Cats are meticulous about their appearance.  They take grooming seriously, and most cats maintain a beautiful, spotless hair coat. Occasionally, however, cats will develop (horror of horrors)… dandruff! Of course, dandruff – dry, dead skin cells that flake off from the skin – isn’t a cause of social embarrassment in cats that it is in humans.  They couldn’t care less.  In most cases, dandruff…

Few things are more frustrating and irritating for humans than the common cold.  The sneezing, the congestion, the runny nose, and the watery eyes can make us truly miserable. Unfortunately, our feline counterparts can relate; they, too, can fall victim to this annoying malady.  In cats, we tend to be a little more technical with the terminology, preferring to call the condition…

A successful examination begins with the owner. If you think about it, being a cat veterinarian is not very different from being a pediatrician. We can’t ask our patients what’s wrong. We just have to figure it out.Nowhere is the role of a cat owner more important than at the veterinarian’s office, where a good history can sometimes mean the…

Cats can be tricky to medicate.  Veterinarians know that it is difficult to medicate a cat consistently with a medication that is required twice daily, and almost impossible to administer a medication reliably and unfailingly three times daily.  Most veterinarians, when dealing with cats, try to strike a balance between efficacy and ease of administration, prescribing the most effective drug…

The brain is the main organ that comprises the central nervous system of the cat.  It is the control center for receiving and interpreting information that comes from the cat’s own body, and from the outside world.  Learning and perception takes place in the brain, and all of the sensations – sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, and pain – are…

They say that big things come in little packages, and nowhere is this more apparent than the feline pancreas.  This small organ, often weighing no more than 6 to 8 ounces, plays a huge, multifaceted role in maintaining your cat’s health.    The pancreas is shaped like an upside down V.   The left lobe of the pancreas is nestled up…

Feline lungs are remarkably similar to a human’s lungs.  For example, the lungs occupy most of the space in the chest cavity, lying on both sides of the heart, just like they do in humans.    In my mind, I think of the lungs as being divided into two portions – the airways, and the lung tissue. An easy way…

In a past blog post, I described the important role the kidneys play in a cat’s overall health.  In addition to making hormones and regulating the blood pressure, the kidneys filter toxins from the bloodstream, creating urine in the process.  So where does that urine go after it is manufactured by the kidneys? Anyone who’s waited in line for the…

Cat feet are fascinating.  They function as shock absorbers when landing after aerial acrobatics.  The pads on the paws are thick, with a substantial amount of adipose (fat) tissue just below the pad surfaces.  This acts as a cushion, allowing for cats to walk quietly.  To me, however, the most impressive parts of the feet are the claws. All members…

Body Parts – the Adrenal Glands             I would venture that most people have heard of the adrenal glands.  I would also bet that if asked about what the adrenals do, most folks would correctly guess that they make adrenaline, the “fight or flight” hormone that makes your heart race before that first big plunge on the roller coaster.   But…

I’m sure you’ve heard of them, but do you really know what they are, or what they do?  I’m talking about the lymph nodes, important structures that we don’t think about much, but play a crucial role in a cat’s ability to fight off infections.   Lymph nodes are small, oval shaped organs that are dispersed throughout the body.  They…

Body Parts – The Stomach by Arnold Plotnick, MS, DVM, ACVIM If you can’t stomach the thought of an article about the stomach, then this column may not be for you.  But have no fear, I will make this material easy to digest. The stomach is an important part of the gastrointestinal tract.  Food that is swallowed is propelled by…

Body Parts – The Kidneys by Arnold Plotnick, MS, DVM, ACVIM Like all mammals, cats have two kidneys, one on the left, and one on the right.  They are shaped like…kidney beans, of course.  Blood flows into the kidney through the renal artery, and leaves via the renal vein.  As blood passes through the kidney, toxins are filtered from the…