can your house make your animals sick?
Jaime P
I have cats in a home that I rent, so i know nothing about this place, in the last year I have had one kitten pass away from something called mega esophagus which is a rare disease effecting their esophagus..lately another one of my cats has had blood in her stool, today i find out that she has a mass in her intestine…is this just bad luck..or what?
I take very good care of my pets..I work at a vet as a secretary..so when they are sick i just bring them to work..i just don’t understand why my pets are getting sick so much, could it be our home?
pets are like people….they get things..things happen…and genetics..we had a cat get sick a few years ago..and we had to put her to sleep…we loved her and didnt realize how much till then…lets just say after two weeks of mourning..i dont look down or make fun of people who mourn their beloved animals…just give them a good like while you have them…make sure they have enough to eat clean water and roof over their heads….and when one angel..(cause they can be just that)…passes….adopt one that may be put to sleep because of someone else being selfish and not getting their animals spayed or neutered and animal shelters are running over with them….which is exactly what we did..we have a four year old cat…we love …she is the friend for our 15 year old cat….we love them both….good luck
To live in home is not their natural environment of living.They feel depressed because they do not have freedom and they do not have company of cats.Perhaps this affect to their physiology.Perhaps your cat has hairballs and need medical treatment and good quality food which is against this disease.Ask your vet as soon as possible
Yes of course.
Think of your pet as you.
Lets say the house you went or live in isn’t hygeinic.
Your pet would effect to that!
The air also efrects your cat too!
Hope i helped bye x haz
Cats are extremely sensitive to chemicals & substances, so there are all kinds of things in the environment that could potentially be making your cats sick.
While I can’t say what is making your cats sick, I’d suggest getting the air quality in your place tested if possible and eliminate as many sources of chemicals as you can (cleaning products, air fresheners etc).
Do you have any toxic plants around? I imagine you’d see more of an immediate reaction if that were the issue, but worth considering anyway.
Do you have mould in your place? It can cause a myriad of health issues and may not always be visible on the surfaces of walls. Mould testing is pretty expensive, but look around your place for potential problem areas, like bathrooms with poor ventilation, spots in the kitchen where moisture might get behind surfaces and collect or leaky windows.
Do you use essential oils for yourself? Most essential oils, even in small amounts, are toxic to cats, so regular exposure to trace amounts could be causing health problems.
Do they go outside at all? It’s very hard (impossible) to control your cat’s environment if they are able to run free out doors, so any number of factors could be interacting if they are outdoor cats.
If both cats have had problems with their digestive tracts I’d take a good hard look at the food you are feeding them. With all the pet food recalls recently I think people are becoming more aware of what they are feeding, but the pet food industry still perpetuates incorrect nutritional information about cats (like the sugestion that a healthy cat food contains all four food groups – good for humans, not so good for an obligate carnivore) and with the minimal government regulations in place, tends to use the cheapest ingredients to maximize profits.
Choose a high quality food that is free of grains and vegetable matter (no corn, wheat, soy, soy protein, wheat gluten, rice, brewers rice etc) and that has meat as the first ingredient (rather than “meal” or “by-products”.) Or if you are so inclined, make your own raw food.
Also, look at your cats’ teeth. Poor oral health can cause all kinds of health issues as bacteria can enter the blood stream through raw or injured gums. A taxed immune system because of bad oral health opens the door to all kinds of other health issues. If their teeth aren’t free of plaque and their gums aren’t a healthy pink, invest in a teeth cleaning and then feed foods that will maintain the healthy mouth (forget the “tartar control” dry foods – the kibble pieces tend to shatter rather than scrape the teeth – if your cats will eat raw foods, a chunk of raw meat or a raw chicken wing is great for the teeth.)
I’d focus on checking for and eliminating risk factors within the home and boosting overall health through a high quality, species appropriate diet and good oral health.
I’m guessing you already talked to your vet about underlying causes and didn’t get any helpful answers?
I have never heard of mega-esophagus being environmentally caused, it is usually a freak developmental or genetic issue.
part of having pets is dealing with what comes up… often out of the blue. I had a perfectly good (albeit dumped) kitten once upon a time who suddenly started staggering, hanging his tongue out and drooling – rushed to the vet… malignant brain tumor.
you never know. I would highly doubt your home was to blame for both though.