Franks Household Pet Competition
The scores for Franks ProGold Household Pet of the Year (up to May 05) will appear in OUR CATS, 1 July. Due to my taking a holiday(!), I was unable to collate the points in time for this issue.
It would be most helpful if points could be submitted as soon as the last show of each month has taken place as the collation could then be completed in the first week of the month ready for publication.
This competition is very well supported by our readers and watching the ‘Top Ten’ is proving to be a nail-biting experience!
Somali feature
OUR CATS will be featuring the beautiful Somali breed of cat in our next issue - 1 July. This is a great opportunity to take out a Breeder’s Advertisement or to place a photo of your Somali with details of recent show successes. Please contact Anne Lawrence for full details on 0870 731 6506 or e-mail anne@ourcats.co.uk
A real record breaker!
An exceptionslly large cat was taken to a cat shelter in Sacramento County last month. The cat, nicknamed “fat cat” weighed in at 33lbs! He was blood tested and put on a strict diet.
The shelter’s plea to find him a home was answered by a lady called Victoria Meyers.
She has renamed the cat ‘Romeo’, and it is hoped that a special diet will get him down to a trimmer 20lbs!
Cat vaccines
A number of breeders have expressed their desire for a single vaccine against chlamydia. Fort Dodge Animal Health produces Fevaxyn Pentofel, which protects against five diseases by the chlamydophila component is not available singly. Breeders have various vaccine protocols, but many seem to prefer to vaccinate against flu and enteritis at nine and 12 weeks and then recomment to new owners that they seek vaccination against feline leukaemia, bordatella or chlamydophila if and when a kitten may be exposed to these diseases.
The Cat Group states: “The necessity to vaccinate all cats against all the diseases for which vaccines are available has been challenged. The lifestyle and environment in which some cats are kept means they may not be at risk of exposure to certain diseases. For example, a cat that is kept strictly indoors and is in a single cat household has no appreciable risk of exposure to chlamydophila felis or FeLV infection, as these organisms generally require direct contact between cats for transmission to occur. As vaccination cannot be regarded as an entirely innocuous procedure it may therefore not always be appropriate to use certain vaccines.
The American Association of Feline Practitioners has recently suggested considering feline vaccines as either ‘core’ or ‘non-core’. Core vaccines would be those whose routine use can be justified in all cats based on the prevalence of infection, the possibility of indirect transmission (ie not just through direct cat to cat contact) and the severity of disease. ‘Non-core’ vaccines would be other vaccines that are potentially very valuable in certain situations where cats are at genuine risk of exposure to the organism, but whose use is difficult to justify in all cats. The Cat Group supports the discriminatory use of feline vaccines in the UK. Feline infectious enteritis, feline herpesvirus-1 and feline calicivirus should be regarded as essential (or ‘core’) vaccines in the UK, and the Cat Group recommends vaccination of all cats against these viruses.
The parvovirus which causes feline infectious enteritis is a very resistant virus (thus indirect transmission of the virus is common) and subsequent disease can be fatal. Both FCV and FHV-1 are very prevalent viruses, and although probably mainly transmitted by direct or close contact, these viruses can survive in the environment and indirect transmission is therefore possible.
For these reasons, the Cat Group recommend routine use of these vaccines. The use of other vaccines cannot necessarily be justified in all circumstances and the Cat Group recommends the use of these vaccines be determined on a case-by-base basis according to individual needs”.
For the full Cat Group Statement on vaccination, see
www.users.waitrose.com or write to Secretariat, Taeselbury, High Street, Tisbury, Wiltshire SP3 6LD.
OUR CATS plans to run an ‘Editor’s Forum’ on this subject in the near future.
Website: Great offers!
As well as our great range of books on special offer, you can order stationery on the OUR CATS shop on our website. My favourite item is the Show Planner: Presented in a handy A5 format, the planner diary has a laminated wipe-clean cover and is full of information for all show enthusiasts.
The spacious planner section which begins at the start of December 2004 and runs until the end of December 2005, is set out in calendar format. Show dates and entries closing dates for 2005 are included. It also features a forward planner for 2006 which lists show dates up to the end of May and a planner for 2007 - Reduced Price £2.75 including postage.
Telephone 0870 731 6502 to speak with Fiona or Trina.
National microchipping month - June 2005
Before my kittens go to their homes, I have them all microchipped. As a vet nurse for many years, I saw so many unidentified pets come into the surgeries where I worked that were lost and often injured (some fatally) and felt so sad that their owners could not be traced.
I never want my cats or kittens to face an uncertain future if they should ever get lost, so believe that microchipping is vital. So, I am pleased to include the following press release from Pet Log...
The Kennel Club is excited to announce that this month is the third National Microchipping Month. The campaign will be run throughout the United Kingdom to encourage and promote responsible pet ownership through microchipping as the preferred method of permanent identification.
This significant campaign hopes to ensure customers are aware of the importance of microchipping their pets. In the event that their pet should go missing, reunification is an option when the pet is found. It is also an ideal time to highlight that keeping details up to date on the Petlog national database is essential for reunification.
There is a calendar of events to view at:
www.the-kennel-club.org.uk
Special offers galore!
