Jill Bowen

Jill Bowen has practiced veterinary medicine in England and Texas and has taught at Texas A&M. She lives with her veterinarian husband and two cats in Blacksburg. If you have a question, please write to her in care of The Roanoke Times, P.O. Box 540, Christiansburg, VA 24068, or send an e-mail to mjbowen@radford.edu

Recent columns

• Invisible fences aren’t best option for every dog
• Wrap pets in protection this holiday season
• Take treats so horse associates you with something good
• Illness or change in environment may cause cat to stop using litter box
• Column archive

This summer we are taking a trip out west and have decided to take our cat, rather than putting her into kennels. We have already mapped the route with pet-friendly hotels, but I wondered how best to transport her. In the past on trips to the veterinarian, she travels loose, but I am worried that for such a long trip this is not a good idea.

A cat loose in the car is a hazard to everyone on the road. It is all too easy for the cat to become a dangerous distraction, and there have been a number of instances where a loose cat has managed to get behind the brake pedal and cause an accident.

The safest place to keep any cat during a car ride is in a proper cat carrier. By keeping the cat confined, the risk of escape is eliminated, as well as the risk of injury in the case of an accident or sudden stop. When you stop and let the cat out inside the car to stretch her legs, do not open the windows, as all cats are escape artists and will take any opportunity to jump to freedom.

Further, never leave your cat unattended in the car, even in cool weather. The sun can turn any car into an inferno in minutes.

As it is going to be a long trip, remember to bring adequate supplies of food and water, as well as a litter tray and litter. Stop at regular intervals to let your cat use the litter tray and have a drink.

Most cats will settle down in a cat carrier with no problems and do not require sedation. In fact, they do better without such medication.

* * *

My 17-year-old cat has just been diagnosed with diabetes, and I wondered what you think about treating her. She is not a very lovable kitty, and I am not sure I can give her a daily injection, which our veterinarian says will be necessary.

Most diabetic cats must be given twice-daily injections of insulin to control the condition. Getting a cat stabilized with the correct dose of insulin can be quite a long process, as well as an expensive one. A bottle of insulin costs more than $20, plus the cost of the syringes as well as routine urine and blood testing.

During the stabilizing period, which can take two to three months (cats are notoriously hard to stabilize), there will be several trips to the veterinarian with total costs of between $550 to $1,000 depending on the number of visits involved.

In the majority of cases, blood testing is undertaken by your veterinarian on a regular basis, especially during the stabilization period, and a stay in the veterinary hospital may be required. Blood testing is done less often once the condition has been stabilized. Urine testing is done on a daily basis at home and requires a little ingenuity on the part of the owner to get the cat's cooperation.

Many cats do not tolerate the twice-daily injections with equanimity and can become quite difficult to catch and inject. There are two oral medications that can be tried, but they are only effective in 20 percent to 30 percent of cats with adult-onset diabetes and then usually in somewhat younger cats.

In your case, I am not sure whether one is justified in subjecting such an elderly cat to the rigors of diabetic stabilization and treatment. Perhaps euthanasia is the kinder option, as untreated diabetes will eventually cause the death of the cat from kidney failure followed by the failure of other essential organs, which would not be a very pleasant way to die.