CAUSE SIGNS & TREATMENT OF A CAT ABCESS

THE SIGNS
Bacteria which are trapped under the skin following a bite wound can multiply for several days before any signs of infection are seen. Swelling and pain at the puncture site are the most common signs of infection; When cats are afflicted with an abscess they generally run a fever, quit eating, sleep more than usual (like 22 hours a day instead of the usual 21!) and may exhibit pain. The sooner a treatment for a cat abscess is administered, the sooner the health of the cat can be restored. . Many times a pocket of pus, called an abscess, will form. . The most frequent sites for bite wounds are the face, legs, back, tail and over the rump.
THE CAUSE
When a cat bites, the teeth go through the skin, and then it releases quickly. This results in small puncture wounds in the skin, with small holes. These holes seal and virtually disappear within hours, trapping bacteria from the cat's mouth under the skin of the victim. The type of bacteria which live in the cat’s mouth thrive in an environment where the oxygen concentration is low. Once the wound seals shut, bacteria can begin to multiply at a rapid rate. The organisms most commonly involved with cat bites are Pasteurella multocida and Streptococcus.
TREATMENT
Once the cat abscess opens and the pus has a way to escape, the healing process can take over. The purpose of intervening in a case of a cat abscess to to assist the cat in this process by facilitating the escape and cleaning up of all those dead and dying defenders, plus, often when the pus drains the offending instigator of this whole process gets swept right out of the cat with everything else! Some gentle flushing of the wound cavity cleans things up quickly, a touch of antibiotic prevents the damaged tissues from being reinvaded, and the painful pressure from the abscess is relieved. READ MORE HERE;http://www.thepetcenter.com/sur/abcat.html
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IS MY KITTEN / CAT A MALE OR FEMALE ?

Determining the sex of a kitten may be difficult especially before about 8 weeks of age. The male and the female kitten's genitalia look remarkably similar. If kittens of both sexes are available to compare, it makes the process easier and more likely to be correct. In the male kitten, the scrotum is located below the anus and above the back of the hind legs. The testicles are descended into the scrotum presumably at the time of birth. READ MORE @ PET EDUCATION http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=1&cat=1388&articleid=923

COMMON CAT HAZARDS-KEEPING YOUR CAT SAFE

HERE IS SOME TIPS ON KEEPING YOUR CAT SAFE!

Unplug dangling cords. Some cats like to chew on cords. Until you know for a fact that your cat isn't one of them, it's best not to risk electric shock. Also, be alert to potential fire hazards—lamps can tip over while you are out of the room, causing the shade to ignite and start a fire.
Beware poisonous plants. Many common houseplants, like Easter lilies and philodendrons, are toxic to cats and can kill them if consumed. Follow the link at the bottom of this page for a more complete listing of toxic plants.
Remove tablecloths from unattended tables. New kittens will be especially curious about what's up there on the table and will try to use the tablecloth to climb up. The result could be broken china and crystal and an emergency trip to the vet.
Cover garbage disposal switches. Natural climbers, cats usually find their way to the kitchen sink sooner or later. Many have been known to play with electric switches such as the one for a garbage disposal. Special covers are available at hardware stores to help avoid disaster.
Keep drapery cords out of reach. It's a good idea to use childproofing devices to wind up dangling cords—cats can strangle themselves by catching their necks in the loops.
Close the dryer door. Cats love to explore, especially dark, quiet places. Always check inside large appliances before closing their doors to make sure your cat is not inside.
Make sure your screen door has a securing latch. Cats are safe indoors; they are not safe outdoors. Don't run the risk that your cat could slip out unnoticed.
Pack away precious breakables. Cats in a new home will explore. They will jump on tables, cabinets, sideboards, and bookshelves to investigate their strange domain, and they may accidentally knock over or break fragile items and knickknacks.
Cover your furniture. If you don't want cat hair on your upholstery, put an old sheet on your most enticing sofas and chairs. That way your cat can enjoy the furniture along with you without shedding fur all over it. Simply remove the sheet when guests arrive.

ALL ABOUT ABCESSES

Abscesses are a common problem in cats. It is hard to say why cats develop abscesses more frequently than other domestic species but there are several plausible reasons. A bite from a cat wound is more likely to become infected than a bite from most other species due to the bacterial residents of cat mouths. Since cats bite each other fairly frequently this is certainly one reason for the high number of abscesses. This situation is exacerbated by the tendency for cat bite or scratch wounds to have small entry wounds but to cause damage subcutaneously which becomes infected after the small skin wound is already healed. Cats also are prone to immunosuppressive viral illnesses such as feline immunodeficiency virus and feline leukemia virus which makes infected cats more likely to suffer an abscess after a wound.
Most abscesses start out as cellulitis, which is infection of the tissues under the skin. In some cases it is possible to prevent abscess formation by early detection of the presence of cellulitis. Signs of early infection may include lameness, localized pain, lethargy or reluctance to eat. If your cat exhibits any of these signs and your vet can determine that cellulitis is present early administration of an appropriate antibiotic may prevent abscess formation.
After a brief period of cellulitis, an abscess forms. The cat's body attempts to fight the bacterial infection by forming a capsule around it and flooding the capsule with a large number of white blood cells. This collection of white blood cells and bacteria is commonly referred to as pus. I f the cat is really successful at walling off the infection there may be a small abscess. If the cat is less successful at dealing with the initial infection the abscess may be very large. In this case the abscess may cause the skin over the abscess to die. The skin usually turns black and becomes very hard to the touch after it dies. It will fall off eventually if left in place but it is better to remove the dead skin to allow healing to occur faster and to ensure that the abscess can be properly treated. Abscesses that occur around the base of the tail are very prone to causing skin sloughing. Early aggressive treatment is best when there is pain or swelling around the base of the tail.
Abscesses are generally treated by opening them up to allow them to be adequately cleansed with an antiseptic. Abscesses can be very painful. If a cat will not allow an abscess to be opened due to the pain it may be necessary to use an anesthetic agent so that the abscess can be properly treated. If there is dead skin over the abscess is should be removed as well. It surprises many clients that this can often be done without an anesthetic agent, since the dead skin has little or no feeling. The live edges still have nerve endings and many cats do object, though. After the abscess is cleaned most vets will prescribe antibiotics. There is a wide variation in the way antibiotics are used by veterinarians in the case of abscesses. In general it is possible to treat most abscesses with ampicillin or amoxicillin since the majority of abscesses are caused by bacteria that are susceptible to these antibiotics. Once started the antibiotics should be used for at least three days and it is important to use appropriate dosages. It is not usually necessary to use antibiotics longer than seven days and it is often appropriate to use them for three to five days only.
Some abscesses do not respond to standard therapy. Almost every veterinarian who treats cats has run across an abscess that seems impossible to cure. If this happens there are a number of possible causes. It is usually a good idea to culture the abscess site in this case. If the bacteria involved can be grown and identified it helps a great deal. If the bacteria can be grown on a culture plate it is possible to try to kill it with a number of antibiotics and pick one that works -- at least on the culture plate. If it appears that a new antibiotic is necessary that may be enough to cure the problem. Sometimes that isn't enough to cure the abscess, though.
When abscesses do not respond to treatment with standard treatment and after identification of bacteria that can be cultured from the wound it is time to look for underlying causes or complicating causes. There are several things that cause abscesses to be difficult to treat. Feline leukemia virus infection or feline immunodeficiency virus infection can cause the immune system to fail to help clear up the abscess. Despite the "wonder drug" label, antibiotics often need the help of the body's natural defenses to cause a cure. Sometimes the infection is caused by an unusual organism that does not respond to the same antibiotics used for the most common bacteria found in bite wounds. Mycoplasma infections will respond to tetracycline antibiotics in most cases. Nocardiosis infections respond to sulfa/trimethoprim antibiotics used at two to three times the usually recommended dosages. Actinomyces infections may respond to very high dosages of penicillin. A newly recognized variety of bacteria, l-form bacteria, usually respond to tetracycline antibiotics. This form of infection may not be known to your veterinarian. It usually appears as an infection affecting multiple joints with several abscesses or draining tracts that does not respond to conventional therapy. The l-form bacteria can not be cultured in the same way other bacteria are so they are difficult to diagnose. Response to tetracycline may be the best "diagnostic" test available to the general practitioner since confirmation of infection may require examination of abscess contents with an electron microscope.
Abscesses vary in severity from a relatively minor problem that the cat's immune system will handle on its own to complicated, life threatening infections. It is best to treat them early, establishing proper drainage if at all possible, cleansing with an antiseptic and in most cases appropriate antibiotic therapy. Some abscesses are not going to respond to routine treatment methods and will require multiple visits and become very frustrating, both for you and your vet. If an abscess is not responding to treatment it is vitally important that you alert your vet and that you continue to work with your vet to resolve the problem. You may have to push a little for diagnostic testing or use of tetracycline based antibiotics to rule out l-form bacteria and Mycoplasma infections in chronic abscess situations since there is a tendency among veterinarians to continue to use broad-spectrum antibiotics in the face of resistant abscesses rather than switching to medications with a narrower spectrum of action such as the tetracyclines. It is probably not a good idea to use tetracyclines routinely since they do not work as well against the most common forms of infection as other antibiotics and because their mechanism of action makes them harder to combine with other antibiotic therapy to achieve a broader spectrum of action.
Neutering male cats greatly reduces roaming behavior and fighting associated with seeking mates. This also reduces the incidence of abscesses in male cats. It may be best to avoid the whole issue of abscesses by taking this preventative measure!