Early radiographic diagnosis of pregnancy in the cat

Radiographs of cats at known stages of gestation reveal that it is possible in some cases to diagnose pregnancy as early as the 17th day. In all cases examined this was possible by the 21st day. A diagram is presented in which the short width of the uterine embryonic swellings measured from radiographs is compared with swellings measured on uteri taken from cats sacrificed between day 17 and day 30 of pregnancy. The diagram may be used for the approximate determination of the stage of pregnancy in cases where mating time is unknown. Résumé. Des radiographies de chats à des stades connus de gestation révèlent qu'il est possible, dans certains cas, de diagnostiquer une grossesse dès le 17ième jour. Dans tous les cas examinés, cela était possible vers le 21 ième jour. On présente un diagramme dans lequel la petite largeur des renflements utérins embryonnaires mesurés d'après des radiographies est comparée avec des renflements sur des utérus pris de chats sacrifiés entre le 17ième et le 30ième jour de grossesse. Le diagramme peut ětre utilisé pour déterminer approximativement le stade de grossesse dans des cas où le moment de conception n'est pas connu. Zusammenfassung. Rǒntgenaufnahmen von Katzen an uns bekannten Zeitpunkten von Gestation zeigten, dass es in einigen Fàllen mǒglich ist Schwangerschaft so frùh wie am 17ten Tag zu diagnostizieren. In allen untersuchten Fǎllen war dièses am 21ten Tag mǒglich. Eine graphische Darstellung wurde gezeigt, in welcher die kurze Breite der utérine Embryo-Schwellung, die man in den Rǒntgenaufnahmenmass, mit den Schwellungen an Uteri verglich welche man von Katzen entfernte, die zwischen dem 17. und 30. Tag des Schwangerschaft getǒtet wurden. Die Darstellung kann fur die ungefàhre Bestimmung von Zeitpunkt der Schwangerschaft gebraucht werden, in Fǎllen wo man nicht weiss, wann Paarung stattfand.     

Periods and stages of the prenatal development of the domestic cat

Twenty-two stages of the prenatal development of the domestic cat are described for intraspecies comparison in embryological studies. These are assigned to the 15 embryonal periods based on the Nomina Embryologica Veterinaria to make the interspecies comparison possible.     

Electroejaculation in the domestic cat

A method of electroejaculation for tomcats is described. Normal sperm counts in 4 cats ranged from 6 to 13 times 10Vejaculate. There was a great deal of variation between collections from the same cat indicating the necessity for at least 5 collections when assessing the fertility of a tomcat. Sperm counts were higher in the latter half of the year, at the time of increased sexual activity for cats in the Brisbane area. The volume of semen collected by electroejaculation increased in direct proportion to the length of electrical stimulation, hence, volume is not a reliable criterion for the appraisal of semen. However, results have indicated that semen volume tends to increase from July to December, thus indicating increased accessory gland activity during the breeding season. As this procedure does not cause any apparent discomfort or harmful effects there seems no reason to assume that it could not be used routinely on stud cats.     

Echocardiography in the domestic cat.

Echocardiographic examinations were performed on 25 normal healthy cats placed in left lateral recumbency. The cats were representative of serveral breeds, consisted of 12 males and 13 females, and weighed between 2 and 6.5 kg. Twelve measurements from the echocardiograms of each cat were made for the purpose of compiling a small data base (reference values). These measurements included wall thicknesses, luminal dimensions, and contractile indices. Left ventricular wall thickness averaged 0.37 +/- 0.08 cm, and the septal wall thickness averaged 0.45 +/- 0.09 cm. The average left ventricular lumen in diastole was 1.48 +/- 0.26 cm, and in systole, it was 0.88 +/- 0.24 cm, which resulted in an average shortening fraction of 41 +/- 7.3%. Velocity of circumferential shortening, an index of contractility, averaged 2.86 +/- 0.78 cm. In eight additional cats, both ventricles were catheterized for echographic chamber identification and then cineangiographic procedures. Then these cats were euthanatized, and postmortem measurements were compared with echocardiographic and cineangiographic measurements. According to the three methods of determining wall thickness, differences were less than 15%, where the range of deviations was between 0 and 0.5 mm and the average deviation was -0.01 +/- 0.26 mm.     

The laboratory diagnosis of Orthopoxvirus infection in the domestic cat

Twenty-eight cases of naturally occurring feline Orthopoxvirus infection were diagnosed by combinations of virus isolation, electron microscopy, agar gel precipitation, histopathology and serology. Twenty-five of 28 cases were positive by virus isolation on the chorioallantoic membrane of hens' eggs and in tissue culture, 22 of 28 by electron microscopy, three of five by histopathology, none by agar gel precipitation, and 17 of 17 by serology. The techniques used are described, and the results compared and discussed.     

The crystalline components of dental calculus in the domestic cat

Feline dental calculus was found to consist of carbonate-containing hydroxyapatite, Ca10(PO4)3(CO3)3(OH)2. Other forms of calcium phosphates consistently present in human calculus, and calcium carbonates found in horse, dog, and miniature pig calculus were not present. Calculus composition was performed using wet chemical method, x-ray diffraction, spectrographic analysis, and infrared spectrophotometric analysis. All samples showed traces of amorphous material, including magnesium and ammonium, but were negative for uric acid, cysteine, and oxalate.     

Pharmacokinetics of cefotaxime in the domestic cat

Cefotaxime was administered as single IV or IM dose for the purpose of examining its pharmacokinetics in healthy cats. The mean predicted plasma concentration of cefotaxime in 6 cats at 0 time after a single IV dosage of 10 mg/kg of body weight was 88.9 micrograms/ml. The mean plasma concentrations decreased to 10.8 micrograms/ml at 2 hours, 3.7 micrograms/ml at 3 hours, and 0.5 microgram/ml at 6 hours. The half-life was 0.98 +/- 0.25 hour (mean +/- SD), and the total body clearance was determined to be 2.76 +/- 1.25 ml/min/kg. After a single IM injection of 10 mg/kg of body weight, the mean maximum observed plasma concentration was 36.2 micrograms/ml at 0.75 hour. The mean absorption half-life was 0.24 hour. In 2 animals, the bioavailability of an IM injection was 98.2% and 93.0%.     

Clinical use of echocardiography in the domestic cat

Echocardiograms were obtained from unanesthetized cats positioned in left lateral recumbency. Information regarding chamber wall thickness, lumen dimensions, valve motion, and indices of contractility was obtained. In three cases, echocardiographic manifestations typical of cardiac dilatation, cardiac hypertrophy, and pericardial effusion were recorded. Unlike thoracic radiographs, which portray pulmonary features as well as a cardiac silhouette, the echocardiogram provided an opportunity to measure each component comprising the cardiac silhouette--namely, the pericardial sac, cardiac musculature, and the cardiac chambers.     

A radiographic study of urine flow in the domestic fowl

The movement of radiopaque media in the ureters, cloaca, colon and caeca was studied radiographically in 12 in‐lay light hybrid hens. During direct screening of the conscious birds after intravenous administration of sodium diacetamidotriiodobenzoate, the contrast medium was observed to pass along the ureters to their distal extremity under the action of ureteral contractions. It accumulated in the coprodeum, which remained quiescent in some birds, but in others, periods of vigorous contraction of the coprodeum forced the material cranially into the colon. Retroperistaltic contractions of the colon which appeared to originate in the coprodeum were then seen to promote further retrograde movement and on several occasions the contrast medium entered the caeca. Retrograde movement of a suspension of barium sulphate from the coprodeum into the colon and caeca was also observed, but neither of the contrast media entered the ileum. Post‐mortem radiographs of the viscera confirmed the presence of the contrast media in the cloaca, colon and caeca. The findings are illustrated by radiographs and the contribution of retrograde flow to caecal filling is discussed.     

A radiographic study of mineralised tendons in the domestic fowl

1. The occurrence of mineralised tendons in the wing and pelvic limb of the domestic fowl was studied radiographically in adults and in growing birds from hatching to 182 d.

2. Mineralised tendons were found to occur in all the adults in the dorsal and plantar tarsometatarsus and variably in the caudal tibiotarsus, cranial metacarpus and caudal antebrachium. In the cranial tibiotarsus a mineralised tendon was detected in two cockerels only.

3. Mineralisation, was detected from 91 d onwards, at first in tendons in the plantar tarsometatarsus and cranial metacarpus and later in the dorsal tarsometatarsus. The mineralised tendons found in adults at other sites were not found during the growing period studied.     

Feline central retinal degeneration in the domestic cat

The literature on taurine deficiency in the cat is reviewed and six cases occurring in general small animal practice in Britain are reported. The histological findings in one case are described.     

Fucosidosis in a domestic shorthair cat

This paper documents the first reported case of fucosidosis in a cat. The cat presented with signs of forebrain and cerebellar dysfunction and a magnetic resonance imaging scan of the brain suggested a degenerative or metabolic disease process. A fine needle aspirate of grossly normal lymph nodes revealed vacuolated lymphocytes and a renal biopsy of an irregular shaped kidney identified vacuolated tubular epithelial cells. A white cell lysosomal enzyme screen revealed negligible α-fucosidase activity. Fucosidosis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of young cats with cerebellar dysfunction and must be added to the list of lysosomal storage diseases affecting the cat.