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Cats

Study Update: Feline Hyperthyroidism and Cat Food

April 15, 2013 BY MAF

Funded by Morris Animal Foundation, researchers from the University of Georgia are examining whether cat food ingredients play a role in disease development.

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POSTED IN: Cat diseases, Cat health, Feline health, Nutrition



Scientific Studies Address Feline Heart Disease

October 15, 2012 BY MAF

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is the most common type of heart disease in cats. As veterinarians well know, thromboembolisms are frequent complications of HCM, and current therapies are only minimally effective.

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Cat diseases, Veterinary research



Cool Cats Deserve Cool Science

October 9, 2012 BY MAF

Being as cool as they are, cats deserve their fair share when it comes to health research. Morris Animal Foundation is funding scientists from across the globe who are using cutting-edge technologies to change the way veterinarians diagnose and treat cats. These new studies are really something to “purr” about.

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Cat diseases, Cat health



Science Heads Toward a Future Without FIP

September 18, 2012 BY MAF

Luvey was a sweet calico that Ann Hardy adopted as a kitten. As Luvey aged she experienced chronic urinary issues. After seeing many veterinarians and a behaviorist over an eight-year period, Luvey was diagnosed with a congenital bladder deformity. She had surgery but afterward developed signs of feline infectious peritonitis (FIP), a fatal disease. The veterinarian believed the virus may have been dormant and was triggered by the stress of surgery

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Cat diseases, Feline health



Researchers Determine Global Prevalence of FIV

August 15, 2012 BY MAF

Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) and feline coronavirus (FCoV) are two serious infectious diseases that significantly affect the health of cats worldwide. Mitochondrial genomics has determined that variations in mitochondrial DNA (mitochondria are the energy-producing factories within cells) are associated with differences in disease progression in people with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Cat diseases, Cat health



Identifying Drugs to Manage Obesity in Cats

July 23, 2012 BY MAF

Obesity in cats has reached epidemic proportions: An estimated 20 to 48 percent of owned cats are now overweight. Obese cats are more likely to develop health problems, such as diabetes, skin conditions, heart disease and severe lameness. Researchers at Auburn University investigated whether they could use drugs to act on two protein molecules in the brain, known as melanocortin-3 and melanocortin-4 receptors, to treat obesity in cats.

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Cat health, Obesity



Cutting-Edge Science Could Cut Kidney Disease

July 21, 2012 BY MAF

Did you know that chronic kidney disease (CKD) is the number one killer of cats in the country? Though the disease can be managed if caught in the early stages, it is often not diagnosed until the late stages, leaving few treatment options.

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Animal studies, Animal welfare



Research Makes Asthma Treatments Safer for Cats

June 19, 2012 BY MAF

Asthma caused by an inappropriate immune response to inhaled allergens affects an estimated 1 to 5 percent of pet cats. Allergy shots show promise as a potential cure, according to previous Morris Animal Foundation–funded studies; however, they can take months to work, and most cats require concurrent treatment with steroids to control serious symptoms.

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Cat health, Veterinary research



New tools get to the heart of feline aches

May 18, 2012 BY MAF

Have you ever watched a cat jump off a high countertop and the first thought that pops into your mind is, “Wow, that’s gotta hurt!”

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Animal studies, Cat health



Feline Asthma Takes Their Breath Away

April 10, 2012 BY MAF

Anyone with asthma can tell you how terrifying it is to not be able to breathe and how immense the relief is when an attack finally subsides. Now imagine how cats with allergic asthma might feel.

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Asthma , Cat health



Meow-za! What a Campaign!

March 29, 2012 BY MAF

Cats are purring about the results of Morris Animal Foundation’s Happy Healthy Cat Campaign. Launched in 2008 to significantly increase funding for feline health research and to raise awareness of feline health issues, the campaign was an outstanding success.

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Cat diseases, Cat health



New Cat Health Info Center

March 9, 2012 BY MAF

The Cat Health Info Center is here to help you learn more about the diseases that affect cats—and how to spot signs of trouble.

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Cat diseases, Cat health



Seeing Clearly: Identifying New Causes and Treatments for Feline Conjunctivitis

January 10, 2012 BY MAF

It’s not uncommon for cats to develop cold-like symptoms such as sneezing, runny eyes and a cough, especially in shelters or other environments in which many cats are housed.

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Animal welfare, Cat health



Drugs that could manage obesity

December 21, 2011 BY MAF

Obesity in cats has reached epidemic proportions: An estimated 20 to 48 percent of owned cats are now overweight.

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POSTED IN: Cat health, Feline health



Looking Back: The Best Shelter Cat Stories of 2011

December 16, 2011 BY MAF

To celebrate national Adopt-a-Shelter-Cat month in June of 2011, Morris Animal Foundation asked cat lovers to share their touching shelter cat stories on our Happy Healthy Cat Campaign Facebook page (now merged with our main Facebook page).

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POSTED IN: Animal welfare, Cat health



How aging prompts kidney disease

December 8, 2011 BY MAF

Millions of older cats are affected by chronic kidney disease. The disease is costly, affects quality of life and has few treatment options.

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Cat diseases, Cat health



Sounding off about oral cancer

November 28, 2011 BY MAF

Research looks into treatments to help beat this painful disease.

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Cat health, Feline health



A Tale of Two Shelters

November 11, 2011 BY MAF

Feline upper respiratory infection (URI) is more than just a kitty cold. It’s a painful condition that can make cats feel sick for days or weeks, causes painful ulcers on the eyes and tongue and leaves some cats with lifelong after effects.

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POSTED IN: Cat diseases, Cat health



New Science Tackles Antibiotic Resistance and Much More

September 30, 2011 BY MAF

Have you ever wondered why your doctor insists that you finish your prescription of antibiotics? With all the fuss that we hear in the media about antibiotics becoming less effective and overused, one might assume that quitting your antibiotics when you feel better, instead of taking the whole course, would be better for our bodies. Not so—for us or for our pets. In fact, the opposite is true, and antibiotics are becoming less effective precisely because people don’t take their full prescriptions or make certain their pets complete their medications.

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POSTED IN: Animal health, Animal studies, Veterinary research



Just a Hairball? Or a Sign of Something Worse?

September 29, 2011 BY MAF

Your cat’s dry, hacking cough could mean a hairball—but it could also be a sign of allergic asthma. The condition affects 1 to 5 percent of pet cats, and knowing the signs and treatment options could give your cat a chance to breathe more easily.

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POSTED IN: Asthma , Cat health