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Quality of life of cats with spinal cord injuries and urinary retention

USER-ALT Sara Canal and others , University of Teramo , Italy

Spinal cord injuries causing paraplegia or paraparesis in cats have a significant impact on the animals ' wellbeing , particularly if they are unable to empty their bladder . The authors report a study into the quality of life of affected cats that were looked after in family homes and welfare shelters , and the views of their principal caregivers . The findings suggest that shelter cats have a comparable quality of life to cats living in a family home . Most owners reported positive experiences with their animals and would not consider euthanasia on welfare grounds . Caregivers reported being able to achieve proficiency in manually expressing their cat ' s bladder within a month . The results show that it is practical for owners to look after a cat with a spinal injury , but success will depend on good communication between owners and their veterinary advisors .

Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery https :// doi . org / 10.1177 / 1098612X241275253

Antimicrobial resistance and hand hygiene awareness in veterinary staff

USER-ALT Kazuyoshi Sasaoka and others , Hokkaido University , Sapporo , Japan

High standards of hand hygiene are critically important in controlling the spread of microbial disease in a clinical setting . The authors describe the introduction and impact of a formal infection prevention and control ( IPC ) programme intended to ensure compliance with hand hygiene procedures at a veterinary teaching hospital . It resulted in a significant decrease in the monthly number of multidrug-resistant isolates found on bacterial culture of clinical specimens . Up to 4 years after the project began , there was still a considerable improvement from the baseline in self-reported awareness of hand hygiene practices and an increase in hygiene products used throughout the hospital . These findings show that an IPC programme can create long-lasting improvements in infection control behaviour .

The Veterinary Journal https :// doi . org / 10.1016 / j . tvjl . 2024.106154

Value of repeated health screening in apparently healthy older cats

USER-ALT Femke Mortier and others , Ghent University , Belgium

Veterinary practices encourage regular health screening for pets , especially older animals , which are more likely to develop chronic disease conditions . However , evidence suggests that many owners are more reluctant to bring in an elderly cat than a young adult animal . The authors describe the results of a project in which 259 apparently healthy cats aged 7 years and over were examined at 6-monthly intervals for 2 years . Within those 2 years , 28 % of mature adult cats aged 7 – 10 years and 54 % of senior cats aged over 10 years developed a new disease . The most common diagnoses were chronic kidney disease , hyperthyroidism , hepatopathy , pancreatitis and neoplasia . The findings highlight the value of 6-monthly health checks to identify early-stage disease in mature cats .

Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine https :// doi . org / 10.1111 / jvim . 17138

12 Veterinary Nursing Journal