What's New at KVC

Congratulations

Congratulations to Eliza and Rupert who are getting married in May. We hope they have a very happy day and wish them all the best for their future life together.

In Clinic Promos

Buy a six pack of frontline before the 14th of May and enter online to win a Toyota Kluger or one of thousands of instant prizes. Simply go to www.frontlineplus.com.au/protectyour pet and follow the prompts.

May is dental month sponsored by Advance and Greenies. During the month of May you can book in for a free dental check with one of our friendly nurses. They can tell you if your pet has dental disease already and ways you can help to prevent it. Remember - 80% of cats and dogs over 3 years of age have dental disease.

Pet Care Facts

Arthritis in cats

Does your cat have arthritis? You may think he or she is just "getting old" or "slowing down" but many older cats are actually suffering from arthritis. Arthritis is being increasingly recognized in older cats, one recent study found that 90% of cats over the age of 12 had evidence of arthritis on x-rays. The elbows and hips are the most commonly affected joints.

Diagnosing arthritis in cats can be challenging. Cats are very good at hiding pain and do not display pain in the same way that humans do. They also tend not to limp like arthritic dogs do because of their small size. In the veterinary clinic cats can be variable in their response to examination, making it difficult to tell if they are painful.

This makes your observations at home vital in detecting whether your cat is suffering from arthritis.

Some of the signs of arthritis in cats to look out for are:

- Reluctance to jump up or down off things. You may notice your cat is only able to jump onto lower objects, or has to pull themselves up onto things with the front paws. Arthritic cats may also have trouble getting in and out of high-sided litter trays and through cat flaps.
- Changes in behaviour - reluctance to be patted or touched, being withdrawn or even aggressive due to pain.
- A matted coat or excess dandruff, particularly at the base of the tail and along the spine as these are difficult to reach areas when grooming.
- Sleeping more than usual or walking stiffly.

If you think your cat may have arthritis, please feel free to come in and discuss it with us. There is a range of different treatments available, including injections, oral glucosamine supplements, oral anti-inflammatories and acupuncture. Often a combination of treatments produces the best results. Weight control is very important in overweight arthritic cats, and simple things like providing warm, soft bedding can help. Many people are amazed at the difference in their cat's personality and activity when what must be a very painful condition is treated.

Case of the Month

Jonathon got more than he bargained for when he leapt in the air to catch a tasty morsel. He was found by one of our concerned clients with fishing line around his leg and his wing and disappearing down his throat.

He was a very grumpy seagull by the time he got to us and we managed to untangle his wing and leg but the end of the fishing line was nowhere to be seen down his throat.

An xray showed us just how much trouble he had got himself into and we proceeded to surgery the same day.

The fish hook was successfully removed and Jonathon made an uneventful recovery. He was released the next day and flew off into the sunset hopefully a wiser seagull.