Heat Stroke, Heat Exhaustion in Cats

Because I live in the country far off the beaten path, I’m ok with letting my cats out on a nice day when I’m home and can monitor them. Our weather, however, has gone from, “When will we ever see summer?” to “It’s too d.. hot to do anything.” in one short week.

As a result, by mid afternoon it’s in the low 100’s and I’m getting my cats in early. I usually let them stay out until around 6p, but not today. We’re going to see 100’s here for the next several days and that’s too hot for dogs and cats to be outside in the mid afternoon.

Last year, during a similar early summer heatwave, I couldn’t find my cat Rusty, but figured he was out under a bush in the woods somewhere. Found him about an hour ago and he was suffering from heat exhaustion. He had been lying still under a tree somewhere, but it wasn’t enough to keep him cool. He came wobbling up to me when I called and was drooling profusely.

I quickly got him inside, rubbed him down with a damp wash cloth, gave him some fluids and fed him. As soon as he got in to the air conditioned house, he began to recover.  Tomorrow, it’s supposed to be 104 here – a record for this time of year and they’re all staying in.

Anyway, I went on line to get a list of heat stroke/exhaustion symptoms for today’s blog.

This is blatantly lifted from a wonderful pet info web site:

http://www.healthypets.com. I did not write it. Some nice contributor to that site did and I thank them profusely for putting the info out there. Hope they don’t sue me.

“Working up a good sweat in the hot summer months may be good for you, but it can lead to heat stroke in your pet and kill him in a matter of minutes. Heat stroke is a dangerous condition that takes the lives of many animals every year.

Your pet’s normal body temperature is 99.5 to 102.5 degrees Fahrenheit. If it rises to 105 or 106 degrees, the pet is at risk for developing heat exhaustion. If the body temperature rises to 107 degrees, your pet has entered the dangerous zone of heat stroke. With heat stroke, irreversible damage and death can occur.

Heat stroke is a condition arising from extremely high body temperature, which leads to nervous system abnormalities (such as lethargy, weakness, collapse or coma). Abnormally high body temperature (also called hyperthermia) develops after increased muscular activity with impaired ability to give off heat due to high heat and humidity or respiratory obstruction.

Heat-related illnesses, including heat stroke, heat exhaustion and heat cramps can occur after exposure to extremely high environmental temperatures. These illnesses occur in all mammals and can be prevented by taking proper precautions.

The temperature in a parked car can reach 160 degrees in a matter of minutes, even with partially opened windows. And any pet exercising on a hot, humid day, even with plenty of water, can become overheated. Overheating often leads to heat stroke. As a pet owner, you should know the dangers of overheating and what to do to prevent it. You should also know the signs of heat stroke and what to do if your pet exhibits those signs.

THOSE AT RISK:

• Puppies/Kittens up to 6 months of age
• Dogs that have a thick coat, heart and lung problems or a short muzzle are at greater risk for heat stroke .
• Overweight pets.
• Pets that are overexerted during exercise.
• Pets that are ill or receiving certain medications.
• Pets with short, wide heads like pugs, English bulldogs, Boston terriers.
• Dogs with airway obstructive diseases.
• Pets with pre-existing fever.
• Pets that are dehydrated.
• Pets with poor circulation due to cardiovascular or other underlying disease.
• Older dogs (large breed dogs over 7 years of age, small breed dogs over 14 years of age)
• Older cats
• Cats/Dogs with heart disease.

SIGNS:

• Rapid panting
• Bright red tongue
• Red or pale gums
• Thick, sticky saliva
• Depression
• Weakness
• Dizziness
• Vomiting – sometimes with blood
• Diarrhea
• Shock
• Coma

If your pet is overheating, he will appear sluggish and unresponsive. He may appear disorientated. The gums, tongue and conjunctiva of the eyes may be bright red and he will probably be panting hard. He may even start vomiting. Eventually he will collapse, seizure and may go into a coma.

If your pet exhibits any of these signs, treat it as an emergency and call your veterinarian immediately. On the way to your veterinary hospital, you can cool your pet with wet towels, spray with cool water from a hose or by providing ice chips for your pet to chew (providing he is conscious).

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

• Monitor outdoor temperature and minimize your pet’s activity on hot, humid days.
• Remove the pet from the hot area immediately.
• Limit sun exposure during the hours of 11 AM to 3 PM on hot days.
• Walk or exercise your pet in the morning or evening.
• Keep your pet in a comfortable environment (air-conditioned room or partially open
• windows with a breeze) during extremely hot weather.
• NEVER leave your pet in a car (even with the windows partially rolled down) for any reason at any time. Leaving pets in a car during warm weather is the most common cause of heat stroke.
• Provide your pet with plenty of fresh water and plenty of shade. Take extra care with puppies and kittens.
• If possible, allow your pet to acclimate gradually to high temperatures. Heat illness is common in the spring when the animal has not had sufficient time to acclimate to the warmer temperatures.
• After traveling to a warmer climate, allow your pet several days to become acclimated before allowing any vigorous exercise.
• Make sure outside cats have access to shade.
• Allow your cat to have access to cooler areas of the house”
  

The Flea Season – What Works, What Doesn’t, What to Get, What to Avoid

Well it’s here, flea season that is, and for those of us with pets who live in more humid climates, it can become an overwhelming problem – especially if the flea control product you’re using isn’t working.

I’ve had a number of comments on a post about Frontline not working that I blogged about a couple of years ago.  Many of us have used Frontline quite successfully from year to year only to find the next year it doesn’t control the fleas at all. 

Frontline, and its low-cost counterpart, Pet Armor, contain Fipronil as the main ingredient to control fleas. Apparently, what happens is the fleas develop a resistance to the drug over time and they don’t die.

If that has happened to you, I recommend going with Advantage or Advantage Plus – NOT AdvanTIX if you have a cat – that product is ONLY for dogs…and from what I’ve read about it, it can be toxic to some dogs so ..

Anyway, I’ve had no problems with Advantage. It seems to work consistently year after year and is better tolerated by my cats and my dog than Frontline. 

For those with multi-pet households, monthly flea control can get expensive. Many vets will sell single doses of flea control drops. Also, Advantage and Frontline can be dosed out.  Talk to your vet about buying a pack of Advantage (or Frontline) for large dogs and then ask them to help you figure out the dosage for your cats.  The only difference between the large and small vials of Advantage and Frontline  is the amount of flea control product in them. 

Since I have 12 cats, I buy the three-pack of Advantage for extra-large dogs and dose it out.  Dosing requires a syringe however so make sure you get instructions from your vet and don’t deviate from them.  One three-pack of extra-large dog Advantage lasts two months for me.

If Merck and whoever makes Advantage were smart, they’d sell one large vial with dosing instructions for multi-pet households.

Now, if you can’t afford the high price of Advantage or Frontline, Adams Flea and Tick Spray is a good alternative. It contains the all- natural ingredient, Pyrethrins, which comes from the chrysanthemum flower and is very effective.

There are now also internal flea control products available through your vet, but most I think are for dogs. I’m never going to use them on my cats if any are for cats simply because, well, have you EVER tried to pill a cat??? Never gonna happen.

Finally, a word about flea infestation in your house.  Many of us have hardwood, laminate, or vinyl plank flooring and think we won’t have a flea infestations. Wrong. Fleas will get into everything: area rugs, furniture, drapes, bedding, clothing. Anywhere they can nest and lay eggs. They will EVEN get in between the wood, laminate, and vinyl planks in your floor and lay eggs there!

For carpets and area rugs, I recommend using powdered boric acid.  Work it into the rug or carpet with a brush or broom. It will cause any flea eggs to shrivel up before they hatch, breaking the flea cycle.  For drapes and furniture, use a good quality flea spray for furniture.  Adams makes a line of good products for that, as well.

If you vaccuum, put a flea collar IN your vaccuum cup or bag.  It will kill any fleas that get sucked up and will also kill fleas that hatch from any flea eggs that get sucked up.  Flea collars are ineffective for controlling fleas on pets because they only kill the fleas around the neck area and not on the rest of the pet. Plus, they can cause irritation around your pet’s neck. 

FLEA PRODUCTS I RECOMMEND YOU STAY AWAY FROM:

– Bio-spot: There have been numerous reports of cats and dogs having neurological problems and seizures, even death from this product. Google it and read for yourself.

-Any topical flea drops (with the possible exception of Adams) that are not either Advantage, Frontline, Pet Armor or Advantix.  The other brands of so-called flea drops you see in your local big box store or grocery store use the same ingredients as in a can of bug spray like say, Raid.  They are toxic to your pets.  Just because it’s a flea drop, doesn’t mean it’s the same as the more expensive drops. Cheap is not always better – do your homework.

Holidays and the Indoor/Outdoor Cat

My cats go outside for various reasons, which I’ve explained in previous posts. Most are happy to stay in my backyard which is bordered by cat fencing.  Others, have circumvented the cat fencing and roam the neighborhood and woods.

But on holiday weekends, everyone stays indoors. They don’t like it, it’s hard on me, but that’s how it is.

We live in a lake community with about 40% of the homes owned by Out of Towners who only show up on weekends and some only on holiday weekends. Weekends aren’t wonderful in the summer for the cats generally, but holiday weekends like this one are terrifying for them and me.

For example, on Memorial Day weekend, 4th of July, and Labor Day most of the Weekenders bring their dogs, which they let roam the neighborhood at all hours. We have no leash laws in our rural county, so there’s no way to stop them other than to take their dog to the animal shelter, but I wouldn’t do that.  Most are nice dogs who already live with cats, but they come up to my yard to sniff around, etc.  So the cats stay inside.

Then every night over the weekend, the Weekenders shoot off fireworks. They’re illegal in my state but not in the state next door and the state line is five miles away. That means Weekenders and Locals alike stock up on everything from your basic noise maker to Roman Candles to actual fireworks they shoot off from their docks.  There aren’t enough DNR rangers on the lake (it’s a huge reservoir lake that borders six counties in two states) to catch them all.  As as soon as the sun goes down, the sound of firecrackers popping  and other sorts of fireworks exploding in the night sky can be heard like it’s in your own backyard.  The noise freaks the cats out, especially Cody.  So the cats stay inside.

Just the sound of my very nice Weekender neighbors next door, who love cats and dogs, scares all of them. So, rather than have them hiding under the deck or someone else’s deck or off in the woods somewhere..the cats stay inside.  It’s extra cleaning of the litter boxes and other upsettednesses (is that a word?) but they’re safe and most importantly, I don’t worry about them.

This weekend, I have further complicated matters by taking in a foster dog for the humane society. I 6lb Chihuahua mix puppy who likes to chase cats..no one ever told her not to, so there’s a learning curve there.   So the cats stay in the back two bedrooms with an extra tall baby gate across the hall.

Come Tuesday, life will be back to normal..sort of …the Weekenders will be back home and the neighborhood will be quiet once again…except for the foster puppy, but I don’t expect her to be here very long and I do expect they’ll get used to each other in time