Gilabbey Veterinary Hospital, Vets, Surgeons, Cork, Ireland

Cats General Health

Vaccination

We vaccinate kittens from 9 weeks of age and they normally have a course of two vaccinations given two to four weeks apart (depending on the vaccine used). Full protection starts about seven to ten days after the second vaccination has been given. Your cat will then require annual booster vaccinations to keep them protected. A full health check is necessary before vaccination and this is just as important as the vaccination itself, to allow us to spot problems early and give assistance with routine healthcare issues.

We vaccinate cats for the following:

Feline panleukopenia
Feline rhinotracheitis virus
Feline calicivirus
Chlamydophila felis
Feline Leukaemia virus

Neutering male cats

cat We advise that male cats should be neutered (castrated) unless they are intended for breeding. We perform this operation about 6 months of age.

Male cats can develop a very intense smell that makes it very difficult to share a home with them – castration at the right age prevents this smell developing.
Entire tom cats tend to roam widely and also fight with other cats, making them very prone to accidents and injuries/abscesses from fighting. They also commonly pick up infections such as FIV or FeLV.
Entire male cats are responsible for fathering a lot of unwanted kittens. Having your tom cat castrated will make sure that he does not add to this problem.

Neutering female cats

We advise that female cats that are not intended for breeding should be neutered (spayed) at 6 months of age. At this time they are due to come into season for the first time.

Female cats are very successful at finding mates and it is not easy to keep cats indoors during their season, the chances are high that they’ll come home pregnant.
Cats come into season every 2-3 weeks; they do not bleed like dogs but usually show behavioural changes. Cats in season will rub against both objects and people, roll on the floor and cry or howl constantly. This personality change can be so dramatic that people frequently rush their cat to the vet thinking that they must be ill or in pain.
Mating and being around un-castrated fighting tom cats will put a female at risk of injury from cat fights and infections such as FeLV and FIV.

Worming

Roundworms resemble white pieces of string and can be up to 15cm long. Affected cats usually have one of two types of roundworms, Toxocara and Toxascaris. They are rarely seen and can be passed in faeces or vomited up.

Tapeworms are long flat worms made up of many small segments. Segments are shed and are often seen in faeces.

Worm eggs or larvae are taken up by licking, grooming or by ingesting small prey so outdoor or hunting cats will always have more worms than indoor cats.

Tapeworms and lungworms have a complicated lifecycle and require an ‘intermediate host’. When a cat eats all or part of this intermediate host (slug/snail) the cat becomes infected. We recommend regular worming to ensure your cat stays healthy and to also protect your family and people from worm related problems (see also worming in dogs). We suggest worming kittens at 2, 5, 8, and 12 weeks of age and then monthly till they are 6 months old. Adult cats should be wormed at least every 3 months. Tablets are most commonly used, but there are effective spot-on products available. We will be happy to advise you on the most appropriate product for your pet.

Nutritional Advice

Cat’s nutritional requirements are different from those of dogs or humans- what is good for us is not necessarily good for your cat. Cats must eat a significant amount of meat and cannot tolerate a low protein diet. They also need high dietary levels of certain amino acids such as taurine and arginine. Additionally, requirements can vary depending on the age, size and lifestyle. Fortunately, nowadays it is easy to cater for all those different needs with different types of food. Some sugars, such as one found in cows’ milk, cannot be properly digested by cats and as a result, those cats that often drink milk are prone to diarrhoea.

There are many special diets available to help cats with certain types of disease such as kidney problems or arthritis. Please contact us for advice if you are unsure about what to feed your individual cat.

Any good quality complete food, such as Royal Canin, will provide everything a cat needs in its diet.
Dry food comes in kibbles of various shapes and sizes. Crunching on hard kibbles can help slow down the development of dental tartar and tooth decay.

Cats prefer to eat many small meals a day rather than one or two big ones. Water should be available at all times.

Overweight cats are more prone to health problems such as heart disease, arthritis and diabetes mellitus. Should you think your cat has a larger than life waistline, pop into our free weight clinic, ‘Pudgy Paws’ for advice on food, management and exercise for your cat.

Dental Health

Our pets rely on us to make sure that their teeth and oral health are in good order. Poor dental hygiene can be a source of chronic long term pain and discomfort for many pets. Halitosis (bad breath) is caused by bacteria in the mouth, so this may alert you to the presence of dental disease.

Tartar is the hard brown accumulation which occurs on teeth. It is caused by mineralization of plaque which in turn may lead to gingivitis (gum inflammation). The gums become red, sore and prone to bleeding when touched.

At Gilabbey, we run regular free dental clinics for all our clients and are happy to organise an appointment for a dental check.

Fleas & other parasites in cats

Fleas should be treated with a quality spot-on preparation. In rare cases, a spray may also be used on the animal. Flea collars, shampoos and powders are no longer recommended. Treatment of the cat's environment (house, car etc) is very important and the treatment of all pets should be continued over a period of at least 3 months to ensure all the next flea generations have gone. It is generally preferable to prevent rather than to treat a flea infestation and to use spot-on preparations on a regular basis. This has to be done every 4 to 8 weeks depending on the product used. It is important to note that some dog preparations which are perfectly safe in dogs are very dangerous when they are used on cats, and can cause severe and sometimes fatal toxic reactions.

Please ask at reception for the most up-to-date information on the variety of products available.