henselae, is an infection in humans that most often occurs after prolonged contact with a young cat. When diagnosed in cats this disease is called feline bartonellosis. It is caused by a bacteria called Bartonella henselae.

All ages, breeds, and sexes of cat are susceptible; however, kittens under one year of age, kittens or cats infested with fleas, and feral cats or former strays are more likely to have the bacteria in their blood stream. Fleas are believed to play a major role in cat-to-cat and possibly cat-to-human transmission. Cats can be infected with the organism for months, or even years, and never show any clinical signs.

Children and immunocompromised people may suffer severe disease when infected by these bacteria.

Cats are considered the major reservoir for these bacteria, although fleas and some other mammals have also been shown to play a role in the disease transmission.

What to Watch For in Cats

Bartonella is not known to cause serious disease in most cats. Most cats will have no clinical signs of illness. Some cats may exhibit:

Lethargy

Fever

Lack of appetite (anorexia)

Reproductive difficulty

Lymphnode enlargement

Vomiting

Red eyes (uveitis)

What to Watch for in Humans

Signs of human disease include raised skin lesions that are red to purple in color. Anywhere from a few to over 100 may be found on the face, trunk, arms and legs. If cat scratch disease spreads internally, it can cause fever, wight loss and vomiting. Upon examination, the liver and spleen may be enlarged. Humans with immunodeficiency problems are at higher risk for disease.

Diagnosis

In people, definitive diagnosis generally requires a biopsy for microscopic examination and culture.

Other tests to diagnose the organism in cats might include:

Blood culture

Serology

Polymerase chain reaction (PCR)

Complete blood count (CBC)

Serum biochemical profile

Urinalysis

Feline leukemia virus testing (FeLV)

Feline Immunodeficiency Virus Testing (FIV)

Treatment

Cats with no clinical signs of disease do not require treatment. Cats that have clinical signs of disease may be treated with antibiotics and supportive care as needed. There is not a lot of information about treating this disease in cats and much of the information about treatment is extrapolated from studies in human medicine.

In people, cat scratch disease responds to several different oral antibiotics, such as erythromycin, clarithromycin,  and doxycycline. Antibiotics are usually given for 2 to 3 months unless there is bloodstream or internal organ involvement. In advanced HIV (AIDS) disease, long-term management with lower doses is usually necessary to prevent relapse.

Home Care and Prevention

There is no home care for bartonellosis. Preventive care is based on maintaining good hygiene. Wash your hands after handling pets and wash scratches or bites thoroughly. Never let a cat lick an open wound, and maintain meticulous flea control. Preventative flea and tick control is recommended.

Blood cultures and serology should be performed on pets belonging to immunocompromised people.

There are several Bartonella subspecies that can infect humans. Bartonella organisms cause a wide range of clinical diseases in people including the following:

Bartonella henselae is the causative agent of cat-scratch disease in humans.

Bartonella vinsonii, Bartonella elizabethae, Bartonella washoensis may cause endocarditis in humans.

Bartonella clarridgeiae may cause cat scratch disease in humans.

Bartonella bacilliformis may cause Carrion’s disease, Oroya fever and/or verruca peruana in humans.

Bartonella quintana may cause endocarditis, bacillary angiomatosis and or trench fever in humans.

Children and immunocompromised people may suffer severe disease when infected by these bacteria. Cats are considered the major reservoir for these bacteria, although fleas and some other mammals have also been shown to play a role in the disease.

Most cats do not show clinical signs of illness when infected.

Cat-scratch disease was first described in 1950, but it was only in 1992 that the cause of the disease was identified. The organism responsible for the disease was called Rochalimaea henselae initially, but the organism was renamed Bartonella henselae shortly afterward.

In a study in 1993, children aged 5 to 14 years had the highest incidence of disease. Children younger than 18 made up 54 to 80 percent of CSD cases. The incidence of CSD is slightly higher in the southern United States and slightly lower in the western states. Sixty percent of cases occur from September through January.

Most cases of CSD begin with a cat scratch, although some cases have occurred in people who insist they haven’t been exposed to cats or other animals. The variables most strongly associated with CSD include owning a kitten, owning a kitten with fleas, and/or being scratched by a kitten. There are a few reports in which dog scratches were implicated, and one case that may have occurred after a monkey scratch.

After a cat scratches a person, a small blister may appear 3 to 30 days later, and may or may not persist for as long as 5 months before healing. Five to 50 days after the scratch, lymph nodes near the region of the scratch enlarge and become painful. The enlargement may persist for as long as 4 months and is the main reason that people seek medical care.  Atypical forms of CSD can also occur, including tonsillitis, encephalitis, and pneumonia, although this is fairly uncommon and occurs in only 5 to 8.5 percent of cases.

Neurologic signs occur more commonly in children. These usually begin with a headache, and can progress to delirium. Many patients have seizures. Recovery is usually rapid, and long-term neurologic deficits are rare. HIV-positive individuals are more likely to show signs of dementia after infection.

Bartonella organisms can cause other diseases in people. Bacillary angiomatosis and bacillary peliosis hepatis are two examples. Bacillary angiomatosis is a vascular disease of the skin that appears as multiple blood-filled cysts. It resembles Kaposi’s sacroma clinically. Bacillary peliosis hepatis is a vascular disease of the internal organs, causing fever, chills, vomiting and weight loss These disorders tend to occur in people with advanced AIDS, and they tend to be refractory to treatment. One-third of patients with bacillary angiomatosis report no contact with cats. Studies have shown, however, that owning a cat and/or being scratched, bitten or licked by a cat are risk factors associated with both of these syndromes.

The prevalence of Bartonella infection in cats varies throughout the world. Twenty-five to 40 percent of pet cats are estimated to be healthy carriers of the organism. Feral have the highest likelihood of testing positive. Cats with a heavy flea burden are also more likely to test positive. Cats who test positive for the Feline Leukemia Virus or the Feline Immunodeficiency Virus are not more likely to test positive for bartonellosis.

Cats can have high levels of the Bartonella organism in their bloodstream and not show any clinical signs of disease. In experimental circumstances, mild clinical signs have been produced in cats after inoculating them with the organism. The signs seen were mild fever and lymph node enlargement that went away on its own.

Exactly how the organism is transmitted is still puzzling. Cats seem to get infected by flea infestation, or by blood transfusion from another infected cat. Fleas from cats who have the organism in their bloodstream have cultured positive for the organism as well. Pregnant cats that are infected do not seem to transmit the infection to their kittens transplacentally. Because fleas may carry the organism, human infection with Bartonella from fleas is theoretically possible; however, this has not yet been documented. Live Bartonella organisms are excreted in flea feces, and very recent research has shown that flea feces is the major transmitting agent from an infected and susceptible cat.

Please visit us at www.siamese-cattailscattery.com

Tip to Protect Yourself from Cat Bites and Scratches

Protect Yourself from Cat Bites and Scratches

By: Christian Yost

March 24, 2009

It sounds hard to believe, but pet injuries (especially dog bites) comprise the second most common childhood injury requiring emergency-room care. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 60 percent of the 4.7 million people bitten each year are children.

Cats can scratch and or bite, both of which can be dangerous. Generally cat bites will look less traumatic but are equally or more dangerous than dog bites!

Here Are a Few Tips on How to Avoid Cat Bites and Scratches

Never approach a strange cat, especially one that is cornered, injured or feels threatened.

Allow the cat to “sniff” you and rub against you before you start petting it.

Don’t disturb a cat while it’s sleeping.

If you are tying to capture an injured or stray cat – be very careful. Use a cage or create. If you are directly handling a feral or injured cat – wear thick leather gloves or a thick towel or blanket to cover the cat.

Learn to read the behavior of cats. Cats will often show you signs of agitation before they become aggressive. For example, if you are petting a cat and the tail starts to swish quickly or he starts to “twitch” his skin – he may be tired of the petting session and want to be left alone. This is a good time to quit petting your cat and leave him alone.

Please visit us at www.siamese-cattailscattery.com

What should you do if you are bitten by a cat?

What should you do if you are bitten by a cat?

By: Christian Yost

March 24, 2009

What should you do if you are bitten by a cat? Cat bites are reported less often than dog bites however the number of cat bites that occur each year is believed to be high.

Dog bite numbers are recorded as follows. According to the Centers for Disease Control, over 800,000 are bitten by dogs every year. Other health authorities report that dogs bite 1 million people every year and that only half of the bites that occur are reported. Bite wound account for approximately 1% of human emergency room visits.

Cat bites can be deceptive as they can look small on the outside but are deep and have a high risk and rate of infection.

Here is a list of steps on what to do if a cat ever bites you or your children:

1.Immediately wash the cat bite wound with soap and warm water. Let the water run freely over the wound. Cover the wound with a clean cloth or towel while you get help.

2.Contact your physician or local emergency room. Cat bites commonly get infected and the safest thing to do is to visit your physician or local emergency room and let them determine the best treatment.

3.If the bite appears to be serious – call the ambulance, 911 or go to the emergency room immediately.

4.Report the Bite. Call you local animal control agency. If you are not sure of the agency you need to report the bite – call your humane society and they should be able to advise you on whom to call. Tell the agency everything you know about the cat. Include the owner information if possible, address of the cat or location or if he is a stray – indicate the size, color of the cat, where you saw him and direction as to where he went after the bite.

5.Any animal that has bitten a person or that is under the suspicion of being exposed to rabies is often required by law to be quarantined for a period of time. The amount of time, as well as the quarantine site, depends on the bite, the pets vaccine status and local laws. Pets unvaccinated for rabies may have to be euthanized and tested for rabies.