Cat’s nasty cough is a worry

QMy six-year-old female neutered Siamese cat has had a dry retching cough on several occasions in the last week. I thought it might be a fur ball but nothing has come up. Do cats get asthma, and should she see the vet?

AA trip to the vets is necessary because although the cough may be a temporary problem, asthma is one of the possible diagnoses. Another is chronic bronchitis, which has similar symptoms to asthma in cats.

Other possibilities include a lung infection, airway parasites and heart disease, though these are less common.

Retching to bring up fur balls is often confused with a cough, as they can sound similar.

Siamese cats tend to be predisposed to asthma, and middle age is often around the time problems surface.

Before visiting the vet, try to take a video of the cat coughing as this will be helpful. Also, measure her rate of breathing at home, as asthmatic cats may breathe faster than normal, and are often wheezy.

This is all useful information to help your vet make a diagnosis.

If this coughing is continuing in bouts it is very likely that further investigation will be needed. Blood tests, a chest X-ray, bronchoscopy of the airways and bronchial washes are all possible.

Before visiting the vet check the house for potential irritants such as smoke or dusty cat litter. At this time of year allergy to tree pollens can be a factor.

If the breathing becomes laboured, an immediate emergency consultation is required. Q Our 11-year-old poodle has started to bump into things and can easily get lost on walks if we are not careful. A friend thinks he might have cataracts. Is this common and how do we go about finding a specialist eye vet?

ACataracts are common in older dogs. You can normally see them as a white opaque lens in the pupil.

In the early stages they may not be so obvious, and owners often mistake a common condition called lenticular or nuclear sclerosis for a cataract.

Cataracts will eventually cause blindness whereas lenticular sclerosis does not greatly affect vision. Your own vet can diagnose between the two using an ophthalmoscope.

With cataracts it is difficult or impossible to see the retina at the back of the eye, whereas with lenticular sclerosis, light passes through the lens and the retina can be seen.

It is very likely that your vet will know specialist veterinary ophthalmologists in your area if required, and can make arrangements for you, which is the normal procedure.

Cataract surgery in dogs uses the same equipment used in human surgery, which breaks down the cataract to remove it. An artificial lens can then be inserted in place of the old lens.

In dogs that are suitable for the operation the success rate is 90% or more.

In order to be deemed suitable, ultrasound is used before the operation on an animal to ensure the retina is intact, and other tests are used to check retinal function.