Pet Insurance: Is it worth it?

Back in 2012, I read an op/ed piece in Wall Street's MarketWatch written by contributing author Jeanette Pavini that suggested pet insurance was a waste of money.

I wrote an article with an opposing opinion and was recently asked to update it. This is the 2017 version of the original Monday Medical post.
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First, despite Ms. Pavini's 2012 claims that per insurance isn't worth your hard-earned cash, there are an increasing number of affordable plans that begin as low as $4.56/month in the U.S. That coverage was estimated based on a 3 year old male cat with no preexisting conditions.

I also discovered something encouraging: that plan increased just 48¢/month since 2012, but the 2017 value is much higher.

In 2012, it only covered accidents. Today's policy covers accidents, illnesses, cancer, hereditary conditions, emergency visits, surgeries and prescription drugs.

Of course, with a policy that reasonable, you can expect high deductibles and a 30% copay. For this policy the deductible is $1,000, which translates to more of a catastrophic policy than an annual-use one. Still, when disaster hits, it's better to have a $1,000 bill than a $5,000 one.

Pet insurance helps Maxie hold onto his lone, last fang.

$4.56 a month.

That's less than half the price of a movie ticket these days. Have you seen what's playing on the big screen lately? Let's talk "waste of money," Ms. Pavini.

The 2012 Wall Street article also included a statement that inaccurately describes the coverage provided by most pet insurance companies. Here is the statement in question: "...with most plans, the premiums rise and coverage declines as your pet gets older—when they are more likely to need costly procedures."

This seems highly counter-intuitive. If that were truly the case, what person in their right mind would purchase it? In 2012, I accused Ms. Pavini of irresponsible journalism. Perhaps that was a bit harsh in today's politically-charged climate, so I'll just say that I wish she had done just ten minutes of research to back her claim before making that statement.

A bit of time spent searching several well-known U.S. insurance sites provided absolutely no evidence that coverage shrinks as a pet ages. So for this 2017 reboot, I revisited three of the top pet insurance companies in the U.S. to find if they had changed their positions since 2012.

Nope.

Pet insurance: protection that helps you weather the storm

Here's VPI's position: "Our coverage does not decline as a pet ages. As long as your pet is enrolled before age 10 and you keep your policy continually in force (translation: don't let it lapse or expire), we promise not to drop your pet."

Trupanion allows you to enroll your pet any time before your pet’s 14th birthday. Here is Trupanion's response to my query about the Wall street article when I contacted them in 2012: "Trupanion coverage does not decline as the pet ages. Perhaps they meant to say that coverage options (pre-enrollment only) decline?"

Quite possibly that's what the author meant. Because it is true that the cost to insure a pet increases as the pet ages. And the older the pet, the more potential exclusions there will be if you opt into coverage at a late date. It's the same with human insurance, as well. But if that's what the Wall Street article intended to say...it failed. The article certainly didn't leave one with that impression.

I also spoke with Laura Bennett, CEO of Embrace Pet Insurance, back in 2012, and her response is still valid 5 years later:

“I was really disappointed that the author of the article, Jeanette Pavini, based her opinion of pet insurance on one friend’s experience with one company.

"Regarding the example she provided, it is true that a few pet insurers exclude hereditary conditions and given a Bernese Mountain Dog is prone to hip dysplasia amongst other conditions, that might have been the surgery she mentioned that was not covered; however, there are a number of pet insurers that do cover hereditary conditions (Embrace and Petplan being two of them) and even some of those that have not covered them in the past are adding optional coverage for breed-specific issues now (such as VPI and ASPCA).

"I would love to discuss pet insurance with Ms Pavini just to show that pet insurance is not all the same and a high deductible policy to protect against large unexpected vet bills, just like her friend would have wished for, is worth getting.” 

Finally, I personally believe Ms. Pavini's logic is flawed. She recommended that, instead of pet insurance, a person would be better off starting a pet emergency savings account. While technically there is truth in her statement, a 2016 GO Banking Rates report stated that 69% of Americans have less than $1,000 in their savings accounts.

I fear the sticker shock of a veterinary emergency room bill may negatively impact the decision to seek care for the pet. Again, Laura Bennett:

"Budgeting is for predictable expenses; insurance is for unpredictable and financially impactful veterinary costs. Unless you are very wealthy, budgeting can never replace insurance if you would do whatever it takes to help the health of your pet in a veterinary health decision."

Having pet insurance may mean the difference between several more years of companionship or making that painful decision to euthanize. And call me crazy, but I see pet insurance as another way to cut down on the number of deaths at animal shelters in the U.S. annually.

Yes, some people, upon discovering their "beloved pet" has an expensive disease, will simply abandon it. I have seen it firsthand.

One of my previous cats, Ryker, was insured. A few months after he passed away, I went through 13 years of medical bills and insurance invoices. In the end, we came out ahead. Not by much, but we did end up spending less on our vet bills with insurance than we would have without.

All three of the Tonk's Tale cats are insured, and they will remain so. The peace of mind, if nothing else, is worth it.

And no, I was not compensated in any way for this post. I simply happen to believe that pet insurance is worth it.
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Postscript: Interestingly enough, there has been only one other article on pet insurance in Wall Street's MarketWatch since 2012. 

It was another op/ed piece, published in April of this year. This time, the author's opinion was favorable.

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Are Millennials Changing Our Relationship with Cats? #spon

As I mentioned last Sunday, I attended Purina's Better With Pets Summit in early November.

The most interesting moments for me were the two discussion panels. Here are my notes from the one on Millennial cat owners. I thought it was interesting stuff. I hope you enjoy.

Cats & Millennials: moderator Hal Herzog Ph.D., Sandra Lyn & Mikel Delgado behaviorists
& Christina Ha, NYC Cat Café. Photo copyright ©2015 Nesté Purina. Used with permission.

"Are Millennials changing
  our relationship with cats?"

The panel was moderated by Dr. Hal Herzog, a professor of psychology whose research focuses on human-animal interactions.

The panelists included Purina Behaviorist Sandra Lyn; Christina Ha, co-founder of NYC's first permanent Cat Café, Meow Parlour; and Mikel Delgado, a cat behaviorist and Ph.D. candidate at UC-Berkeley.

Dr. Herzog began by stating that cats are particularly popular as pets among Millennials, with 33% owning one. In fact, Millennials will soon be the largest segment of the population owning cats.

One thing to note, he said, was that expectations are greater among Millennials, because they are hyper-social. (Hyper-social is that always-connected state of being, through mobile devices and on social media.)

Millennial with cat. Photo by depositphotos.

Millennials as a generation have higher expectations on everything - that's the lens through which they live their lives. Google the words "Millenial expectations" and you'll get more than 800,000 results - studies with headlines like "Millennials: a Generation with Unrealistic Expectations." (ouch! harsh, dude!)

The panel's point was that this trait can have an impact on a Millennial's relationship with a cat, too.

Millennials and their
expectations of cats

Christina Ha described how Millennials react to cats when they first enter the café. "Millennials have a lot of expectations, they think cats will immediately come running up to you when you come in. They're more impatient about wanting gratification. On the flip side, if they fall in love, they fall in love very hard and very fast." 

"We spend a lot of time talking to customers about their own cats. People love sharing their stories about their cats, and surprisingly some of them aren't what we would consider to be a cat person."

Huh? Then why are they in a cat café?
Here's what she meant by that.

"You can usually tell if someone's a cat person [by their actions]. If they come in, pick up a cat toy and start poking a cat with it…? Not a cat person. We’ll then ask them, 'hey, do you like being poked by something???'"

Then the lightbulb goes off.

She spends a lot of time explaining things to these cat owners who aren't really cat people yet.
Things like:
"A real cat person can [come in and] soon be covered in cats.
That's because they don't make eye contact with cats. They let the cats come to them."
and
"No two cats are the same. Have expectations of your cat that are realistic.
And accept him for who he is."

Their reaction?  "OMIGOD, I've been playing with my cat wrong for years!"

About that internet
cat phenomenon

So are the ever-connected, hyper-social Millennials the only generation that benefits from the internet cat phenomenon?

Herzog says no. Regardless of age, with cat videos "even if you don't own a cat you still benefit from cats in your life." Sandra Lyn agreed. "When we get upset and go into a corner and turn on YouTube to watch cat videos, we feel better," she said. No argument there.

Social media may be changing what defines a cat person, too.

Mikel Delgado believes one reason cat videos have such internet appeal is because cats are a little harder to read than dogs. "We can kind of try to fill in the blanks of what's going on in their mind," she said.

There's a stereotype that cat people tend to be less extroverted than dog people, but her "fill in the blanks" observation implies that a 'cat person' could be defined as anyone drawn to the subtlety of cats' behavior.

Anyone wanna guess what's going on in his mind?

 The Cat-Human Relationship

It isn't just about what we get out of it, Sandra Lyn warned.
It's about what the cat gets out of this. Both parties need to benefit.

She went on to say that there is still a lot of opportunity to do research around cat cognition and social behavior. And there is room for a lot of education on what we do know.

That's when they launched into the real meat of their discussion:
What conventional wisdom do we need to overturn, what attitudes need to change in order to make cats' lives better?

The most important thing to understand about cats is they're not small humans. They have species-specific needs. They are predators but they are also prey, so they need to feel safe.

Let me repeat that: They are predators but they are also prey.

We need to see things from our cats' point of view. To them, we are the predator. We are so much bigger. We are apex. In their minds, they are our (potential) prey.

And our homes are not their natural habitat.

Is Allie looking at a photo of her natural habitat, while sitting in mine?

What changes can we make in our environment, then, to ensure they feel safe in it?

Honestly, if you're a passionate cat owner, chances are you know a cat needs vertical space, and you know it's important for them to have exercise and mental stimulation. But have you ever thought about why they may need it?

The way we maneuver through our own homes, the bursts of laughter (or yelling) that come about through the natural course of life...

All these things, from our cats' perspective, can feel threatening. Unsafe.

It's not just physical changes we should be considering, but also mental. Changes we need to make in our attitudes and actions. One really good example is how terrified Faraday is of plastic trash bags (sorry kid, I'm so outing you). So I adapt. I make sure I don't open one with a sharp click of my wrist that makes such a frightening noise when he's around. I try to make sure my home feels more like a library than a three-ring circus.

And every time I set aside time in my schedule to play with them, I'm engaging them in an action that instills confidence and promotes greater comfort in this foreign environment they now call home. 


Myth Busting

Are cats naturally standoffish and aloof, or are they simply scared and uncomfortable with their surroundings?  As we now know, it's the latter.

And just like humans, cats don't all share the same temperament. So what might be mild discomfort in one cat could manifest as very scared in another cat.

This is why it's so important to provide physical and environmental enrichment.

Faraday's preferred enrichment: TOYS.

Sandra Lyn said we need to make sure cats are comfortable in their environment and that they have some control over it. 

She emphasized that if you can, start socializing a cat early -- between 2 to 7 weeks of age. You're preparing them for an environment that is not their natural one.

And it's a lifelong process, she stated. You never stop socializing a cat. It's a constant drumbeat of reassurance: it's okay, you're safe.

Is my cat doing
this on purpose?

Sandra Lyn gets a lot of questions about whether a cat's behavior is "done with intention."
Her answer? No. It’s simply not true that a cat would "act out" like a child in his "terrible twos."

But sadly, there’s not much research about cat cognitive abilities and social behavior, so we tend to infer a lot of our own social prejudice onto their behavior.

Remember, she said, they have a shorter 'domestication evolution' history. We’re asking them to cope in their new environment, and a lot of what people see as intent is a coping mechanism. There's no intention behind it, no malice. 

Cat café owner Christina Ha added, "you can't shove a super shy cat into a public situation and force them to adapt. You must create an environment that is safe. And that can sometimes take a really long time. But it's worth it."


Back to those Millennials

"Our hope,"  Delgado adds "is that cat cafés might change social interactions." The majority of the people who frequent cat cafés are Millennials because of social sharing about them. And that provides a huge opportunity to educate.

"On social," Christina said, "we can provide very concise information. Helpful tidbits like this Facebook post: 'don't forget to play with your cat for at least fifteen minutes each day. It relieves boredom and helps make them feel more relaxed and confident.' "

"We think cats are upset with us or we're not good enough for them, but social media is an opportunity for us to educate people on misinformation people have about cats. And answer questions, such as 'Is this cat happy or stressed?' 'Is this idiosyncratic behavior or is it normal?'

"Not preachy, just facts. We can do this through social media. We can learn in a very fun way."
Lyn agreed. "Bite sized information is important. How can we get that info 'just in time', to the public. Kind of like vitamins."

The good news? Studies have indicated Millennials focus more attention on their cats than previous generations, and they're more willing to spend money on their healthcare than older generations, too.

Mikel Delgado ended the discussion with this:  "There's a myth that cats are low maintenance. That's not true. But what you have to consider is... maintenance is not a bad thing. Like any relationship, cats give back to you what you give to them."

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This post is sponsored by Nestlé Purina Pet Care. We are being compensated for writing this #BetterWithPets article, but regardless of the payment received, A Tonk's Tail only shares content we feel our readers will benefit from. Our posts always reflect our honest and unbiased opinions. Nestlé Purina is not responsible for the content of this article.

You can find Nestlé Purina Pet Care at these links:

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Monday Medical: Pet Dental Health Month

February is Pet Dental Health Month. Did you know that many experts believe dental disease is the number one disease seen by veterinarians? Almost all adult dogs and cats have some form of it.

Wonder how hard it would be to talk Faraday into flossing...?

If you've read my article over on Catster, then you know cats don't get cavities. That's not really a good thing, though. Because what they get instead is something much worse: a disease for which there is no cure, since we simply don't know what causes it. That disease is tooth resorption. You can read more about it here.

"Open wide!" Girl, you're doing it right.

There are a few myths that keep hanging on about dental diseases in our companion animals, and one of them is that it doesn't begin to develop until later in adult years.

Maxwell is living proof that's not true. At 9 months of age, he had his first dental...and lost 12 teeth. Twelve. You can read his story - and more on gingivitis/stomatitis at this link here.

Bottom line: it's never too early to begin good dental hygiene with out pets. And they can never be too young for dental disease to strike.

With aggressive dental treatments at home and at our vet, Maxwell has beaten the odds. They thought he would be toothless by age 5. He'll turn 5 in April.

"Look ma! No cavities!" True, but what about TR? Keep brushing, dood.
We don't know what we'd do without those adorable fangs of yours!

Talk to your vet soon about whether or not your pet should have his teeth cleaned. Many offer discounts during the month of February, in honor of Dental Health Month, so it's a win-win, both for your pocketbook and for your pet!

Silver Fur & Skin Cancer

A few days ago, the Winn Feline Foundation announced funding for seven feline health studies. Two of them were granted to a local veterinary school - the University of Missouri's School of Veterinary Medicine.

We're huge fans of the work MU's Vet School does, and were excited that Winn Feline Foundation had awarded them to my husband's Alma Mater.

But I have to admit, the first one puzzled me a bit.

Here's its description:

"Development of a genetic test for silver coat color
Mutations have been identified through whole genome sequencing appear to be correlated with silver coat color in cats. This study will evaluate whether these mutations are present in 300 cats of known coat color to establish which mutation causes this trait. This will enable the development of a genetic test for silver, one of the few remaining cat colors for which there is no genetic test."

Silver Persian. Photo: Marcello386 via Flickr Creative Commons

Now, why would Winn give $10,000 to study a cat's coat color? Admittedly, silver cats are stunning. Just look at our friends Truffle and Brulee over at the blog Sweet Purrfections! Still. Why study this?

Turns out there's more here than meets the eye. And it benefits us humans!

According to Oxford Journals' Journal of Heredity, by mapping the genetic locus of a cat's silver coat color, medical research hopes to be able to identify a unique genetic location in all mammals.

Specifically, the hope is that this gene might help us understand something far more serious than just a pretty color: it may just help doctors understand and prevent skin cancer in humans.

From the Journal: "SILVER in the domestic cat may possibly play a role in ... regulation of synthesis of pheomelanin or in the structure or molecular composition of the pheomelanic pigment."

Translation:
pheomelanin is a type of melanin (dark pigment) found in people who have red hair.  It's what gives red hair its color.
This type of melanin can be toxic - it causes oxidative DNA damage. In other words, if you're a redhead, the pheomelanin in your hair increases your risk of developing melanoma. 

(Interestingly, it does not appear that this is the case with feline redheads, so all you orange moggies out there are safe.)

According to Drs. Morgan, Lo and Fisher, medical research has not yet uncovered the chemical pathway between pheomelanin and the DNA damage that causes melanoma.

But now, that just might change. The hope is that they will discover that the silver gene in cats will block - or at least regulate - the body's role in manufacturing this toxic pigment.

And now you know!

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Sources:

"How does pheomelanin synthesis contribute to melanomagenesis?" BioEssays, Volume 35, Issue 8, pages 672-676. August, 2013.

"Mapping of the Domestic Cat “SILVER” Coat Color Locus Identifies a Unique Genomic Location for Silver in Mammals" Journal of Heredity, Volume 100, Issue supplement 1, p. S8-S13.

"Chemical analysis of late stages of pheomelanogenesis" Pigment Cell Melanoma Res., August 2009, p. 474-486.

Pets: Health Catalysts

Last Monday, we talked about some of the more well-known benefits that come with pet ownership. Benefits like a more robust immune system and lowered risk of heart disease.
But did you know that pets are considered preventive medicine?
Some insurance companies poll subscribers about pet ownership - and add health points to your account if you're a per owner!



Pets can be catalysts
for harm reduction 

When Dr. Hodgson made that statement, I was intrigued. I hadn’t thought about it in quite those terms before.

She gave three examples:

• Pets can motivate you to exercise more – and more consistently 
• Pets can provide therapeutic intervention to treat illness 
• Pets can help you stop smoking 

Exercise: More Often, 
More Consistently 

This first one’s fairly intuitive. After all, if a dog needs to be walked that’s a powerful motivation for you to walk with him!

Jogging with dog and baby: bonus points! Photo: Don DeBold

But if you’re ever challenged to prove it, here’s the 4-1-1:

A few years ago, a study called the PPET was conducted. Here are some of its results:

• Overweight people who exercised with a pet dog increased their physical activity by almost 4 hours per week 
• Over 60% were still exercising one year later. They stuck with it! 

Therapeutic Intervention 

Then there are the benefits pets can have for those who are ill. Your state of mind is a powerful part of the wellness equation when recovering from illness or injury. That’s why therapy dogs and cats are so welcome in hospitals and nursing homes.

Recognize this therapy cat? We met him at BlogPaws!

Loyola University published a study a few years back, with results that showed patients undergoing total joint replacement required 50% less pain medication when in a program that included animal-assisted therapy.

And a Mayo Clinic oncologist, Dr. Edward Creagan, calls pets “medication without side effects.” He so believes in the beneficial effects of a pet during treatment and recovery that he asks patients for their pets’ names when he takes their medical history.

What I didn’t know was the benefit pets can bring to Alzheimer’s patients: a visit from a pet has been shown to reduce anxiety, agitation and depression. A Purdue study indicated that even fish tanks had calming effects.

The data compiled showed that nutritional intake increased by over 20% when the aquariums were first introduced and body weight increased significantly for the patients in the 16-week study. Patients also required fewer nutritional supplements. Quite a performance by our finned and scaled friends!

Pets and Secondhand Smoke 

Pets are far more adversely affected by secondhand smoke than you may realize. It’s not just the risk of lung cancer from inhaling.

If Faraday were around smokers, he'd be ingesting
 up to 15 cigarettes' worth of carcinogens right now.

A cat in the home of a smoker has 14-15 cigarettes’ worth of toxins in their fur.

Those carcinogens get in the mouth when grooming, and cause oral cancer. Studies also indicate there is an increase in association with lymphoma & mammary cancer.

Dogs, too, are very adversely affected. Dogs with shorter noses have higher incidents of lung cancer due to secondhand smoke, because their shorter nasal passages don’t filter out the toxins as effectively as other breeds.

Conversely, the dog breeds with much longer noses such as the collies and greyhounds are more susceptible to nasal cancer.

There was a fascinating study done in 2008 that polled smokers and people who lived with smokers. The results indicated that when a smoker learns his behavior is endangering a beloved pet, he or she is almost 30% more likely to quit smoking!

The next time you engage someone in a discussion on the joys of pet ownership, don’t forget to let them know about the health benefits they’ll reap, too.

Pets are indeed catalysts for more healthy behavior!

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Sources:

Pet Owners' Attitudes and Behaviors Related to Smoking and Secondhand Smoke: A Pilot Study

WebMD: Health Benefits of Pets excerpt:

Journal of the Acoustical Society of America: The felid purr: a healing mechanism?
Excerpt: "Domestic cats, servals, ocelots, and pumas produce fundamental, dominant, or strong frequencies at exactly 25 Hz and 50 Hz, the two low frequencies that best promote bone growth/fracture healing [Chen etal., Zhong. Wai Ke Za Zhi. 32, 217–219 (1994)].   ... Purr frequencies correspond to vibrational/electrical frequencies used in treatment for bone growth/fractures, pain, edema, muscle growth/strain, joint flexibility, dyspnea, and wounds."

PPET Study Abstract, National Institutes of Health, excerpt: “Time spent in physical activity increased in both groups to 3.9 (PP) and 3.5 (PO) h/wk. Two-thirds of total physical activity in the PP group was spent with the dogs.”

Zooeiya

Last Monday, I mentioned that pets are good for your health. Did you know there’s a technical term for that?

It’s zooeiya.

You may have heard the term zoonosis used when discussing pets and illness.

 Zoonosis comes from the crashing together of two Greek words, “animal” (zoo) and “disease” (nosis). We’ve known for a long time there are diseases we can pick up from our pets, such as ringworm and rabies.

More recently, there’s been talk about the diseases that we can give our pets. It’s called reverse zoonosis, and it refers to such cases like the ones where our pets catch the flu from us.

Zooeiya is literally the opposite. Zooeiya is “animal” (zoo) “health” (eiya). Canadian veterinarian Dr. Kate Hodgson coined the term.

She spoke last month at BlogPaws on behalf of HABRI, the Human-Animal Bond Research Initiative. Some of what she shared with us is stuff you may already know, and that’s what I’ll share today.

Next Monday, we’ll talk about some of the things she mentioned that were unexpected – at least, to me.

The Stuff You May Know

Pets can help reduce
your blood pressure

Research gathered over more than 25 years has borne this out. And in fact, a 1995 study of 369 patients with heart disease showed that the ones with pets were 4 times more likely to be alive one year later.

Pets can help boost
your immune system

This is based on the scientific theory known as hormesis, which states that exposure to toxins in small amounts is beneficial. It’s basically the science behind allergy shots: introduce minute amounts of an allergen into the system to toughen it.

This goes hand in hand with the next observation, one that has done a full 180 in the past 30-40 years: Owning a pet as a child can help reduce the risk of developing allergies and asthma (see excerpt from WebMD at end of post).

The frequency at which
a cat’s purr resonates
has healing properties

Studies on the felid purr have shown that “domestic cats, servals, ocelots, and pumas produce fundamental, dominant, or strong frequencies at exactly 25 Hz and 50 Hz, the two low frequencies that best promote bone growth/fracture healing.” (see abstract from study at end of post.)

A waveform I captured of an actual domestic cat's purr

If you have ever suffered an injury that required physical therapy, you may have experienced human medicine’s mechanical analogue to this in the form of ultrasound therapy.

Honestly, the affection our three show us would be reason enough to have them in our lives. Increased health? Those are fringe benefits.

Next week: the benefits of pet ownership that I didn’t know about! 

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Sources:

Pet ownership, social support, and one-year survival after acute myocardial infarction in the Cardiac Arrhythmia Suppression Trial (CAST). National Institutes for Health, PubMed.
Excerpt: "Dog owners (n = 87, 1 died) are significantly less likely to die within 1 year than those who did not own dogs (n = 282, 19 died; p < 0.05)"

WebMD: Health Benefits of Pets
Excerpt: "A growing number of studies have suggested that kids growing up in a home with "furred animals" -- whether it's a pet cat or dog, or on a farm and exposed to large animals -- will have less risk of allergies and asthma."


Journal of the Acoustical Society of America: The felid purr: a healing mechanism?
Excerpt: "Purr frequencies correspond to vibrational/electrical frequencies used in treatment for bone growth/fractures, pain, edema, muscle growth/strain, joint flexibility, dyspnea, and wounds. Domestic cats, servals, ocelots, and pumas produce fundamental, dominant, or strong frequencies at exactly 25 Hz and 50 Hz, the two low frequencies that best promote bone growth/fracture healing [Chen etal., Zhong. Wai Ke Za Zhi. 32, 217–219 (1994)]. These four species have a strong harmonic exactly at, or within 2 Hz of 100 Hz, a frequency used therapeutically for pain, edema, wounds, and dyspnea."

New Patent! Scratching Pheromone for Cats!

Cats love to sharpen their claws. It's instinct. Built into their DNA.

They do it to exercise those all-important muscles used to extend and retract claws for climbing and hunting. Scratching also helps a cat shed old, dead claw sheaths and to maintain that razor-sharp edge.

But they also do it to send a message.

And those messages cats send to one another through scratching were the subject of a recent study. This study was published a few months ago, in the Journal of Feline Medical Surgery.

One of its authors is Dr. Patrik Pageat of the Research Institute in Semiochemistry and Applied Ethology. According to their web site, the Institute is a private research organization dedicated to studying the behavior of animals, humans and their interactions. Their specific focus is on the way people and animals communicate through body chemistry, or the use of chemical signals (also known as semiochemistry).

What is Semiochemistry?

Did you know there's a whole world of social messages being sent back and forth each day all around us, wrapped in chemical secretions? For instance, semiochemistry is what a tick uses to find its victims (eww).

A tick will sit in tall weeds or bushes, waiting for a mammal to pass by. When the tick scents butyric acid - the scent that emanates from the sebaceous gland of a mammal (human, dog, cat, horse, goat, etc) - then the tick has found its prey.

Well, cats have scent glands in lots of places, including on the heart-shaped plantar pad complex on the underside of their feet.

And when a cat scratches the bark of a tree or uses a cat scratcher, a scent is released from that plantar gland. The scent is known as the Feline Interdigital Semiochemical (FIS). Experts suggest this scent is used by a cat to mark territory.

Dr. Pageat's study investigated how FIS impacted what a cat scratched, how often and for how long. In fact, his study introduced a synthetic form of the chemical to see if it had any impact on the cat's scratching behavior.

It did. 

You can read more about the study in the article the Winn Feline Foundation posted on it last week.

In brief, this is their conclusion, in the study's own words:

"The results seem of interest in explaining the role of a FIS in inducing scratching behaviour on a scratching post. The semiochemical approach can modify the choice of areas selected spontaneously by cats, and could be used either as a preventive measure for a cat arriving at home or to control or change an inappropriate scratching behaviour."

This is encouraging news. Anyone who volunteers at a shelter or rescue has probably witnessed a cat being surrendered by its owner because of "behavior issues."

In fact, scratching on non-designated surfaces (e.g. on furniture and not the cat scratcher) is listed as one of the top reasons cats are surrendered to U.S. shelters, according to a 2000 study in the Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science.

So the news about a patent for a synthetic FIS application specifically to discourage cats from inappropriate scratching comes as fantastic news. We can't wait to see this product developed and in use!!

Our thanks to Dr. Pageat and the researchers at IRSEA for pioneering a product that could potentially save hundreds - thousands - of cats.

__________________
Sources:
IRSEA - about us
Clinician's Brief 
U.S. Patent Abstract: Feline Scratch Marking Semiochemicals
Abstract: Journal of Feline Medical Surgery, October, 2013, U.S. National Library of Medicine
Winn Feline Heath article, May 13
"Behavioral Reasons for Relinquishment of Dogs and Cats to 12 Shelters," Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 2000.

Winn Feline Reports Thiamine Deficiency in Cat Food

Our friend Julie over at Cats Herd You pointed this out to us a few days ago, and we felt it was important information to pass along:

Last Monday, the Winn Feline Foundation published an article on cat food and low thiamine levels.

In it, they revealed something that Tufts University's Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine discovered while researching feline nutrition. They found a pattern in the FDA's published listings of cat food recalls: specifically, over the past 5 years, SIX cat foods have been recalled for low levels of thiamine. They wondered if this was a growing trend, so they sampled various canned cat foods for thiamine levels.

Their sampling included 90 cans, covering 45 different brands.

What they found was that over 13% of these cans did not meet the minimum requirement set by the AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials).  That's 12 cans out of 90.

What's more, over 15% of them missed the minimum requirement set by the National Research Council. That's 14 our of 90 cans.

Within these trends, it appeared that pate-style foods were bigger offenders, as were smaller, non-national name brand companies.

It's the recommendation from the Tufts research team that pet food companies be more careful to measure the thiamine not just prior to but after processing, as sometimes significant thiamine loss can occur during the canning process.

So what is thiamine anyway,
and why do cats need it?

The National Institutes of Health tell us that thaimine (also known as B1) helps the body's cells change carbohydrates into energy. Thiamin also plays a role in muscle contraction and conduction of nerve signals.

So what would thiamine deficiency look like in cats? The Tufts group recommended that veterinarians consider testing for thiamine deficiency in any cat presenting acute neurological dysfunction, especially if it's accompanied by gastrointestinal issues.
___________________
 Sources:

http://winnfelinehealth.blogspot.com/2014/03/do-canned-cat-foods-contain-enough.html
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002401.htm
http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/SafetyHealth/RecallsWithdrawals/default.htm

National Poison Prevention Week

As this is National Poison Prevention Week, we wanted to take a moment to remind you of the many household items that can be deadly to your pet - both indoors and out.

Indoors:
We've written several times over the past few years about common food ingredients that are harmful to pets. The danger varies depending on the type of item ingested, as well as the amount. In some cases, it can just be a worrisome irritant. In others, it can be deadly.

Here's a list of dangers we've highlighted or written about.
Click on the links to view more information:

Onions: one common food item
that can be dangerous to pets

• Avocados
• Onions/Garlic
• Mushrooms
• Grapes/raisins
• Chocolate
• Caffeine
• Alcohol
• Fragrances in household cleaners, etc
• Easter Lilies and Mistletoe  (we can't forget those holiday-only items!)
• Decorative Snowglobes  (yes, some people collect them year 'round)

(For a more complete list, check out the Pet Poison Helpline's list of poisons, here) 

Outdoors:

As the Polar Vortex finally (finally!) exits, more and more people are pursuing outdoor activities. In many cases, this can include cleaning off all the winter gunk from your cars, and replenishing things like washer fluids and antifreeze.

First, that gunk clinging to the bottom of your cars that you wash off this time of year? It varies from city to city but can include sodium chloride, calcium chloride, potassium chloride, magnesium chloride, and ferrocyanide salts - and these are harmful both to the environment and to wildlife. So when you hose that car down, don't let your dog or cat lap at the water runoff.

(And if you have a silly girl-cat like we have, don't allow her to roll around on your driveway. What's the first thing cats do when their fur is all dirty? Groom themselves. That's just another way they can ingest that harmful road gunk!)

Second, antifreeze. Antifreeze is one of the deadliest of substances to small animals (and children, too). A shockingly small amount can kill (read more about it here).

Another commonly used outdoor item at this time of year is especially hazardous to cats: insecticides, fertilizers and herbicides.

Specifically, I'm referring to a chemical pyrethroid ingredient called permethrin.

Permethrin is a deadly nerve toxin that impacts cats - and less often, dogs. It's actually an active ingredient in dog flea/tick collars, which is why you must never, ever put a dog flea collar on a cat.

Odd-eyed Lily by Jason Farmer

You will find permethrin in countless lawn and garden products, too, as it is commonly used for pest control.

If you use a product with permethrin in it, know that any small mammal that walks across your lawn before the chemical dries will end up with permethrin in its system - either by being soaked up through paw pads, or by ingestion as the animal cleans its paws and fur.

You can find countless stories online of grieving pet parents who lost a beloved family member because they were not told this. Please be aware of this serious danger!




Finally, we'd be remiss if we didn't mention one other hazard to both dogs and cats - and that's the choking hazard. If you're not in the habit of checking out the toys you buy for your pet before you give them, this article may change your mind!

We know we've sent you in a lot of different directions in today's post with its link-fest of topics, but we hope that this provides you with a resource to turn to if you have any questions.

***

Monday Medical Disclaimer: 
I am not a veterinarian, and the information provided here is not intended in any way as a substitute for professional veterinary care. Nor should it be used to self-diagnose for your pet. This information is for educational purposes and to provide you with reputable documentation you can use to pose informed questions of your own to the veterinarian of your choice.

Monday Medical: Can your cat get the stomach flu?

Zoonosis is the transmission of disease from animal to human.

Reverse zoonosis is a relatively new concept, and - as the term suggests - is the transmission of disease from human to animal.

We've heard a lot about this in the past few years.

Especially the fact that our pets can indeed catch the flu from us. Certain strains of influenza, most notably types H1N1 (also known as the swine flu) and H5N1, have been documented in dogs, cats, ferrets -- even a cheetah.

The cheetah: one of several animals known
to have caught disease from mankind.
Photo: Tom Rafferty

A little over a week ago, I came down with the stomach flu. As many of you know, stomach flu is technically not an influenza. And flu vaccines do not inoculate against it.

It's a virus. A norovirus, to be exact, in over half of the cases. Including mine.

(The remainder of all 'stomach flus' are caused by food-borne parasites or bacteria, according to the Centers for Disease Control - see link at bottom.)

So I began to wonder: do I need to worry about the cats getting this? Not only would it be terribly unpleasant for them, following around a vomiting cat all evening isn't much fun for me either!

Turns out there is cause for concern.

The first warning flag was when I learned that noroviruses belong to the virus family Caliciviridae. About now, any of you who work in a veterinary environment, or who volunteer or work in shelter environments are sitting up just a bit straighter, aren't you? I certainly did!

We see cats with calicivirus all the time. In fact, it's pretty contagious. Our shelter's policy is no free-roaming for any cat who's contracted the virus, since they can still "shed" it - meaning other cats can catch it - even after they're symptom-free. (They do eventually get their "get out of jail free" card back, in about a month.)

One of the staff at Wayside Waifs even joked with me about it, telling me I needed to carry around my own kennel card: "no roaming for 2 weeks"! That's the amount of time a human can continue to shed the stomach virus even after recovery. Oh joy, my husband says....

So norovirus is in the calici family, eh? I dug a bit further.

It seems several studies have been conducted since 2004 searching for indications that norovirus in humans is found in animals and vice versa. Then I came across this: in the January 27, 2010 edition of the magazine Veterinarian Microbiology, authors Koenig, Thiel and Wolf write:

"The close genetic relationship of noroviruses and sapoviruses found in animals and humans has raised the question whether these viruses have a zoonotic potential. ... Detection of human noroviruses in animals as well as simultaneous presence of animal and human viruses in bivalve molluscs suggest a risk of transmission. Furthermore, antibodies against animal noroviruses were detected in humans as well as antibodies against human noroviruses in swine."

No cases have been confirmed, but the above was cause enough for me to be extra careful around the felines in my family as well as the humans!

Faraday: Stay away from me, please, Mommy!
(photo taken well before I was sick, so he's safe :-)

__________________
Sources:

CDC on norovirus
Avian H5N1 influenza in cats, Science, October 2004.
2009 Confirmed results: H1N1, USDA.
Zoonotic aspects of infections with noroviruses and sapoviruses, Veterinary Microbiology, January 2010.

Noroviruses and Sapoviruses in man and farm animals, Deutche tierarztliche Wochenschrift, August, 2004.
Animal Noroviruses, Veterinary Journal, London, England, October, 2008.


Disclaimer: 
I am not a veterinarian, and the information provided here is not intended in any way as a substitute for professional veterinary care. Nor should it be used to self-diagnose for your pet. This information is for educational purposes and to provide you with reputable documentation you can use to pose informed questions of your own to the veterinarian of your choice.

Breakthrough Therapy Blocks Cat Allergies

“I’m allergic to cat hair!”
Actually, no, you’re not. 

What your body reacts to is a protein found in cat saliva and cat dander. 

This protein (known as Fel d 1) is then passed onto a cat’s fur as she grooms herself. 

So it’s easy enough to see why someone would assume they’re allergic to cat hair!

Being allergic to Fel d 1 is no picnic. Allergy sufferers can experience a host of misery-inducing conditions: itchy skin, eyes that swell shut, runny noses – even difficulty breathing.

For years, the tried and true method to combat this has been a desensitization program. The goal is to re-educate your own body’s immune system so that it sees this cat protein as friend, not foe.

Traditionally, this has been administered through allergy shots. The course usually takes 5 years, and often doctors advise an indefinite “maintenance program” that follows.

But now a British biopharmaceutical company, Circassia, has pioneered a different approach that blocks the cascade of allergic reactions at their source. In geek-speak, they block mast-cells from releasing histamine, that chemical substance in your body that causes the itching and swelling an runny nose. Those are all the “early-stage” allergy responses.

This new approach also addresses the more threatening “late-stage” allergy responses – the coughing,  wheezing, and difficulty breathing that some people experience. 

More geek-speak: this new approach actually trains your body’s own T-cells to block the secretion of inflammatory molecules that irritate the lungs and airways.

And instead of 5 years, the entire treatment occurs over the course of twelve weeks, with only four doses. 

According to Circassia, their new Cat-SPIRE therapy has achieved unprecedented results, reporting patients’ symptoms being substantially reduced, even long-term.


Great news! You can 
test this out for yourself.

Circassia is currently a year and a half into its Phase III trials of Cat-SPIRE, and is seeking interested cat owners in cities all across the U.S. and Canada to test this new therapy.

When I called to speak to a representative to inquire about where you need to live to be eligible, she told me that the clinical trial, called CATALYST, will find a clinic for you in your area.

All you need to do to participate, if interested, is to contact them. They can be reached by calling 1-844-CAT-STUDY. Or you can go online to submit your location, at this link here.

Three cheers for Circassia, from cat allergy sufferers the world over!

Sources:
Circassia: Cat-SPIRE 
Circassia: About TolerMune Therapy


Monday Medical Disclaimer: 
I am not a veterinarian, and the information provided here is not intended in any way as a substitute for professional veterinary care. Nor should it be used to self-diagnose for your pet. This information is for educational purposes and to provide you with reputable documentation you can use to pose informed questions of your own to the veterinarian of your choice.