The increasing amount of cat owners feeding highly processed commercial cat food are reported by many veterinary experts to be a contributing factor in the increasing amount of cat arthritis in cats. It is certainly not coincidence that owners who feed their cats homemade and raw food see lower occurrence of degenerative arthritis in their cats.
Today, although there is no concrete proof to show that commercial cat food contributes to arthritis development in cats, it is widely believe that they play a big part. From there, we understand that your cat’s diet would play a major effect in preventing this stressful cat disease.
Apart from diet, overweight older cats are also more likely to develop arthritis because of the extra pressure they put on their joints causing the cartilage and bones to wear off faster. Naturally, a cat who enjoys a healthy diet and who exercises regularly will be less likely to suffer from the same condition.
The symptoms of arthritis in cats would be that he will find it difficult to walk around and run. Moving around stiffly, he will not make jumps that he use to make and will have difficulty in climbing up stairs. Showing signs of depression, your cat would hide away and appear listless and even bad tempered. Not allowing you to touch and stroke him in areas where he is painful, he might cry out if you touch him on a painful joint.
To diagnose arthritis in cats, your vet will observe, use blood test and most importantly the x-ray examination. The X-ray will show joint degeneration in areas of worn, irregular bone position and possible distortion of the joint and see if the bone is causing pain and forcing the cat to stand in an awkward position to compensate for the discomfort.
Arthritis treatment will include medication to help your cat ease the pain on his joints, to aid the regeneration process of cartilage and bone, to build up the fluid within the capsular joints to provide a cushion for the joint itself. Your vet will prepare a dose of glucosamine and chondroitin that are used for the same purpose in humans as your cat.
You can help your cat to recover by encouraging him to walk whenever possible to prevent the joints from stiffening further. You should try to create a warmer environment for him to rest. A warm water bottle place under his bed might do the trick. The warmth will help your cat to ease his pain and loosen his muscles which might be tense because of the constant pain that he is suffering.
Recovery from arthritis is possible with the right treatment and care. Although a hundred percent recovery is not possible, your cat will still be able to enjoy a high quality of life.
