Fw: Your April newsletter from Little Big Cat is here!

May 2, 2008

Little Big Cat

Thursday, May 01, 2008 1:50 AM

nancie barnett

Your April newsletter from Little Big Cat is here!

At long last (we apologize for the delay!) your CatsWalk newsletter from Little Big Cat is here! For easier viewing and clicking online, click here or cut and paste this address into your browser: http://www.littlebigcat.com/index.php?action=nlarchive & show=volume6no02

CatsWalk

by Dr. Jean Hofve & Jackson GalaxyVolume 6, No. 02 April 2008

1. Cats in the News2. Warning--New Flea and Tick Treatment May Be Harmful3. Bad Hair Days, Part I4. Some Dog Stuff You Should Know About

We're sorry for the long interval since our last newsletter; illness is to blame.

Listen to an interview with Dr. Jean about cats and pet nutrition, available free on Animal Talk Naturally Radio!

For less than a minute of your time every day, you can feed homeless animals and needy children, provide books and health care for kids, fund mammograms for women, and protect a patch of rainforest for all time. Where? At the Animal Rescue Site, of course! Just click on the buttons under each tab.

1. Cats in the News

Research was recently published from a University of Minnesota Stroke Research Center study that followed 4,435 people, and discovered that over a 20-year period, people who had never owned a cat had a 40 percent greater risk of death due to heart attack, and a 30 percent higher risk of death due to any sort of cardiovascular disease, than previous or current cat guardians. Researchers found no such protective effects from having a dog. Naturally, there were skeptics. Dr. Steve Nissen, chairman of the department of cardiovascular medicine at the Cleveland Clinic said, "If you believe this research, I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you at a very good price." Hey--two paws down for such an unprofessional response. He must be dog guy. Anyhow, we sure know better!

In the "good on ya" department: along with his message of peace, Pope Benedict XVI has a deep love of cats. His kindness toward the strays of Rome is legendary. When he still lived in Germany before moving to the Vatican in 1982, his house was filled with cats. Even though previous popes kept cats, Benedict could not bring his 2 beloved cats into the Vatican's papal quarters.

One last bit of news--not exactly about cats, but still sure to benefit cats in the future: Chiclet T. Dog (the small-but-mighty author of our favorite dog care book, Scared Poopless) has announced up a matching gift of $35,000 to benefit the Rabies Challenge Fund, a study looking at the duration of immunity from rabies vaccines in dogs. Although the study only involves dogs at this time, if the results show, as expected, that immunity from the rabies vaccines lasts much longer than 3 years, it will be especially important to all of us because cats can develop an agressive and fatal cancer from the killed-virus rabies vaccine (the most common type). Throughout the summer, Chiclet, her co-author Jan Rasmusen, and two anonymous donors will add $1 for every $2 donated (for donations of $100 or more). Thus, public donations totaling $70,000 will bring the Fund $105,000!. Chiclet will throw in a paw-tographed copy of Scared Poopless for donations topping $500. So far, dog (and cat) lovers have funded approximately eighteen months of the 7-year study. Donations to complete the study may be made at The Rabies Challenge Fund Charitable Trust, a 501©(3) charitable organization. Don't let this effort go completely to the dogs--please give generously to this important cause!

2. Warning: New Flea & Tick Treatment May Be HarmfulA new flea and tick preventative called Promeris was recently released by Fort Dodge, a division of Wyeth (makers of Premarin). It contains amitraz, which has potentially serious side effects, including seizures. Amitraz is more commonly used as a mite treatment, and no doubt Fort Dodge will try to get it labeled for that as well. The other ingredient, metaflumizone, has not been used in animals before, so its long-term safety is unknown. I have heard several reports from other holistic veterinarians of serious adverse reactions to this product. Use with caution in both dogs and cats!

Here's a great way to keep your cat safe on the prowl: Top Tag Pet ID. It's a tiny waterproof mini-flash drive that you can keep fully updated on your PC—not only with name, address, and phone number, but also contact information for your veterinarian, photos, details on your diet, medication, and other special needs. You can update it when the info changes--or any time you want! It's small and light enough for cats. With the warm weather, open windows, and enticing smells outside, your cat could become an escape artist! Protect your cat with TopTagPetID.com!

3. Bad Hair Days, Part I Is your cat "going bald?" There are many reasons why a cat might lose fur, but in a lot of cases, it's because the cat is chewing the hair and breaking it off, or pulling it out completely with excessive grooming. Hair loss from any cause is called "alopecia." Sometimes you'll actually catch your cat in the act of chewing, or notice that she's scratching grooming more than usual, but more often you'll glance down and suddenly notice a bare patch where the fur used to be! Or you might find clumps of hair laying around kitty's favorite hang-out spots, or notice a sudden increase in hairballs.The first essential step is a trip to the veterinarian's to diagnose the cause of the problem. The most common reason for cats to pull out their hair, especially around the base of the tail, is flea-bite allergy. It only takes a single flea bite to produce an intense and prolonged reaction. Your vet can prescribe an effective and safe flea preventive and help you get rid of fleas and eggs in and around the house. Once the fleas are gone, the skin will heal up on its own.Another parasite that may be far more common than many vets suspect is the mite. There are several species of mites that produce a condition called "mange." Sarcoptes mites (scabies) cause unrelenting, severe itching. They are most often found on the belly, but can wander anywhere. Scabies mites prefer warm, moist areas. Cheyletiella ("walking dandruff mite") and Demodex may or may not be itchy, but in major infestations they can cause scratching and hair loss. Demodex is a normal parasite of humans and animals (we have them in the hair follicles of our eyebrows--eew!), but if the immune system is weak, it can explode into a nasty infestation. Sometimes ear mites will get into the skin, particularly around the head and neck. All of these can cause cats to lick, scratch, and chew to try to relieve the itching. Most mites have one thing in common—they are easily transmitted, and they are not picky about where they set up housekeeping. In a household with scabies, multiple animals and people are likely to be infected. Your vet will do a skin scraping and put it under the microscope to check for mites, which are very tiny and hardly visible to the eye. However, scabies mites are very hard to find. It's been estimated that only 20-30% of cats with scabies are ever definitively diagnosed, even by multiple skin scrapings. If there are two or more itchy individuals (of any species!) in the household, treatment for mites may be indicated.Ringworm (which is actually a fungus) is also frequently implicated in cases of hair loss, especially around the face, feet and ears. The hair disappears in small patches, and the skin turns dry, gray, and flaky. The time between initial contact and the appearance of lesions varies from one to three weeks. Ringworm is extremely contagious! While it doesn't seem to bother the cats much, in people ringworm can be extremely itchy! Treating ringworm can be difficult and time-consuming.There are a number of effective topical creams that can be used if the lesions small and localized, but a cat with a major infection may need to be shaved and bathed in a special shampoo for a month or more. Alternatively, there are oral medications that must be given consistently, usually for several weeks. They have serious side effects, so be sure to discuss the options thoroughly with your vet.Next month, we'll talk about other causes of hair loss, including stress!

4. Some Dog Stuff You Should Know About

Yes, we're all about cats, but...

If you have a dog, or know someone who does, or even if you step outside your own door...eventually you'll encounter a canine behavior problem. So you need to know about the very best resource for dog training in the world! Dr. Jean has known trainer Pam Whyte for many years, and has used her sensible, dog-friendly methods with great (and fast!) success on many dogs of her acquaintance. Check out www.trustworthydogs.com to learn more!

In an ugly bit of news, in 2007, Central American "artist" Guillermo Vargas Habacuc, paid a bunch of kids to chase down and catch a homeless street dog. He then tied the dog to a rope in a barren corner of an art gallery, and left it without food or water. For several days, the 'artist' and the visitors to the exhibition watched dispassionately as the dog starved, suffered, and finally died. Unbelievably, this cruel piece of "art" has been selected by the prestigious Visual Arts Biennial of Central America to be reproduced (with another street dog) at the biennial of 2008. We won't disgust you with the horrifying photos we received, but you can sign the petition protesting this travesty here: http://new.petitiononline.com/ea6gk/petition.html

Little Big Cat has loads of information just waiting for you! Check out our Free Article Library, which has more than 70 informative articles waiting for you! Or visit our Bookstore, where you can extended special reports on feline health and behavior! If you'd rather listen than read, then our 3-part audio seminar series, "How NOT to Kill Your Dog or Cat!" might be just what you need; click here for more info and to listen to free audio clips from each seminar! Available as instant downloads or on CDs.

Please visit our web site www.littlebigcat.com regularly to find out what's new, read our monthly Newsletter and see the new material that is constantly added to our Free Article Library and our Bookstore! Past issues of the CatsWalk Newsletter can be found in the Newsletter Archive.

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