We’ve just posted a new info sheet about cat scratch disease (CSD), which is caused by a bacterium (Bartonella henselae) commonly carried in the bloodstream of healthy cats. Signs of CSD in people can be quite non-specific, so (as always) it’s important to let your physician know if you’ve been bitten or
H3N2 dog flu, and cats and ferrets
The first true confirmed canine influenza virus (CIV) was the H3N8 canine flu that evloved from H3N8 equine flu. That’s the virus that spread to and amongst dogs in various parts of North America. The general consensus has been that only this strain should be called CIV, since it’s been the only true dog-adapted influenza virus
New UTI test for dogs and cats…(and a great real estate deal)
Cranimals Organic Pet Supplements has launched an at-home urinary test kit for dogs and cats that lets you "Monitor and track your pets health in an accurate and economical way, avoiding costly, unnecessary trips to the vet" (while not avoiding costly, unnecessary supplements, I assume).
The test claims to diagnose urinary tract infections (UTIs)
Hookworm info sheet
While this morning’s -7C temperature and snow don’t exactly make me think about sandboxes or wandering around barefoot, warmer weather will presumably occur someday and the risk of outdoor exposure to parasites will start up again.
Since nothing says summer like hookworms, here’s a new info sheet all about hookworms, including information on cutaneous
Shelter euthanasia reporting…good or bad?
A proposed Florida bill would require shelter operators to produce monthly and annual euthanasia reports. The reported goal of the effort is to "reduce euthanasia of unwanted animals." But how? The idea has various pros and cons.
Potential good points
More transparency: Euthanasia rates are often considered the "dirty secret" of
Rabies update
ProMed Mail‘s monthly US rabies update often contains some interesting cases, and the last one is no exception.
A llama in Georgia became aggressive, started biting itself and was spitting at one of its caretakers. A spitting llama certainly doesn’t mean rabies (I have dodged enough llama spitballs to know that) but any sudden
Expensive cat bite
When I was in general practice, I remember going into an appointment and being introduced by an owner to his cat named "Big Screen TV." Upon seeing my surprise at the name, the owner explained that the medical emergency the cat had the year before cost as much as the big screen TV he wanted, so
Songbird Salmonella in Sonoma
This story’s a couple of weeks old, but Sonoma County (California) residents have been warned about an outbreak of salmonellosis in songbirds. Outbreaks of salmonellosis occur occasionally in songbirds such as finches, and can result is lots of sick and dead birds. There are also risks to other species, including cats and people.
Why
Cat tongue almost kills man
BMJ Case Reports has a recent paper entitled “Cirrhosis, cellulitis and cats: a ‘purrfect’ combination for life-threatening spontaneous bacterial peritonitis from Pasteurella multocida” (Hey et al 2012). (I don’t think we’d be able to use a title like that in a veterinary journal, but they often get away with titles playing
Connecticut officials tracking possible rabies exposure
Public health personnel in Chapin, Connecticut (USA) are trying to find a woman bitten by a rabid cat. The woman was driving down South Brear Hill Road when she came across a cat. She picked the cat up from the road and told someone else who was there that the cat bit her. She then