Searching for ways to Share a Better Life™ with your cat? Asking a question is your first step to achieving the well-being that you and your cat are both striving for. Roll over each Mentor to learn more.
Dr. Debbie Horwitz
Specialty: Cat Behavior
Credentials: President-Elect of the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists
“The variety of personalities, behaviors, interests and temperament is what makes living with a cat so rewarding.”
Dr. Janet Jackson
Specialty: Nutrition
Credentials: Vice President and Director of the Basic Research Group at Nestlé® Purina® Pet Care
“I have an ideal job of continually trying to learn more about how we can improve the health of our pets by providing the best nutrition.”
Dr. Karen Sueda
Specialty: Cat and Kitten Behavior
Credentials: Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists
“Even when cats misbehave, there's usually a very good reason for it.”
Dr. Steffen Runquist
Specialty: Physical Well-Being
Credentials: Doctor of Veterinary Medicine
“I think cats in general are good at just teaching us to live in the moment.”
Amy Shojai
Specialty: Emotional Well-Being
Credentials: Published Author of 22 Books and over 1000 Articles on Pet Care.
“Cats are quirky and fun, clownish and solemn, shy and pushy, and endlessly entertaining and endearing. They fascinate me.”
Roll over each Mentor to learn more
The Purina® Cat Chow® Team of highly-qualified Mentors have been helping cat owners just like you tackle even the most complicated cat questions. So go ahead, ask away! They'll start working on your specific question and will do everything they can to get back to you right away.
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My 14 year old black short hair cat died last nite. I have had him since he was 5 weeks old and except dental issues he has been a healthy cat. It all started this last Sunday (5 days ago) he started having breathing problem like birth labor and seems like he was in pain and not eating after that. I took him to vet and they did blood test and the result came to be some white blood disorder and pancreas inflammation. They gave me some pain killer and antibiotic but did not help much but he started to eat some. Yesterday (Friday) I visit him at home on my lunch and he was doing ok but when I came back from work 4 hours later on he was dead resting in my bed. The night before he slept with me all nite long purring even with heavy breathing seem like he knew it is coming. It has been tough for me dealing with it. I am trying to find out what happened so quickly. The vet said normally this type of symptom is from a tumor or cancer of something. I can't afford doing autopsy so it always stay in my mind what caused it. I am just wondering based on your experience what you might think happened. It just happened so fast.
Dr. Steffen RunquistSpecialty: Physical Well-Being READ HER ANSWER
My 5 pound cat has tetralogy of Fallot and tricuspid dysplasia. She was only supposed to have lived a few days but with special care and good doctors, she is now 8-1/2 years old and although tiny, looks normal. I give her oxygen when she gets stressed and special food and lots of love. As a kitten she was not deemed a good prospect for spaying so is still intact. Last week she developed vaginal hyperplasia as a result of estrous. I'm concerned that she would not survive surgery, which is considered to be the best solution. I've been given an alternative of treatment with Ovaban to try to shrink the tissue that has prolapsed, but I have read on the Purina site that it is not recommended for unspayed females. Her veterinarians have also expressed concern at this treatment. Do you know of any other alternative, or could you recommend a safe dosage of Ovaban or possible combination of drugs? At the moment, the prolapsed tissue is about jelly-bean size, I would also like to contact any other cat owners who have tetralogy of Fallot cats, if you know of any.
I adopted a six week stray and I fell in love - took her to vet for initial care but she seemed sickly. After several visits to vet who drained fluid from lungs was told she had pyothorax and I should consider quality of life. I don't know if I did the right thing by having her put down - is there hope for a kitten with that disease? What else could I have done? I can't top grieving and so full of guilt I don't know what to do. I'm 83 years of age, this being my first exposure to cats. Please help.
Every time my cat and I touch we both get shocked from static electricity. It hurts when I get shocked so I can just imagine how it hurts her. Do you have any tips to help relieve my cat of her extreme case of static electricity?
My cat has stomatitis. Nothing seems to be doing him any good. He goes to the vet about once a month for injections of prednisone and an antibiotic. He is always suffering to some extent. Should I put him to sleep?