Flea Allergy
Overview:
The bite from a single flea will have a minimal effect on a normal cat, but a cat with flea allergy will experience immediate itching and swelling. Flea allergy is the feline allergic skin disorder most commonly found. Cats that have it are hypersensitive to fleabites; their skin becomes inflamed, irritated and itchy in reaction to allergen in the saliva that fleas pass into the skin when they bite. The skin reaction and intense itching can lead to hair loss and skin lesions.
Vomiting, Throwing up
Overview:
Vomiting is one of the more common reasons why owners take their cats to the veterinarian. Isolated episodes of vomiting rarely are a cause for concern as long as the cat still has an appetite and is bright and alert. Most healthy cats will, on occasion, vomit whole or partially digested food, hairballs, or foamy, clear liquid.
Spraying
Overview:
A very common behavioral problem of cats, urine marking accounts for 40 percent of the feline cases brought to veterinary behavioral specialists, according to a recent study. Cats "spray," or conduct in urine marking, when they deposit their urine on prominent objects in order to communicate with other cats. Characteristically, while urine marking, the cat assumes a standing posture and squirts a horizontal stream of urine onto a vertical surface; thus the term "spraying." This behavior, which is normal, is considered problematic to owners when the cat marks indoors, since urine ruins walls, furniture, carpets, and floors; outdoor urine marking, however, is an expected behavior. Male cats that have not been neutered are most likely to urine mark -- and unfortunately, the urine of a male cat is especially pungent and resistant to odor removers.
Blocked tom cat
Overview:
Urine flows out of the bladder through a tube called the urethra. When debris or stones get lodged within this tube, urine builds up and is unable to be released properly. Most often, male cats rather than female cats develop this condition because the male urethra, located within the penis, is narrower than the female urethra and thus is blocked more easily. The longer the blockage remains, the more seriously the condition threatens the cat's health. A complete obstruction of urine flow is a medical emergency that can result in irreversible kidney damage and death.
Infectious upper respiratory infection, URI
Overview:
Upper respiratory infections are a common illness in felines, especially young kittens. Highly contagious to other cats, upper respiratory infections typically are accompanied by "cold-like" symptoms such as sneezing, discharge from the nose, and lack of appetite. The cause of feline respiratory infections is usually viral. Generally, kittens are more severely affected by these infections than adult cats.
Treatment of upper respiratory disease is aimed at supporting the nutritional and fluid requirements of the kitten. Medications will alleviate some of the symptoms but do not eliminate the virus. Fortunately for most cats, the signs of disease last for only five to seven days. However, even after a cat has recovered from the disease, it may continue to carry and shed the virus for months to years. Vaccines are available to protect cats and kittens from upper respiratory disease, and are recommended especially for households and housing facilities containing multiple cats.