Common Cat Health Problems

List of Common Cat Health Problems

Here's a partial list of common cat health problems. You can click on the live links to learn more about some of these particular cat problems.

Cat Hairballs

Cat hairballs (also written or called hair balls, furballs or fur balls) are a very common problem many felines have. Usually, your cat can pass the excessive hair that accumulates in his or her stomach either through the feces or through vomiting up the hairball.

Fleas

Fleas are an external parasite that can cause a myriad of common cat health problems in your cat or kitten, including anemia and tapeworm infection.

Controlling Fleas is Critical to Keeping Your Cat Healthy

Uncontrollable itching and scratching. Allergies. Tapeworm. Hair loss. Major discomfort. Even anemia and more serious health problems. Fleas hurt your cat.

Controlling fleas on your precious cat and in your cat's environment is so important in helping you deal with one of the worst external parasites your cat will ever face. Keeping your cat and your home flea-free is not only important for your cat's health, but for your own health, as well.

At the worst, even one single flea bite can lead to serious problems for your cat. Uncontrolled fleas, flea infestation, and flea bites can lead to allergies, tapeworm, anemia, etc. Diligence is an important part of taking care of your cat.

Flea Prevention is the Best Method

Prevention is your absolute best method of controlling this parasite. The two best ways to prevent infestation are excellent nutrition and keeping your cat's environment clean.

No matter how much you directly treat your cat for fleas, if you don't treat her environment and keep it clean, you won't be able to eliminate all the fleas in your home and on your cat.

Indoor Cats Need Protection, Too!

Flea control is critical for all cats, even those cats who never go outside. As a matter of fact, your indoor cat and cat environment can have an even worse flea problem than your outdoor cat.

We often make the mistake of thinking that just because our cat lives indoors, he will never have any fleas. Wrong! Fleas can be brought into your home from various sources, such as other animals and even you. Fleas are excellent hitchhikers! They can hop on your clothes when you're outside and jump off once inside your home.

One flea can lay up to 20 eggs at a time and at their worse, they can lay eggs every day! So by the time you realize you have fleas, your home may already be severely infested.

Weak Cats Have Worse Flea Problems

Fleas are parasites. They prey on weakened and less healthy cats. Veterinarians commonly observe that cats in the poorest health attract the most fleas. So the healthier your cat is, the less likely you'll have flea infestations on your cat and in your home.

And if you end up with a flea problem, your healthy cat will be in a stronger position to deal with your flea control efforts.

To keep your cat healthy, feed him a diet of the highest quality cat food you can afford, make sure he gets regular exercise with safe and interactive cat toys, and keep his environment clean.

Add regular grooming to these preventative measures and you should be able to keep your cat in excellent health and flea-free.

How to Tell if Your Cat Has Fleas

The most obvious sign of a flea is the flea body itself. These are reddish-brown little guys about the size of a pinhead. They have incredible jumping ability. Fleas are often easily found around your cat's neck and base of the tail.

But just because you don't see the body, don't assume there aren't any fleas. Fleas go through various life cycle stages, and they can be present in your home in different (almost invisible) stages.

To check your cat for fleas, part his hair around his neck, back, hind legs, and near the base of his tail. You can also use a special flea comb and run it gently through these areas to check for fleas.

In addition to actual fleas, you are also looking for any tiny black flecks. These black flecks are flea excrement (or "flea dirt") and are a sure sign that these pesky parasites are around. To be extra sure that these black flecks are flea dirt, you can place the flecks on a wet paper towel. If you see a reddish brown circle form around the fleck, you've got yourself some flea droppings and a flea problem (the flecks are your cat's digested blood).

And although not every itch means that your cat has fleas, you should suspect fleas if your cat is doing a good deal of licking and chewing around her hind legs and back, especially near the base of the tail. This is often accompanied by hair loss. If your cat is licking and chewing a lot, be sure to give her a thorough inspection.

Inspecting your outdoor cats for fleas should be a regular part of your flea control efforts.

How To Get Rid of Fleas

If you find yourself with a flea problem, you'll probably need to try a couple of different flea control methods before you get rid of all of the fleas on your cat and in your home.

It's up to you to choose which treatment you think is best for your cat, you, and your home. Treatments may include using flea combs, flea collars flea dips, flea powders flea exterminators, and other flea control methods.

In addition to treating your cat and your home, you may also have to treat your yard.

Taking care of a flea problem doesn't mean only getting rid of the adult fleas or just the fleas you can see. You also have to get rid of all the fleas in their various life stages throughout your home and your yard. This will require diligence on your part to get rid of all the fleas, but it is well worth it for your cat's health.

Choosing a safe, as well as effective, method of flea control is critical.

Different levels of danger accompany all flea control products and methods and you should choose only the safest and most effective method for your cat and you.

Be careful when applying chemical flea treatments to your cat, as these will irritate any open sores she may have. Also, chemical flea medicines should not be used on kittens under the age of four months. These are two good reasons for trying to stick with natural flea control products, as they are generally less irritating to your cat and her skin, and overall, less dangerous for your cat, the environment, and you.

Plant Poisoning

Cats and kittens like to chew on green things! Certain indoor and outdoor plants, and even the insecticides on the plants, can poison your cat.

Worms in Cats

Worms are also parasites that can affect your cat's health.

Here's a list of the common types of worms in cats:

• ringworm,
• roundworms,
• tapeworm,
• hookworms, and
• Lungworms.

These cat worms can be classified as either external parasites (aka "ectoparasites") or internal parasites (aka "endoparasites").

External parasites are found on the outside of your cat's body. Fleas, ticks and ear mites are also common external parasites.

Internal parasites live inside the body of your cat.

All of these worms are unhealthy for your cat or kitten, and depending on the severity of the infestation, some can even be debilitating to your cat's health.

Ringworms
 

Ringworms (Dermatophytosis) are external parasites. This type of worm is not technically a "worm," but rather a fungal disease of the skin and hair.

Ringworm is highly contagious to you and to other animals.

It's always a good idea to wash your hands after petting a cat, especially one you don't know. Cats can sometimes be carriers and infect you without showing any symptoms.

Many longhaired cats can carry the ringworm spores and not show any signs at all of the parasite.

Roundworms

Roundworms (ascarids) are internal parasites. They are very common. Some statistics say that almost one-third of all kittens under three months old have roundworm, and about 10 per cent of all adult felines have it.

Roundworms are to be suspected if your cat or kitten is in otherwise good health, but somehow seems in poor shape (for example, a dull coat, gas in the intestines, diarrhea, or a pot belly).

Tapeworms

Among tapeworms (Cestodes), the most common is Dipylidium caninum (this worm also infests dogs). A tapeworm is an internal parasite and you can find evidence of these worms in your cat's litter box.

These are the worms in cats that look like little grains of rice or sesame seeds that can be found in your cat's feces.

Hookworms

Hookworms are internal parasites and are found inside your cat's intestines. They get their name from their hook-like teeth that attach to your cat's intestines. Hookworms are particularly dangerous to kittens.

Lungworms

Lungworms are types of worms in cats that often go undiagnosed because their symptoms (coughing and difficulty breathing) are usually only exhibited with a really heavy infection.

Worm Treatment

If you suspect that your cat or kitten is suffering from any of these types of worms in cats, it's best to get veterinary advice or treatment immediately to prevent the infestation in your cat from becoming worse, and also to protect other pets and the humans around your cat.

If caught early, many worms are easily gotten rid of through conventional methods or natural homeopathic remedies.

Viral and Other Infections

·         More serious infections that can plague your cat or kitten include feline infectious enteritis, rabies, and cat flu. There's also feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), feline infectious peritonitis (FIP), and the feline leukemia virus (FeLV).

·         All of these are more serious diseases and you should consult with your veterinarian about vaccinations and/or treatment.

Miscellaneous Cat Health Issues

·         Just as with humans, a healthy cat is susceptible to a multitude of different health issues. They can have digestive problems, urinary problems, respiratory problems, skin problems, etc.

·         They can also suffer a number of other problems like road accidents, heat stroke, electric shock, falls, and other wounds. Having veterinarian's phone number and an emergency pet hospital number available is a wise thing to do to take care of your cat or kitten (or dog or other pets).

Disclaimer—Consult a Vet!