Dear Dr. Fox:
My boyfriend and I adopted a 4-year-old male tabby cat a little more than a year ago. He is sweet, personable and playful, and he seems well adjusted to us and to our apartment. Unfortunately, we have a couple of problems.
He has a chronic ear infection — he had one when we adopted him — that three different prescriptions have failed to clear. Although the prescriptions seemed to help during treatment, the brown gunk comes back as soon as the drops run out. The vet ruled out mites on the first visit.
Our cat shakes his head and scratches at his ears constantly, and it’s heartbreaking. Is surgery an option?
Also, he keeps waking us up hours before his breakfast time. We feed him moist food twice a day, at 9 a.m. and 10 p.m. This worked fine for a while, but he is now waking up at 6:30 a.m., and he misbehaves and makes noise until we get up to feed him. The sleep deprivation is taking a toll.
J.P.H., Brooklyn
DF: Your cat might have ear mites that did not show up on the initial examination.
Thoroughly clean his ears and then use a cat-safe insecticide in the ear canal. Have your veterinarian prescribe Zymogen, which will help reduce inflammation and possible bacterial and/or fungal infection.
You are not feeding your cat frequently enough. Dogs do fine, as most humans do, on two meals per day, but many cat owners are unaware that it is better to give cats three to six small meals a day. Weigh your cat and keep a note on weight gain or loss, adjusting the amount of his meals.
Bad breeding
Dear Dr. Fox:
I have a 61 / 2-pound Yorkie. He’s a sweetheart. About three years ago, I found out he has an enlarged heart and a closed trachea. He loves to play, but when he does, he gets out of breath and tries to suck in air with his tongue. When I see him do that, I get tears in my eyes.
He takes pills twice a day. I’ve asked our vet whether anything else can be done. He shrugs and puts his hands in the air.
J.P.V., Naples, Fla.
DF: These sorts of developmental disorders are all too common in toy breeds. Such health problems, and a host of others, have a genetic basis.
This places the burden of responsibility on the breeders to help eliminate these problems by not breeding dogs whose puppies inherit such disorders. This is called progeny testing. I would think twice about advising anyone to buy a purebred dog without some form of health guarantee.
I regret that there are no cures for your dog. Monitor his weight and keep him trim. Take him for slow walks so he gets some mental stimulation. He should wear only a harness and never a collar. Toy breeds prone to tracheal collapse should never be walked on a collar. Engage in short play bouts, followed by grooming or a calming massage.
Seizures and diet
Dear Dr. Fox:
We have a 3-year-old tricolor Australian shepherd named Coach. He has suffered from seizures for two years.
In February 2011, he began having episodes in which he would jump as though someone had poked him with an electrical prod. These seizures occurred every eight to 10 days through that June. He would jump or spasm every 45 to 60 seconds for 45 minutes to an hour.
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