HEPA-type filter helps remove up to 99% of airborne particles from the air as small as 2 microns passing through it, such as bacteria, mold, pollen and small dust particles. Will reduce room odor as well.
Good to use in "isolation room " of sick or debilitated cats or humans. Helpful for cats or humans with asthma.
HEPA-Type filter removes up to 99% of airborne particles from air as small as 2 microns passing through the filter, including bacteria, dust, mold and pollen. Arm & Hammer(R) enhanced filter helps eliminate common household odors.
Washable pre-filter extends life of the HEPA-type filter.
Good to use in the environment of sick, immune supressed, or asthmatic cats or humans. Will also help humans who are allerigic to cats.
Diseases Cats Can Get- page 1
Cats can acquire diseases specific to cats,
such as feline leukemia, but also non-contagious diseases or conditions that
humans can develop, such as asthma, diabetes, and kidney disease, to name a
few. Below is information and links to some diseases cats can come down with.
This Page: AsthmaCancer (including Mammary tumors)
Feline asthma has sometimes been called chronic bronchitis, bronchial asthma, and allergic bronchitis. Asthma causes spasms in the bronchi, resulting in airway inflammation and swelling. This restricts airflow, causing respiratory distress, which can become life threatening in a matter of minutes.
The most common symptoms in cats with asthma are wheezing and coughing. There may be labored breathing and/or open mouthed breathing. Some cats don't have wheezing at first in the early stages, that the humans can hear at any rate. The coughing is a dry, hacking cough that looks gagging or retching. The cat will typically be squatting with shoulders hunched, neck extended & low to the ground. The cat will often shake his head back and forth, as if trying to get something out of his throat that seems to be choking him and will look as is he is struggling to breathe. Frothy mucous may be coughed up, since asthma often causes excess mucous production. Symptoms may come and go, with the cat being fine in between episodes.
Many cats are misdiagnosed as having hairballs when people tell the vet about what they have seen with their cat. However, if no hairball ever comes up after a day or two, the hacking cough would not likely be from a hairball. In addition, cats don't cough up hairballs on a daily basis even when they do have excess fur in their stomachs, so a cat hacking or retching on a daily basis for a week or more should never be dismissed as simply having hairballs.
If a vet merely dismisses your reports and concerns as "hairballs", insist on chest x-rays and blood work anyway, or go to a different vet! It is very important to find out why the cat is having the problems, since it could be asthma, which is a chronic progressive disease that cannot be fully cured and will only get worse over time without treatment. Or, the cat could have cardiomyopathy, heartworms, or pneumonia that also need treatment. The vet cannot know what is going on with a cat if he doesn't do any tests!
Pictures on the left show Simon having an asthma attack. His first vet dismissed Simon's symptoms as hairballs. But that vet was so very wrong, as x-rays, blood work and then treatment for asthma revealed. Simon originally took pills, but now uses inhaled medication, dispensed via the AeroKat.
Below is a video of a cat having an asthma attack.
There is no one definitive test to
diagnose feline asthma. Since symptoms of asthma can mimic other diseases,
such as heartworm, pneumonia and congestive heart failure, those diseases and
conditions need to be ruled out using chest x-rays, a complete blood count, a
feline heartworm test, and sometimes transtracheal wash, bronchial wash, or
bronchoalveolar lavage- techniques to sample cells from the lower airways.
Chest x-rays may be normal in some cats with asthma, while
others will have signs of bronchial inflammation or over inflation of the lungs.
Blood work will often show elevated eosinophils, which are related to
allergies. Allergies can be responsible for asthma attacks in cats, just
as can be the case in humans. If other conditions that have the same symptoms
are ruled out, a cat can be tried on a cortiocsteroid, such as prednisolone, to
reduce lung inflammation. If the cat's symptoms improve, one can conclude
that the cat does have asthma.
Medications
can reduce the symptoms of asthma a great deal, but may not be able to eliminate
coughing fully. However, without treatment, the asthma will get worse,
causing permanent damage to the lungs.
Treatment for feline asthma includes corticosteroids, which work
to reduce inflammation. The cat would take the corticosteroid on a daily
basis, to help prevent asthma attacks from occurring, and to prevent worsening,
permanent damage to the lungs. Some corticosteroids used in cats are
Prednisone, Prednisolone and Depo-Medrol. Cats often will also be given a
bronchodilator, such as aminophylline, or theophylline. These are usually in pill form.
In recent years, it has been found that the most effective therapy for feline asthma may be to use inhalers such as human asthmatics use. The medication then is delivered directly to the lungs, where the problem is. A mask and spacer system, called AeroKat®, has been invented to
enable cats to use inhalers. This system is similar to the mask and spacer system used to treat babies and small children. For information on the AeroKat® and to buy it, go to http://www.aerokat.com.
Cats use the inhaled asthma medication, fluticasone (Flovent),
which is an inhaled steroid. This is used daily, to prevent or minimize lung and airway inflammation, which can keep asthma attacks from occurring, or reduce the severity of attacks that do occur. For stopping attacks in
progress, cats can use the bronchodilator albuterol. Albuterol is used on an as-needed basis for cats already on daily steroids for asthma, and displaying cough or wheezing. Using bronchodilators alone will not help prevent asthma
attacks from occurring, nor will they prevent further damage to the lungs.
Using an air purifier with a HEPA filter will help cats, and people, with asthma be able to breathe better. Air purifiers really do make a significant difference!
Cancer is not necessarily a death sentence! Many cancers of cats can be cured, with the cat living a normal, healthy life for years after treatment.
Cancer can arise in any part of the body and produce a wide variety of signs and symptoms. Some of the changes are specific, such as an obvious lump, but others are more vague and can mimic other disease processes. Do get any lumps appearing on a cat checked by a vet.
Ten Common Signs of Cancer in Small Animals From the American Veterinary Medical Association
Abnormal swellings that persist or continue to grow
Sores that do not heal
Weight loss
Loss of appetite
Bleeding or discharge from any body opening
Offensive odor
Difficulty eating or swallowing
Hesitation to exercise or loss of stamina
Persistent lameness or stiffness
Difficulty breathing, urinating, or defecating
Good nutrition is especially important for cats with cancer, so forgo the typical grocery store foods and purchase top level premium cat food, often only available in pet stores. Cancers are most able to use carbohydrates as an energy source, so low carbohydrate diets are best for cats with cancer. Typical grocery store cat foods are high in carbohydrates (grains). Select foods with no grains, or almost no grains. Wellness CORE
and Innova EVO are some top quality, grain-free dry foods.
Any mammary lump, mass or swelling noticed on a cat needs prompt vet attention. Do not wait! Mammary cancer is aggressive and spreads quickly. If it progresses to later stages, the outlook for survival is low. At least 80% of feline mammary tumors are malignant. The sooner the problem is treated, the greater chance for survival.
Mammary tumors in cats often appear as firm nodules that are moveable or firmly attached to the skin and/or underlying muscle. There may be swelling, infection, pain and fever as well.
The majority of affected cats are intact females, so spaying female cats before their first heat can reduce the chances of that cat developing mammary cancer. Male cats can also develop mammary cancer, though it is rare.
Veterinarians are seeing an increase of health problems in cats, dogs, and horses — chronic diseases, immunological illnesses, cancer, and more. Conditions thought to affect only one breed are showing up in others. This illustrated book explores the causes and treatments.
Pill Pockets take the hassle out of medicating your cat, while providing a healthy treat. These are dough pockets, which are especially great for pinching off some to coat the bitter side of pills lacking the flavored coating, due to being split.
Made from all human-grade meats. Salmon or Chicken flavor.
Disclaimer: All material on www.wvcats.com is provided for educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional veterinary care.
No content or pictures may be copied, reprinted or used without permission of the owner/authors. One copy of content may be saved for personal study only. Email inquiries to wvcatsmargaret@yahoo.com. All Rights
Reserved
This Page: 
Covers all aspects of cancer care from diagnosis to end stages of the disease. 
Includes
flow charts of 200 of the most common feline symptoms
