DEAR DR. FOX: I wanted to respond to the lady whose cat named Miss Bean was overweight.
I was curious if she was feeding her cat wet or dry food. Our cat had a weight problem, too. I began feeding her wet food that was organic and she ate less, was more satisfied and naturally became leaner. This may work with her cat. Please pass it on. Thank you. -- N.B., Front Royal, Va.
DEAR N.B.: Thanks for your sage conclusions. Cats on high-cereal diets eat more because they are nutritionally deprived of essential amino and fatty acids. So they become obese and mirror the metabolic syndrome so common in the human population today.
DEAR DR. FOX: I have a 4-year-old male Maltese named Toby, who at 2-1/2 years old had one calcium-oxalate stone in his bladder and one lodged in his urethra. His vet operated and got both stones. He then was put on a special diet food called Urinary SO, manufactured by Royal Canin. Now, just two years later, his urinalysis came back with crystals.
In addition to the 1/2 cup of Urinary SO, I add 2 tablespoons of boiled boneless/skinless chicken breast and 1 tablespoon of poached green beans. For a treat, he gets 1 tablespoon of dried turkey jerky and a small strip of a dental chew. The Urinary SO's first five ingredients are: rice, ground corn, chicken fat, chicken meal and corn-gluten meal.
I feel that something he is eating is contributing to his production of crystals. Should his diet be changed? Also, he is not fond of drinking water. -- C.M., via e-mail
DEAR C.M.: Genetic susceptibility and the acidification of the manufactured pet foods that your dog was raised on probably contribute to this difficult-to-prevent situation.
Calcium-oxalate crystals can also be associated with cystitis and bladder infections. But antibiotics should not be given if there are no indications of infection in the dog's urine samples.
Prescription diets, like the one you describe, are really of dubious scientific and clinical validity, according to some veterinary nutritionists. Also, most animals find them highly unpalatable. Corn and corn gluten have no place in dog and cat diets. Shifting your dog to a partial raw-food diet may help considerably to prevent further crystal formation.
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 via Internet (Raintree Nutrition and Amazon Herb Co.) in capsule or tincture.
DEAR DR. FOX: I have a 13-year-old neutered, 10-pound male tabby that is in good health except for involuntary shaking and twitching.
The shaking and twitching began a little over a year ago and have gotten progressively more acute. When I last took him in for shots and a checkup, I told the vet about this. She termed what's happening "seizures" and wanted to do a complete workup, including blood samples and an MRI. My cat manifested no symptoms while in her office -- he was terrified and alert. The shaking and twitching occur when he is relaxed and awake; they do not occur when he is sleeping.
His coat is glossy, he eats well, he plays with his toys and he does not drool. For these reasons, 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, Va.
DEAR J.L.B.: First, I would never give shots (vaccinations) to a cat in this condition. Avoid all pesticide dips and flea-prevention drugs. Try your cat on a home-prepared diet per my Web site, www.doctormwfox.org. In addition, give your cat about 1/4 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, serious neurological symptoms can develop.
To order Dr. Michael W. Fox's newsletter, Animal Doctor, on providing the best care for your animal companion, send a check or money order for $2 and a long, self-addressed, stamped envelope to Newsletter, P.O. Box 167, Wickliffe, OH 44092.
Copyright 2008, United Feature Syndicate, Inc.
