Friday, June 23, 2006
Cats get asthma too
Last week one of my foster-cats, Magic (4 years old, shown above), was very under the weather. He has always been such a healthy cat but he was very lethargic and was getting very bad-tempered with the other cats, which is most unlike him. Every so often he would give a nasty cough which was also a bit like a sneeze and a bit like a retch, but without vomiting. In between times also he would do a sort of gulp.
The vets seemed to have difficulty in working out what was wrong with him. At first they said tonsillitis but when they managed to look at his throat, it did not really look inflamed. Eventually they identified fluid on his chest and gave him strong shots of anti-biotic. Now he is much better and a lot livelier.
The senior vet said he was pretty sure it was asthma caused by an allergic reaction to a specific type of pollen that is in the air at this time. Apparently the pollen count in Britain is exceptionally high this year. The condition may well be seasonal and recur at a similar time in future years.
# posted by bizwrite @ 8:40 AM
