Do you know what the No. 1 disease seen in general veterinary practice is?  Do you know what the most underdiagnosed AND untreated disease in veterinary medicine is???  The answer is the same for both questions....periodontal disease!

This disease affects 85% of all cats older than 3, yet only about 1% receive proper dental care, according to the AAHA (American Animal Hospital Association) Compliance Study.  And, unfortunately, the diagnosis and control of this disease is the ONE BIG THING that can make a difference in your cat's overall health and well-being.
A veterinarian should always do an assessment of your cat's mouth during his/her regular checkup.  (Just imagine what your mouth might feel like if you hadn't brushed your teeth for up to a year.)    The levels of dental disease are usually graded from 1 through 4, with 4 being the extreme, with a need for extractions.

You may not realize that periodontal disease plays such a huge part in your cat's overall health.  It not only has a strong negative effect on a cat's ability to eat pain-free, but on his/her internal organs, such as the liver, kidneys and heart.  Unchecked plaque (just as in your own mouth) can allow harmful bacteria to flourish and grow.  This bacteria can then enter the bloodstream through lesions in your cat's gums, and it doesn't always take "advanced" disease for this to happen.  Once in the bloodstream, the bacteria travel through the body and can have an extremely harmful impact on your cat's organs.

Sometimes one illustration is worth a thousand words, so I'll share a story from Dr. Schomacker.  We know that cats are extremely stoic and do not usually show symptoms of pain, even if they feel really bad.  This particular patient was new to our clinic and hadn't seen a veterinarian in some time.  The owner apologized for his grumpy behavior, saying that he used to be great to work with, but his age had made him grumpy.  Dr. Schomacker wasn't concerned, she's used to unhappy patients, however, a bit of anesthetic gas was necessary for her to thoroughly examine him.  Dr. Schomacker found that he had severe periodontal disease and needed some extractions.  The owner felt bad that she hadn't realized he needed anything, and promptly made the appointment for the dental on the next morning.

The procedure was done and the owner scheduled his follow-up exam.  When the owner came in for the follow-up, Dr. Schomacker was prepared to have to anesthetize Mr. Grumpy again (although we hate doing this for follow-ups).  Dr. Schomacker entered the exam room expecting the worst, and what did she find.  Mr. Grumpy had turned into Mr. Sweetie.  He was walking around the exam room, tail in the air, and immediately walked over to rub up against Dr. Schomacker's legs.  The difference in attitude?  He was no longer in, what must have been, terrible pain!  She examined him with no problems at all. 

This story speaks for itself.  If your kitty hasn't had a thorough  oral examination in the past year, do him/her a favor and make an appontment today.  You will thank yourself, and most of all, your faithful companion will be grateful to you in the long run.  This visit may just enable them to return to the playful kitten they used to be.  Most important, your cat will be living a healthier, happier life.

Cheryl Waterman, CVPM
Hospital Administrator

In honor of "Dental Health" month, we are offering a 5% savings off every dental cleaning all month, beginning Monday, January 30th. 

If you've been told that your kitty needs a dental, then now is the time to schedule.  Unchecked gingivitis and periodontal disease can cause various systemic issues throughout your cat's body, just as in humans.

See an actual dental treatment video and slideshow

Call us today at 913-541-0478 to schedule your appointment and take advantage of the savings.

It makes us very happy to announce that Dr. Schomacker will be making "house calls" one Monday morning per month.
When many of you come into the clinic, we notice that it has been too long since we've seen your kitties, and usually most of you tell us that it is just too stressful for them to bring them in for annual or bi-annual exams, and consequently too stressful for you, also.  We listened! 

We are very much aware that cats sometimes react to stress in embarrassing ways (especially for you), although all of us have at least one cat who acts the same way.  Of course, there is never any reason to be embarrassed about your cat's behavior -- they are scared to death to be out of their usual environment, and when "new" people are trying to treat them or examine them, they want no part of it.  You might try to place yourself in your cat's shoes (paws?) and just think how you would feel.  You ONLY have to get in the carrier when you're going in the CAR to that really scary place where they poke and prod, stick you with needles and last, but not least -- stick a thermometer in your rear end!  And, they have no idea why!  It is shear torture for some of them!

Of course, some of us are lucky enough to have cats that are fine with coming in, but those are more rare than usual.  Due to this fact, we have decided that offering affordable housecalls to our "Kansas" clients might help us take better care of our patients and reduce the stress for both the patients and their owners.  Unfortunately, we cannot go to Missouri, as Dr. Schomacker is not licensed in Missouri.

Beginning Monday, January 16, 2012 from 8:00am to 12:00Noon,  we are offering housecalls within a 10 mile radius at the reduced cost of  $35.00, every 3rd Monday of every month thru May 2012.  This $35.00 would be in addition to the regular cost of any treatments provided.

If you would like to schedule a housecall for your kitty, just give us a call and we will be happy to schedule you with Dr. Schomacker.  We will be scheduling clients as closely together as possible, and so will call you on the day of your scheduled housecall just before arriving.  

I just read an article in one of the newest "Veterinary Economics" magazines, which made me sit up and take notice.  You may or may not have heard of the "Fairness to Pet Owners Act" now floating around the U.S. House of Representatives.  I can think of other names for it, and none of them are good!

This bill would require veterinarians to give clients "written" prescriptions for pet medications, whether or not the veterinarian is dispensing the medication.  This bill is bad news for a number of reasons.

First of all, let me say that the doctors here at the Cat Clinic have no problem with calling in prescriptions for human drugs that are also used in veterinary medicine, to help clients save on their cats' medications,  when appropriate or when compounding is needed.  However, there aren't local pharmacy options for veterinary specific drugs.  There are only on-line pharmacies, and these can involve a several-day delay for delivery -- not an option for urgent cases, and we are not  fans, for several reasons.

There have been cases of online pharmacies shipping the wrong drugs, expired drugs, diverted black-market drugs, or illegally imported drugs.  In most cases the drug manufacturers will not support these products if they are diverted through illegal channels.  So, for example, suppose the feline heartworm preventive from Cats Are Us Online Pharmacy either fails to protect the cat or causes a serious reaction -- perhaps even death.  Either way, the client is out of luck.  If the same thing were to happen when the medication was purchased through legitimate channels, most drug companies would foot the bill for treatment.

There have been cases where the pharmacy filled the wrong drug with devastating results.  The article in "Vet Economics" recounts an example of a golden retriever who was prescribed carprofen (a veterinary specific NSAID that's FDA-approved especially for dogs.)  The owner's pharmacist friend figured that carprofen sounds like flurbiprofen and gave the dog flurbiprofen.  The dog ended up with multiple perforating, bleeding stomach ulcers.  After 3 transfusions and exploratory surgery, the dog died.  Pharmacists DO NOT have training in animal physiology and pharmacology.

Let's hope this misguided attempt to avoid veterinary pharmacy costs ends up in the wastebasket, not the law books.  It's best for cats, dogs and owners alike to let veterinarians decide what's best for their patients.  We will do all we can to make prescriptions affordable to you, afterall, our foremost goal is seeing that our patients receive the best medical care available.

Cheryl Waterman, CVPM
Hospital Administrator

 

Did you know?
Some of the Most Common Household Items Are Toxic to Your Cat!
As you might suspect, the large majority of calls to the Pet Poison Helpline concern dogs.  However, in 2010 almost 9% of the calls were concerning potentially poisoned cats.  The top culprits are things you may not realize can harm your cat(s).
Please follow the link below to read more...
http://www.metropetmag.com/current-issue/current-issue/417-julyaugust-2011-issue

UPDATE: I FOUND A HOME!!!!
This purr machine wants to come home with YOU!!!! Stanley will surprise you with how well he follows you on his three legs, and when he isn't being your shadow - you can easily find him by listening for his purr - which can be heard from a room away. He loves to tell stories and have you pet him and swoosh his beautiful tail. He is looking for someone who won't mind being followed at every step and sharing in every moment. He is ALWAYS right behind you! Come meet Stanley today and have your very own purr shadow and forever friend go home with you!

UPDATE: WE FOUND HOMES!!!!  Thank you everyone 

Looking to get yourself a TRICK (cats and kittens CAN and WILL do tricks) and a TREAT (a new companion is calorie and fat-free) this Halloween, check out Kitty City Kansas City and be SPELLBOUND (who can resist a cute cat or kitten) into giving a new furry friend a home!  Hocus and Pocus are in our reception area waiting for YOU!