Andrew Gardiner - A–Z of Cat Health and First Aid: A Holistic Veterinary Guide for Owners

Please do not use this book as an alternative to seeking professional veterinary advice! It is intended to complement and expand on that, but not replace it. Although I have tried to write the book in such a way that the complex nature of cat diseases is understandable, medicine (and cats) are too unpredictable to be able to cover every conceivable situation. Vets study for years to understand animal diseases, and even then the task is often far from easy, so never rely entirely on any book, magazine article, web page or story from another owner who managed to cure their own cat of exactly the same thing using such-and-such a treatment. Its not worth the risk.

Do, however, use the book as a way of understanding your cat and its illness or injury better. Use it to ask questions of your veterinary surgeon or nurse about anything you dont understand concerning the treatment they are proposing they will be happy to explain. If they are not, then find professionals who will! Try to bear in mind that an animal is much more complex than a machine. Diagnosis is not always easy; misleading or confusing results can be given even after extensive tests that is in the nature of medicine and treatment, whether human or animal. Vets are denied the opportunity to have their patients explain their problems directly much of what is relied upon comes from the owner, and this may not always be totally accurate. However, by reading and using this book, your own accuracy in describing symptoms and making observations is likely to be improved, and your cats recovery helped as a result.

For ease of use, the book is arranged alphabetically according to diseases, symptoms or injuries. Many cat problems can be known by more than one name or might be found in the book in different ways. For example, when considering a cat that seems to be having problems passing urine, some owners might think to flick to the section on straining, whereas others might decide to turn turn to cystitis initially. Cross-references within the book have been made to try to ensure you are always directed towards every appropriate section. Inevitably, this means that there is occasionally slight repetition between closely related sections but this is necessary to ensure that important information is not inadvertently skipped.

For every condition mentioned, an indication of the relative urgency has also been given this is so that professional treatment for potentially serious problems is not unnecessarily delayed.

There are lots of hints throughout this book regarding how you can help your cat with home first aid and nursing, both before and after diagnosis. These techniques have been found helpful in day-to-day use, and largely use equipment and materials that are easily to hand. The Introduction also contains very useful general information on nursing sick cats and suggested items for a practical first aid kit are also given. With these things to hand, helpful first aid will be able to be started for most problems likely to be encountered with your cat.

The comments on complementary medicine in the Introduction are not intended to replace the services of a qualified veterinarian but, as the term suggests, to complement professional advice. There are many approaches to diagnosis and treatment; good communication between you and your vet should ensure one that you and your cat are happy with.