Cat Health Problems

Note: the article is huge and has been split into many sections for technical reasons with links at the base of each section to the next.

Cat health problems is a very large subject. Use Use Ctrl+F to search for text on this page. It saves time searching. Depress the keys together. A search box appears bottom left or top right of screen. Type in the word and it will be highlighted.

cat health

Above: This photo (montage) has been used with permission for teaching/educational purposes at PoC and the pictures were provided by Cuyahoga Falls Veterinary Clinic (new window).

See a vet to check. How do I know if my cat has a respiratory infection? Click here. How do I know if my cat has FeLV? Click here. How do I know if my cat has a urinary tract infection? Click here

Contents – Cat Health Problems

The Most Common Illnesses or pet insurance company sets out their list of the most common cat illnesses.

Feline Viruses — An overview page setting them out with links to more.
URI — Upper Respiratory Infection – colds, flu etc. including Feline Herpes Virus
FLUTD — Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease – wide spectrum of lower urinary tract diseases.
Feline IBD — Probably caused more often than not by unnatural commercial cat food – raw diet cures it, perhaps.
Diabetes — Feline diabetes is on the rise and could be due to the increase in dry cat food.
Distemper — This is a very serious disease that makes your cat very ill and can be fatal. If the cat is pregnant, it can be transmitted to the fetus. It can cause damage to the cerebellum of the brain resulting in Feline Cerebellar Hypoplasia (uncoordinated cat).
FIP — Feline Infectious Peritonitis – Another serious illness with high fatality rate.
FIV — Feline Immunodeficiency Virus – causes immune deficiency and kills like HIV. How do cats get it?
FLV — Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV) – A devastating feline infectious disease. See also on a separate page: Adoptable FeLV Cats. Please spread the word.
Hyperthyroidism — In older cats, average age of 13 years, causes increased metabolism.
Hypothyroidism — The under production of thyroid hormone
Miscellaneous — A short discussion on a range of health issues with links.
Newborn Kitten Care – written by an experienced cat rescuer, cat caretaker of long standing and author.
Cancer
Things we are involved in doing
Skin – Hair – Parasites – Allergies
Head – Brain – Upper Respiratory – Heart
Body Fluids etc.
Pancreas – Kidney – Liver
Other potential/actual problems
Injury
Miscellaneous
Reference material

 Cancer

People believe that cat health is an important factor in choosing a cat breed. Some breeds are inherently more healthy than others.

cat health poll results
Cat health poll results

Things we do or are involved In

Skin – Hair – Parasites – Allergies – more cat health problems

Head – Brain – Upper Respiratory – Heart – more cat health problems

Body Fluids etc. – more cat health problems

Pancreas – Kidney – Liver – more cat health problems

Other Potential/Actual Cat Health Problems – more cat health problems

Injury – more cat health problems

Miscellaneous Cat Health Problems

32 thoughts on “Cat Health Problems”

  1. The author of the best comment will receive an Amazon gift of their choice at Christmas! Please comment as they can add to the article and pass on your valuable experience.
  2. I’m not that much of a online reader to be honest but your sites really nice, keep it up!
    I’ll go ahead and bookmark your website to come back in the future.
    Cheers

  3. Hi David. Obviously your vet will clarify. As an unqualified person with some knowledge of cat health, it may be that what you are seeing are melanomas – a malignant neoplasm – a brown or black pigmented cancer of the skin. I am not sure. When skin goes black it is either dead or cancerous; that is my crude assessment. Please see a vet and be prepared for possible bad news. Good luck to you both.

  4. My cats has recently be found with cancer of the stomach and he had it removed but some of the cancer remains inside him so he isn’t going to make it but we have found that his skin has be turning black? It started on the paw and now it’s bblack and now its starting to start on his tummy? What does this mean?

  5. Hi Jammie I read your post “My cat is 11 1/2 years old. I have been to the vet many times and they seem to not know what is wrong with my cat! He had an infection, first, so they treated that…once they started to treat that he started to go downhill! Infection was never gone and they decided to do surgery to get rid of his bad teeth, thinking that was the cause of the infection. Once he came home from the vet, after surgery, he wasn’t eating/drinking. I called them and he stayed overnight. My poor Siamese cat! They never even helped him out! I brought him home the next day and started to syringe him with food/water to help him eat. He began to eat on his own and started to drink water within a couple of days. I got a second opinion after that. The next vet didn’t know what to think. Started another round of antibiotics, but that didn’t help he is still loosing weight. Went from 9 pounds and is now currently to 4.8 pounds. I need help! Got another opinion and this vet thinks he has cancer, no blood test or anything to prove this. I need to have him gain weight and feel things will turn around once he does. I am not sure on how to have him gain weight though. I give him soft fancy feast canned food. Can anyone help me??”

    Are you still struggling with this issue? If so, I can reply to you here or faster via email if you still need help, at answers@immuneiq(com) – Cynthia”

  6. Hi Jammie. So sorry to hear about your Siamese cat’s health. I am going to presume that you are American and that you have an American, modern Siamese cat. Please tell me if I am wrong. I am not a vet or anything. If I am correct, I have read about health issues with purebred American Siamese of about the age of your cat. The problems are indeterminate. They are probably immune system related. The immune system is malfunctioning due to inbreeding.

    That is a pretty wild assertion and I don’t know if I am anywhere near the mark but all I know is I have heard about this sort of thing before. You might try a super high quality wet cat food that is highly palatable which may get your cat eating and putting on weight. I am using Hills a/d and Hills wet cat food in pouches in the UK for a very sick cat and she eats well. You can probably get the same thing in the USA if you are in the USA.

    If 2 vets are scratching their heads the cause of the general illness cannot be clear. This points to immune system failure for me but I must stress that I am a layperson not a veterinarian. You should know that of all the cat breeds the Siamese has the highest number of genetic diseases of all the purebred cats. This is due to poor breeding. See Siamese cat health problems.

  7. My cat is 11 1/2 years old. I have been to the vet many times and they seem to not know what is wrong with my cat! He had an infection, first, so they treated that…once they started to treat that he started to go downhill! Infection was never gone and they decided to do surgery to get rid of his bad teeth, thinking that was the cause of the infection. Once he came home from the vet, after surgery, he wasn’t eating/drinking. I called them and he stayed overnight. My poor Siamese cat! They never even helped him out! I brought him home the next day and started to syringe him with food/water to help him eat. He began to eat on his own and started to drink water within a couple of days. I got a second opinion after that. The next vet didn’t know what to think. Started another round of antibiotics, but that didn’t help he is still loosing weight. Went from 9 pounds and is now currently to 4.8 pounds. I need help! Got another opinion and this vet thinks he has cancer, no blood test or anything to prove this. I need to have him gain weight and feel things will turn around once he does. I am not sure on how to have him gain weight though. I give him soft fancy feast canned food. Can anyone help me??

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