For his entire life, Armand and his caregiver were counseled that he should weigh a bit less. He was not a busy cat by nature, preferring to cozy up to a lap and a blazing fire in the hearth. He would play of course but only when he was in the mood. Jenna, his caregiver and all round favorite person had tried to get him to eat a canned food diet to reduce the carbohydrates he consumed. However, he had been an adult when she adopted him and had been fed dry food prior to coming to her. He had ideas about aroma and “mouth feel” that meant that canned food just did not seem like food to him. He would push the bowl around the counter he ate on, often until it landed on the kitchen flood, much to Jenna’s exasperation.
 
Small frequent meals helped as did Jenna’s commitment to getting him more active. Over time he lost 2 pounds and was declared only a “little chubby”. Fast forward 2 years and it was just about Armand’s 11th birthday, or thereabouts, the exact day was unknown. Time had gone by so quickly that Jenna got a call from Chico Hospital for Cats that he was 18 months overdue for a check up. Jenna sighed, thinking that he had been seen by his veterinarian only a few months prior. She made an appointment and gleefully reported that the staff would all be delighted by how slender Armand had gotten recently.
 
Later that week, the visit did not go as Jenna had expected. Armand’s veterinarian told her that his weight was down more than should be anticipated and worse yet that he had a very rapid heart rate for a cat and his blood pressure was elevated.  Tests were recommended and when they came back Jenna got a call that all was not well.
 
In the 18 months since Armand had been in, his thyroid gland had begun to produce too much hormone. This is an important hormone that takes iodine and adds it to an amino acid. When the combination is released in the blood it governs metabolism. Metabolism is the conversion of oxygen and calories from our diet into energy. Just enough thyroid hormone and the body hums along quite nicely. However, when the thyroid grows bigger than it should and produces more hormone, it can be very hard on the body. Heart rate becomes abnormally high, kidneys are injured, blood pressure increases and usually after a time weight loss is accompanied by a significant loss of muscle. In cats the loss of muscle is a very serious sign of more imminent mortality.
 
Dr. Elise, Armand’s veterinarian discussed the different options for treatment which, like everything in life, has plusses and minuses. The two most common choices were an oral pill or absorbed cream that would be given to Armand twice a day for the rest of his life or an injection of radioactive iodine (I-131).
 
The advantages of the medication were fewer than its disadvantages in Jenna’s mind. Lifelong meant no breaks for vacation or travel, someone would always have to be there to administer it or Armand would have to board where it could be done. 

​Jason is only four years old, a beloved orange tabby whose Chico family was shocked to be informed by his veterinarian that he was “too heavy” and needed to lose weight. Admittedly, his family had neglected to have him examined for two years, thinking that as an inside-only cat, he didn’t need medical care or an examination.
 
There are many reasons to have a young cat come in to Chico Hospital for Cats regularly and this is one of them. Learning how cats think about food and how their environment can impact consumption is part our doctors’ job to teach the people who love Jason. Like people, it is far easier to maintain a healthy weight than it is to lose weight.
 
Jason is the same cat as those who came into our lives 10,000 years ago when humans began to store grain for food. Cats found this new development delightful as it attracted mice and other small rodents foraging for food. Mice are the perfect solitary hunter’s meal, just enough to hunt, chase, pounce and polish off.
 
Cats are not very efficient hunters, so waiting until they are hungry is perilous. That’s why there is a separate part of the brain that calls cats to hunt even if it doesn’t feel like mealtime. If they aren’t hungry though, they’ll hunt less enthusiastically because eating and hunting are very connected in a cat’s brain.
 
This deep connection with his “primal” cat makes Jason a natural hunter. Yet he was being fed dry food in a bowl that was always available. He didn’t need to do any work beyond sauntering up to the bowl or reminding his caregiver that the bowl needed to be refilled.
 
His doctor prescribed a work-for-food program along with regular active play times with his family.  They discussed beginning to transition from dry food to high protein canned food, too. Because it contains more water and less carbohydrates, Jason’s carnivorous appetite center would be satisfied sooner. He had grown up on dry formulas so it would be a slow process to find a high protein canned food with the right aroma, flavor and  “mouth feel” that Jason would appreciate.
 
To begin, small meals replaced the constant availability of food. Because his home had more than one floor, meals were strategically placed to require climbing stairs.  One family member, his Dad, was placed in charge of feeding as he was home more often. No treats were permitted unless he “worked” for them by playing with a laser toy or the interactive feather toy he loved.  When the family was gone, small meals were hidden in the cat tree, the book shelf and other places where Jason could search for a snack.
 
His doctor prescribed a food that would provide reduced calories without reducing the protein he needs to keep his muscles healthy. Too little protein and he would lose muscle, a sure sign of declining health.  Lowering calories without lowering protein is essential for weight loss to be successful. As is true of all mammals, people included, the better the muscle tone, the more calories burned. The better the muscle condition, the healthier the body.
 
These are the first steps to a healthier future for Jason.  In 3 months he was approaching his ideal weight.   By creating a plan that was easy to execute and honored Jason’s ancestral needs, the doctors and staff at Chico Hospital for cats gave his beloved family the tools they needed. 

​JUNE 4, HUG YOUR CAT DAY
 
There are curmudgeons who say that cats are simply trying to get fed by us rather than expressing some kind of love for their people; they call it “cupboard love”. Nothing could be further from the truth. Cats demonstrate their devotion to their humans in a number of important and obvious ways if you know what to look for.
There is even some reason to think that we misunderstand our cats when they are asking for our attention and mistake this for a desire to be fed.
 
Watch your cat move round in his territory (your house). He will walk with his tail straight up in the air, perpendicular to his body, perhaps with a slight kink at the tip. This upright tail is a sign of affection between cats and now between us and our cats.
Similarly, cats who like each other very well will rub on one another mostly using their faces.
 
When your cat rubs his face against your ankles, he is expressing the same level of  affection for you that he has for a trusted other cat. Given the choice, he would rub your face but you are usually a bit too high up for that. We often are irritated by cats who jump on the counter but they are often simply trying to get closer to us for a good face rub! They will often rub their faces on inanimate things, doorways, chair legs or other furniture more often when you are close by.
 
Cats who have been raised together have a few other ways of expressing their affection for each other. They may be found curled up together sleeping in a heap, even when it’s warm and they don’t need each other’s heat.  So when your cat hits your lap and curls up contentedly, know that this is love, too. The bond between cats is further strengthened by grooming each other. Of course it keeps each of them cleaner perhaps than they might otherwise be, but it is more importantly a mark of the power of their friendship.
 
Your stroking is the same powerful bonding. They love that you have focused your attention on them, moving your hands along their fur, particularly around head and neck means that you two are family. Some cats will try to groom you back, but it may be annoying given those barbs on the tongue that are so helpful for efficient fur care. If you act as if it is unpleasant he will stop.
 
Cats who care for one another often have a greeting that is high pitched sort of forced air between the upper and lower lip. You may find that is commonly a way your cat greets you. Of course, the truly loving cat will begin to purr as you come closer and closer.
 
Your beloved cat loves you back. So, in honor of June 4, “Hug Your Cat” Day, take a minute to watch how expressive he is with you and how happy you make him.

​The first evidence of companion cats comes from the island of Cyprus about 7,500 years BCE (Before the Common Era). This island is somewhat unique because even when water levels around the globe changed dramatically a land bridge to any continent never existed on the island. Thus, the only animals that lived on Cyprus came there by either swimming or flying. Given that cats are mostly loathe to swim in salt water, the only way cats got there was on ships, likely Phoenician ones. These ships were quite small, making cat stowaways unlikely.

Cats probably worked aboard ships the same way they did on land, protecting food stores and trading material from rodents and other pests. It also may be true that Phoenician ships delivered the first rodents to Cyprus and then brought the first solutions to the problems they introduced, cats to hunt them!
​
On an archeological dig on the island, an elaborate burial site was discovered. In it was a male skeleton laying a short distance from a cat. Both had been prepared for burial in the same ceremonial way and were buried with tools, weapons and other implements that indicated that this person came from some wealth and status. This represents the first evidence of connection between cats and people.

Much more profound evidence comes later, about 4000 BCE in Egypt where cats were companions and gods. Both in the elaborate sarcophagus art and in the carvings and informal images created by artists and artisans tasked with creating burial images, cats are often found. Drawings of vagabond cats, collared cats, and cats sitting with or playing with humans were common.

This is also the time when ritual breeding began. Priests raised buildings full of cats and cared for them quite generously until they were about a year old. Radiographs of the mummies show well-fed, healthy cats at the time of their death. They were then killed and elaborately mummified using the same techniques for wealthy humans. Each mummified cat was then sold to worshippers to be used as offering to the temple gods. Millions of cats were raised and sacrificed which may have contributed to the changes in the social nature of felis lybica, our domesticated cats. These cats were raised by humans in large colonies, potentially altering their tolerance for both people and other cats over the generations that this took place.
​
If you find this intriguing, join us in our OLLI class “The New Cat Science” on Mondays at 1PM.

​Last week, the people who work  here in Chico with me thought I had lost my mind. A client came in to ask for help placing a pregnant queen that she had found in her backyard. After concluding that she was quite healthy, FELV/FIV negative and very sweet, I ultrasounded her and found 5 kittens maturing normally.

​Cats sleep unlike people and dogs. It may look as if they are fast asleep but the tiniest sound will rouse them to complete alertness. After about 10-30 minutes of this semi-sleep, they will fall more deeply asleep called paradoxical sleep because the brain waves during this time are oddly more like wakefulness. These 2 different patterns of sleep will alternate if sleep persists.

Thursday, October 29 is National Cat Day. Founded in 2005, National Cat Day was created to bring attention to the number of cats that are in need of adoption.  Estimates reveal that there are approximately 4 million cats entering shelters every year with 1-2 million being euthanized. Often cats are overlooked and under-appreciated because they don’t usually have jobs like dogs. But cats still lower blood pressure, offer unconditional love and companionship, tons of laughs and alert their owner to danger. Many cats have been named heroes.