Older cats being sick
Of course it’s not just a feature of older cats. But for many senior cats (those in their teenage years and beyond), they can often seem to be more picky about their food. For those cats that still go out a lot owners may well not be aware that their cats are being sick on a frequent basis. Regular weight checks at annual and biannual health examinations help us Vets to monitor for any slide away from the normal weight that a cat has sustained throughout their “pre-teens” life. That’s the reason why cats are weighed time and again whenever they are presented to a Vet in the consultation room. We’re effectively collecting a data base of information specific to your cat that can become very useful in the later stages of their life. And it’s not exactly difficult to do!
So for those older members of the cat fraternity that present with a vague history of just being out-of-sorts, a bit off their food and losing weight a little at a time there’s a high likelihood that they’re being sick (often without an owner knowing it). And for these cats the likelihood of a pancreatic disorder (pancreatitis) is high on the list of possibilities.
The pancreas is organ situated close to the stomach and small intestine and is responsible for making enzymes required for digestion of food. The cause of pancreatitis is largely unknown, but can be associated with diseases that cause inflammation of the bowel and also those that affect the liver. Added to this there is a slight evolutionary problem that most cats suffer with making the likelihood of developing a problem in this area much higher than in us (fortunate) humans. In 80% of cats there is just one tube that leads from the pancreas and bile duct in to the first part of the intestine. Any infection from the gut can go up this single pipe causing irritation and a blockage. Think of it like having just one down-pipe from the guttering around your house. Any leaves caught in this one down-pipe would cause havoc. Similarly for the cat’s pancreas. The term we use to describe this condition is “triaditis” where there is co-existing irritation of the pancreas, liver and intestines.
Whilst a sudden crisis can occur, for the majority of cats the problem in the pancreas is described as low grade malaise. This condition often develops over years (hence the need to continually monitor a cat’s weight). Over time though a cat learns to associate food (or rather the pancreas getting to work on the food) with the pain. Hence they may stop eating, just to stop the pain. And that’s where the problems begin. If cats do not eat for more than two or three days, particularly if they are also unwell, they are at a high risk of developing a condition known as fatty liver syndrome, which is serious and can be fatal. These cats need to be hospitalised and intensely nursed back to health with intravenous fluids and special diets that are sometimes delivered in to a cat’s stomach by a special feeding tube. This is where highly trained, and dedicated, nursing staff are worth their weight in gold!
So as cat owners, what do we look out for as a way of telling if there are problems developing? As mentioned above, the key features are progressive weight loss over a long time associated with an apparent loss of interest in food. If you see your cat being sick on a regular basis as well, then clearly that’s another pointer towards this kind of problem developing. These day there are blood tests that can highlight pancreatitis in cats. But as so often, the real problem has been developing for a long period by the time a blood test is taken. We do rely so very much on subtle, small changes in a cat’s demeanour and condition to give us the clues we are always seeking. For this reason (amongst others) senior cats are checked over a little more often than youngsters. Six-monthly health checks are more the norm after a cat has celebrated their 10th birthday. That way any minor changes in your cat’s health can be detected a lot sooner.
© copywrite Dai Gittins MRCVS.
