Spay Day specials offered
By Christine Cowett Robinson
Special to the Star-Herald
Spay Day is officially the last Tuesday in February — Feb. 28 — but in celebration of Spay Day 2012, the Central Aroostook Humane Society will be offering all altered animals at half off their original adoption price. This promotion will run Feb. 1-29, and is a huge savings for those looking to adopt an altered pet. We want these wonderful animals in homes, not in cages at the shelter. This is our way of making it easier for you to adopt. The Humane Society will also be having an Adoption Fair at Tractor Supply on Feb. 4. Won’t you help us to celebrate by adopting an altered animal? Help us spread the word!
So, you ask, what exactly is a feral cat? Have you ever heard of a feral cat? I went to www.feralcat.com to find out more. The following is interesting information from their site. Feral cats are the “wild” offspring of domestic cats and are primarily the result of pet owners’ abandonment or failure to spay and neuter their animals, allowing them to breed uncontrolled. Feral cat “colonies” can be found behind shopping areas or businesses, in alleys, parks, abandoned buildings and rural areas. Feral cats are elusive and do not trust humans.
A pair of breeding cats, which can have two or more litters per year, can exponentially produce 420,000 offspring over a seven-year period, and the overpopulation problem carries a hefty price tag. In California, more than $50 million (largely from taxes) is spent by animal control agencies and shelters for cat-related expenses. We have domesticated these animals; it is our responsibility to care for them.
‘Tis the season for feline upper respiratory infections and Petfinder.com gives us the following information regarding URI. Feline upper respiratory infections (URI for short) are the most commonly encountered disease problem in animal shelters. Symptoms of URI include runny eyes, sneezing, nasal discharge and loss of appetite. Even the most conscientiously run shelter will suffer from occasional outbreaks. These outbreaks should not be taken as an automatic sign that the shelter’s health care system has failed. Upper respiratory infections frequently cause mild symptoms that can be resolved if the shelter has the resources to isolate the animals, render nursing care and treatment or place them in foster care programs until they are cured of clinical signs.
URI has an incubation period of between two to seven days — the time between infection and the appearance of clinical signs. The virus is shed in various body fluids such as ocular, nasal and oral secretions and discharges. The virus is then spread by three mechanisms: 1. mainly from direct contact of sick cats with susceptible ones, 2. through environmental contamination with infected secretions and 3. by carriers. Carriers are cats who continue to harbor and shed virus after they have been infected and recovered from clinical signs.
Treatment for the viral diseases is symptomatic:
• Good nursing care (wiping away ocular and nasal discharges, force-feeding, keeping warm, etc.);
• Broad-spectrum antibiotics to protect against secondary bacterial infections;
• Fluid therapy may be necessary in severe cases;
• Antiviral drugs may be necessary in the form of eye drops;
• Feeding — cats who are unable to smell their food as a result of the infection may lose their appetite and refuse to eat, so they must be encouraged by offering foods with strong aromas, baby foods or other soft and blended foods. It may be necessary to place a nasogastric tube to force feed them if they continue to refuse to eat; and
• Steam inhalation or nebulizers may also be helpful.
The staff at the Central Aroostook Humane Society works very hard to prevent URI, but in many cases, one sick stray brought into our healthy shelter can infect everyone. Sometimes a URI can be caused after you get your cat home by stress and change in environment; it isn’t always due to sick shelter cats.
If you have time, why not volunteer it at the Central Aroostook Humane Society. Stop by the shelter for more information. The shelter is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesday to Saturday. The shelter is located at 26 Cross St., Presque Isle, and we welcome volunteers.
Please have your pets spayed or neutered.
