The Animal Doctor

DEAR DR. DOX: I have always loved cats, and in my earlier years, I often had two at a time. I currently live in a small condo, and the complex’s rules mandate only one pet per family.

I have one cat, Ginger, who is the joy of my life. I don’t doubt that it would be better for her if I had a friend for her, but I can’t violate the rules. I live a busy life and am away all day, occasionally weeks at a time (a friend takes care of her when I’m on vacation).

I know of people in my complex who have more than one cat, but they must confine them inside so the condo board doesn’t find out. Given that my condo is small, I prefer to leave my porch door open (I’m on the third floor) so Ginger can go outside, stretch out in the sun and watch the butterflies and birds flit by. If I had two cats, the board would know and I’d get in trouble.

Also, I have read that a home should have a separate litter box for each cat. My bathroom is not large enough to accommodate two. I did a good thing by adopting Ginger from our local animal shelter, but I do feel bad that she is alone so much.

What is someone who wants to be a responsible cat owner to do? -- D.L., West Palm Beach, Florida

DEAR D.L.: The last thing that I want to do is to make people feel guilty when I offer advice about caring for their animal companions, and I understand the situation you are in.

I would urge you to get a petition going to change the condo regulations to permit two cats, or a cat and a dog. Phrase this petition as the advice of yours truly, whom you can say is an internationally known veterinarian with a doctoral degree in animal behavior and who advocates, wherever possible, for one cat to live with another compatible cat for emotional and physical health reasons. With such companionship, or that of an easygoing dog, cats are less likely to yowl, spray and disturb neighbors due to separation anxiety and loneliness.

In the interim, you can help enrich your cat’s environment with a birdfeeder in view from one of the windows or balcony, a cat condo and/or TV programs specifically for cats, which some cats seem to enjoy. Leaving a radio or TV talk show on while you are gone can also be calming, if the at-home animal is used to hearing human conversations. Setting up an aquarium with a couple of easy-to-maintain goldfish, with a secure cover to keep the cat out and the fish in, will entertain many cats. (Just like cats and other sociable animals, studies have shown that goldfish are healthier when not kept alone.)

You can also purchase small food containers in which to hide a few pieces of freeze-dried meat or kibble for the cat to “hunt” for around your home while you are away. Boredom-induced eating and high-carbohydrate diets, coupled with inactivity (which another cat-playmate would rectify), account for many cats and dogs becoming obese.

Two cats can share the same litter box with no problems, provided it is cleaned out about four times a day.

DEAR DR. FOX: When I visit my son’s apartment, I often see his cat’s litter box full of feces. He says he just dumps all of the contents out once a week and puts in fresh litter. I say he should scoop out the poop and clumped-up pee every day, add a little more litter as needed, then maybe empty it all out and put in fresh litter once every week or so.

What is your opinion? -- K.L., St. Louis, Missouri

DEAR K.L.: You are correct and your son is quite wrong.

No cat should have to enter an excrement-filled litter box to evacuate. For one cat, the litter box should be cleaned out twice daily, using a scoop that allows unsoiled litter to fall back into the box. The entire contents should be replaced every seven to 10 days, and the box washed out and dried before putting in fresh litter.

Once cats develop an aversion to the litter box because it is filthy, there can be serious health and behavioral problems, as documented in the article on this topic on my website (drfoxvet.net).

DEAR DR. FOX: We have two cats that we rescued. One stays indoors most of the time, and the other absolutely loves to be outdoors. He is quite the hunter and loves to bring us his “trophies” -- among them, snakes, voles, field mice and birds.

Is there any way to discourage his innate desire, other than keeping him indoors? That would be truly miserable for him. -- R.E., Lagrangeville, New York

DEAR R.E.: Once a cat gets a taste of the outdoors and is an avid hunter, it does border on the inhumane to deprive the cat such instinctual activity. But in my opinion, it must be done.

Can you set up an outdoor enclosure the cats can access from a flap in a door or window? At least set up some shelves and cat condos so the cats have some indoor environmental complexity and can see outdoors, and engage them in interactive games in the mornings and evenings, when they are most active.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxVet.net.)

DEAR READERS: Several readers have commented about the demise of insects in their communities. As a veterinarian and a former Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society in the U.K., I have always considered the health and welfare of all species paramount, whether warm-blooded or cold. The loss of insect life is due in part to electromagnetic fields from power lines, cellphone towers and wireless services. These fields impact birds, bees, wildlife and our overall environment.

Combined with habitat loss and pesticides, the demise of insects and insectivores is the new norm of the Anthropocene epoch (our current era of significant human impact on the natural world). The consequences are becoming highly detrimental to agricultural productivity, the economy and public health, with the emergence of resistant species and strains of insect pests and carriers of disease, and the extinction of insect predators that previously controlled their numbers and helped maintain biodiversity.

The U.S. Department of the Interior addressed the impact of cell towers on migratory birds in a 2014 letter, saying: “The electromagnetic radiation standards used by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) continue to be based on thermal heating, a criterion now nearly 30 years out of date and inapplicable today.”

For more information and documentation, visit ehtrust.org and search for “Bees, Butterflies and Wildlife.”

DEAR DR. FOX: I’m getting a little dog soon and am concerned about vaccinations. The puppy is only going to be about 10 pounds when fully grown, and can’t handle the same shots as a dog that will get to 80 pounds.

Are the dosages of shots figured per the size/weight of the puppy? Do all vets factor in size and weight, or do I need to ask when I shop for a vet? What else should I consider when looking for a veterinarian? -- A.G., Tulsa, Oklahoma

DEAR A.G.: Many people, veterinarians included, are concerned about the high volume of injectable standard vaccinations for dogs, which manufacturers provide with no consideration for dogs’ sizes or body weights.

To inject a toy-breed puppy with the same volume of vaccine as given to a Great Dane is absurd. Also, giving vaccines by injection is not the ideal way of delivering immune protection. That’s because most infective agents (in other words, those not transmitted by biting insects, by a rabid animal or by a cat with feline immunodeficiency virus) do not penetrate the skin. Rather, they enter via the nasal or oral mucous membranes, or are ingested or inhaled.

Hopefully, safer and more effective vaccines will be developed by the pet industry -- an industry some see as being driven more by profits than by compassion, especially when it comes to addressing adverse reactions to vaccines and preventing their occurrence.

While ever-more vaccines are being marketed for humans and other species, I fear over-reliance on vaccinations has become a substitute for basic preventive health care measures and public education. My website (drfoxvet.net) provides a synopsis of basic vaccination protocols for dogs beginning in puppy-hood, and a review of the risks and benefits of vaccines.

GLYPHOSATE HERBICIDE IN PET FOODS

Eighteen major brands of cat and dog foods were randomly selected for a recent study, all of them being mixtures of vegetable and meat ingredients, with one being certified GMO-free. Analyses found that all of the products contained glyphosate, the main ingredient of Roundup, at concentrations ranging from approximately 80 to 2,000 micrograms of glyphosate per kilogram. (Jiang Zhao and associates, “Detection of glyphosate residues in companion animal feeds,” Environmental Pollution, 2018)

These levels are not considered harmful, but my concern is the potential harm to beneficial gut bacteria, which are essential for maintaining overall long-term health. The adverse consequences of disrupting this microbiome community, called dysbiosis, are many, and include inflammatory bowel conditions and allergies.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxVet.net.)

DEAR DR. FOX: A few years ago, my wife trapped, neutered and released a feral cat. We continued to feed it for about six years, with no problem -- until it was either killed by poisoning or by a coyote, as best we could surmise.

Why is that “seriously misguided,“ as you say? I would like to know, in case the situation occurs again. -- J.B., Palm Beach Gardens, Florida

DEAR J.B: There are several options for dealing with “feral” cats, which I have detailed in articles on my website, drfoxvet.net.

Many are lost or abandoned strays who once had homes, and are often adoptable when caught and rehabilitated. Others who do not become resocialized may have been fending for themselves too long to be “recovered,” or were born outdoors.

With such cats, the best solution is to trap them, test for diseases, then either euthanize or permanently quarantine those testing positive for feline leukemia and feline immunodeficiency viruses. Those not carrying these diseases should be neutered and vaccinated, and either placed in communal housing (where many do become adoptable after some time) or in designated sites where they are provided shelter, food and veterinary care -- with the proviso that no wildlife be put at risk.

You did your best for this cat, and I commend you -- my wife and I do the same, but bring the cats in for rehabilitation and adoption. I call this Step 3. Your Step 2 is better than the Step 1 where many people stop: just putting food out and not at least trapping and neutering to stop the cat plague. This is exacerbated by well-intended people who put food out for stray cats and let their un-neutered cats roam off their property.

DEAR DR. FOX: My daughter wants to harness-train her cat.

She thinks a soft vest style is best, but at the shelter where I volunteer, they sell the PetSafe brand, which is the more traditional figure-8 style. They always use the PetSafe Easy Walk harnesses for dogs, which are wonderful, so I feel like this recommends the brand.

Have you any advice on this topic? Her kitty goes out on the balcony, which she has made safe for him, but she would like to be able to give him more stimulation at some point. So she wants to train him while he is still relatively young -- just a little over 18 months old now. -- M.S., Alexandria, Virginia

DEAR M.S.: I had a disaster with one of our rescued cats, who spooked when out on a leash and harness for the first time. He was able to wriggle out of the harness and ran off. It was early winter, and he was too scared to come back indoors. It took several days and long nights to encourage him to come back inside.

I advise getting a soft, full-body wrap-type harness, and also a collar, so he’ll have two leashes. Cats can wriggle out of almost anything when they have a mind to it.

Put everything on the cat indoors to start out right, and get the cat used to the pull of the leashes and feel of the harness. Avoid trying to lead the cat; cats prefer to lead and take their time slowly exploring when outside, even rolling in grass or dust, rubbing their lips, chins, temples and tails to mark various fixed objects and nibbling various plants.

Cats have excellent depth perception and are generally safe on upper decks, but initially, I would be cautious and have the cat wear the harness and collar on a safety leash before letting him out on the balcony.

VANDALISM AT SHELTER LEAVES DOGS SERIOUSLY INJURED

Vandals broke into an Arkansas animal shelter, released dogs from their pens, put some in pens together, and appear to have brought their own dogs for fight training, authorities say. At least one dog might not survive its injuries.

Shelter officials purchased security cameras after three dogs were killed in a similar break-in back in 2016, but the cameras were stolen before they could be installed, and the shelter does not have funds for a new security system. (WREG-TV, Memphis, Tennessee, Oct. 13)

I wept when I read of this atrocity -- not just for the dogs, but for the evident and increasing loss of our humanity and sanity in these times.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxVet.net.)