Comforting Traumatized Rescue Animals

Discuss using the Amazon rain forest herb chanca piedra -- the "stone breaker" -- with your veterinarian. It can help rid animal and human patients of bile and kidney and bladder stones. It's available in capsule or tincture on the Internet from Raintree Nutrition and Amazon Herb Co.

Dear Dr. Fox:

I have a 13-year-old, neutered, 10-pound tabby who is in good health except for involuntary shaking and twitching.

The movements began a little over a year ago and have gotten progressively acute. My vet described the movements as "seizures" and wanted to do a complete workup, including blood samples and MRI. My cat does not manifest symptoms while in her office. The shaking and twitching occur when he is relaxed and awake, not when he is sleeping.

His coat is glossy, he eats well, he plays with his toys and he does not drool, so I chose not to put him through the trauma of all the tests. Have you encountered such symptoms in an otherwise healthy cat? What could be causing the reaction?

-- J.L.B.

Alexandria

First, I would never give shots (vaccinations) to a cat in this condition. Avoid all pesticide dips and flea-prevention drugs. Try a home-prepared diet for your cat, such as the one on my Web site, http://www.doctormwfox.org. In addition, give your cat about a quarter-teaspoon of a human multivitamin tablet crushed in her food daily, plus up to one teaspoon of cod liver oil.

Little is known about feline neurological diseases. It could have been a prenatal viral infection. Have the vet test for toxoplasmosis -- in rare cases of this disease, serious neurological symptoms can develop.

Dear Dr. Fox:

I have a 3-year-old shorthair male cat who is long, lanky and full of energy. He came to me a year ago from a foster home in good health. He is neutered and has had all of his shots.

Since I've had him, he has been energetic and affectionate. But he has a recurring rash, scattered mostly over his back and sides, in usually one or two dime-size areas at a time. The areas are red and the fur comes out. They heal, and then new ones form. Sometimes there is a little crusting. My vet cultured the rash, and there was no evidence of fungus or bacteria. He is mostly indoors, but goes outside occasionally. I see no relationship between his outdoor jaunts and new lesions.

I do not think he is scratching excessively. I suspect his thin, short fur makes him more vulnerable, but he had no such problems when I first had him. Our other cat has no such problems.

We have tried applying Bactroban, which he mostly eats off, but for a while I put some on his head so that he could not lick it off. I also tried a topical corticosteroid cream without effect, which he also licked off.

I give him a mix of wet and dry foods. He probably only had dry food at the foster home. Do you have any suggestions?

-- S.H.

via e-mail

If external parasites and bacterial or fungal infections have been ruled out, you need to consider the possibility of food allergy. So-called miliary dermatitis can be triggered by hypersensitivity to certain food ingredients. Other skin conditions are associated with dietary insufficiencies.

I would put your cat on a home-prepared diet such as the basic recipe on my Web site. Also helpful would be a few drops of fish oil daily and a daily supplement such as Platinum Performance Feline Wellness Formula, an amino acid, vitamin and mineral supplement.

Michael W. Fox, author of a newsletter and books on animal care, welfare and rights, is a veterinarian with doctoral degrees in medicine and animal behavior. More pet care information is available at Dr. Fox's Web site,http://www.doctormwfox.org. Write to Dr. Fox at United Feature Syndicate, 200 Madison Ave., New York, N.Y. 10016.

Copyright 2008, United Feature Syndicate Inc.