Flickr: kiyoshi.be
These stories really pull my heartstrings. Charley, Smokey, Dizzy and Roxy are amazing cats with cerebellar hypoplasia, which means their motor skills are not as great as other cats.
Cerebellar hypoplasia (CH) is a medical condition where part of the brain that controls a cat’s coordination is underdeveloped during kitten-hood. Most CH cases are known to be congenital where kittens are born with it. Though this condition is not treatable, it does not prevent a kitten from living a fairly normal life.
Cats with cerebellar hypoplasia (CH) appear to stagger and have uncoordinated motion and slight tremors. Unfortunately many cats with cerebellar hypoplasia are put down because many people do not believe that they are adoptable pets. Quite the contrary, a cat with cerebellar hypoplasia do not require special care, nor are they in pain. These kitties can live as long as any other cats and might just be one of the most precious kitties you have ever had.
Dizzy with cerebellar hypoplasia
“Dizzy is a fun little kitten who has a serious balance problem.
Specifically, she has cerebellar hypoplasia, which screws with her balance.
That doesn’t stop her from chasing the cat dancer or wrestling with other cats.
She does move pretty slowly and has been known to fall down a lot.
Perhaps that’s why she likes lying there and being petted so much?
She was adopted from the BARC shelter in September 2007.”
- flickr: Marcus in NY
First video: meet Charley
Second video: “Smokey was a 21-year-old cat with half his whiskers missing who wobbled when he walked. This condition was due to cerebral damage. In spite of his difficult mobility, Smokey was one of the happiest cats alive. Smokey passed away in 2007 during his retirement in Maine. He is greatly missed.”
Third video: “This is my baby girl Roxy, my pride and joy, whom I adopted from BARC shelter when she was a very tiny 4 months old baby known as ‘Jello’. She’s now 1 year old and has gotten quite good at dealing with the condition she was born with, Cerebellar Hypoplasia. She doesn’t let it stop her at all though and just keeps on trying until she gets it done in her own way. At the end of this video she does a somersault which she does whenever she gets too excited.”
Cats with Cerebellar Hypoplasia, originally appeard on LoveMeow.com I wanted to alert cat owners about a couple of really nice videos I've recently come across. The videos deal with two fairly common cat diseases; chronic renal failure and diabetes mellitus. Both of these conditions occur with surprising frequency in cats especially as they get older.
Just could not resist this video! Found it on the Friskies blog. One has to wonder what this cat is dreaming about? Thanksgiving, maybe? Just priceless! (and one wonders if cat's have deviated septums like people - I think I'll ask Dr. Bill and Dr. Larry)
p.s. they have some good polls on the Friskies blog, like one about pets celebrating holidays...do yours?
Pet insurance companies put limits on how much they will pay out on claims. They do it in three different ways.
Per incident limits apply to specific issues like an ear infection or a broken leg. Some companies won't pay claims beyond a certain amount for a specific problem.
Annual limits are limits on how much an insurer will pay out over the course of a policy year in total and lifetime limits refer to how much they will pay over the course of the pet's life.
Veterinary medicine is getting more and more sophisticated by the day.
In fact it is pretty much like human medicine in this regard. There are over twenty specialty areas recognized by the American Veterinary Medical Association. These specialty areas require a three to four year residency after graduation from veterinary school and a specialist has to pass an examination to become board certified in their particular area of interest.
