1188. Sunday's interesting case - the cat with the balding backsides

Sunday Nov 18, 2012  Bright sunshine in the morning. Heavy downpour in the afternoon.

Case 1. Four months ago, this old male neutered cat was losing hair on both backsides. Balding patches. So I was rather surprised to see him with a full bloom of coat - freckled and thick. The Indian father and his adult graduate daughter came early in the morning to get some matted hair below the armpits removed. A complaint of itchy ears.

"He is such a nice cat," Dr Daniel commented. "He did not claw or scratch when his ears are cleaned."

"He is very timid when at the vet," the father said. "At home, he is a lion."

I really admired the thick coat and asked what happened. Many years the cat had baldness in the inguinal area and the coat was in a mess. I discovered it was the management of the litter box. The cat had dirtied himself when he went in and came out of the litter box which was lined with newspapers. What is the secret of his full coat? I reviewed my medical record of 4 months ago. The cat's anal sacs were infected and expressed and medication was given. An antifungal wash.

"Now we have 2 litter boxes," the father said. I can't remember whether it was my idea or not as I do not record every advice I gave and neither did I claim credit. "The cat would go into one to pee and one to poop. He would not go into any of the two till we clean it." So, that was the secret to such a lovely coat for this 8-year-old cat. 

It was great to see this old cat having such a beautiful coat nowadays, considering that the father and daughter had so much worries over his balding backsides.

Case 2
A "gigantic" dog bigger than the Siberian Husky and more to the size of an Alaskan Malamute visited the clinic. His size was enough to send any lady or man into shivers. Like a big white wolf. He sniffed the door