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Friday, October 22, 2010
Kitty is driving away the sandman
By Dr. Jeff Nichol
Of the Journal
Q: I have an 11-year-old female cat that in the past month will not allow me to sleep at night. She comes into the room and meows loudly, gets on the bathroom counter and rattles things around, gets on the bed and into my face. If I lock her out she scratches at the door. I am trying to give her more attention but that doesn't seem to work. What is your advice so that I can sleep soundly?
Dr. Nichol: The obvious answer would be to put her in a carrier at the farthest end of your house, but we might be missing something. The question screaming in my ear is: What's with the goofy kid routine after all these years of being a good night-time sleeper?
Maybe your cat hears a critter outside. Or if she recently lost a companion, you could be her new bedtime buddy. Absent environmental changes like these, I'd suggest a look at her physical health.
As many as 30 percent of cats over age 10 have slowly growing benign tumors of their thyroid glands. The excessive output of thyroid hormone causes severe heart and kidney damage. Signs include a rapid heart rate (often over 200 per minute) and weight loss in the face of an increased appetite. About 15 percent of affected feline seniors become more active; some of them get downright manic.
Before being relegated to the dungeon, your overactive kitty needs to see her doctor for an exam and lab profile (thyroid screen included). If hyperthyroidism (thyroid tumors) is her only problem, she may do fine on daily tablets. Tougher cases can be treated and cured with radioactive iodine. The outlook is almost always good for these cats. Do whatever it takes. You both need a good night's sleep.
Q: Conflicting advice for older dogs and parvo vaccination. I've recently been advised by a pet supply outlet that my older dogs (8-year-old golden and 13-year-old heeler) do not need annual parvo if they have regularly been vaccinated up to this point. The exception they noted was if they were to be kenneled. Is this correct, or would you always do a parvo vaccination?
Dr. Nichol: Gone are the days when all veterinarians recommended annual boostering. Vaccines have improved and so has the ability to accurately measure immunity. Infectious diseases, parvo in particular, are also changing. The entire issue is a moving target.
The vaccination debate recently raged on our veterinarians' list serve. Some wrote strongly of studies showing longer durations of immunity, while others pointed to data implicating vaccines as causes of immune disorders.
With all due respect to the mavericks among us, here are the generally accepted distemper/parvo vaccination recommendations: a series for puppies under 16 weeks followed by a single booster one year later. Revaccination every three years through adult life appears safe and adequate for most dogs, whether kenneled or not. By about age 12 they are considered to have a lifelong immunity.
With rabies vaccination, there is no legal room for dissent. Every three years until death do us part on that one.
Dr. Jeff Nichol provides medical care for pets at the Petroglyph Animal Hospital in Albuquerque (898-8874). He treats behavior disorders at the Veterinary Specialty Centers in Albuquerque and in Santa Fe (505-792-5131). Contact him at www.drjeffnichol.com (click Submit a Question?) or 6633 Caminito Coors NW, Albuquerque, NM 87120.
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