Flintshire February Edition
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<strong>Flintshire</strong>CommunityFeature<br />
IntroducingSnoopyJones……<br />
Snoopyisagrandoldgentlemanof<br />
nearly18yearsofage.<br />
Hewasfirstbroughttotheclinic<br />
lastApril,havinglostweightand<br />
generalcondion.Hehadalso<br />
developedacoughandhis<br />
breathinghadbecomequite<br />
laboured.Whenweexaminedhim,<br />
wefoundhishearttobefastand<br />
quiteiregular.Ashewasfinding<br />
breathingdifficult,itwouldhave<br />
beenpotenalyquitedangerous<br />
totrytogetabloodsamplefrom<br />
him orsendhim foranx-ray.Inthe<br />
circumstances,wemadea<br />
provisionaldiagnosisofcongesve<br />
heartfailureandbegantreatment<br />
withmedicaontoreducethe<br />
workloadontheheartandclear<br />
fluidfrom hischest.<br />
Fortunately,herespondedweland<br />
oncehisbreathinghadimproved,<br />
wewereabletocaryoutsome<br />
bloodtestswhichshowedhisother<br />
organstobeworkingokay.<br />
Ninemonthslaterheissl<br />
withus,sltakinghistablets<br />
andenjoyinglife,althoughata<br />
relavelysedatepace!<br />
Heartfailureisnotuncommon<br />
incats,especialyastheyget<br />
older.Itisusualycausedbya<br />
thickeningoftheheartmuscle<br />
(hypertrophiccardiomyopathy)<br />
whichmakesitlessefficientin<br />
pumpingbloodaroundthe<br />
body.<br />
Thisoenresultsina<br />
build-upoffluidinandaround<br />
thelungs,causinglaboured<br />
breathing,whichisoenthe<br />
firstsignthatownersnoce.In<br />
mostcasesthecauseisnot<br />
known,butsomemesthere<br />
canbeanunderlyingproblem<br />
suchasanoveracvethyroid<br />
glandwhichtriggerstheheart<br />
condion.Iftheunderlying<br />
causeistreated,theheart<br />
problem mayresolve.<br />
.<br />
Otherwise,asinSnoopy’scase,<br />
ongoingmedicaonwiloen<br />
keepthecondionstableand<br />
thecatcomfortablefora<br />
considerableme.Ifyounoce<br />
yourcatslowingdown,witha<br />
coughorpuffingslightly,it’s<br />
worthgenghim orheralong<br />
toyourvetforacheck.<br />
.<br />
TheCharityNumberfortheRSPCAWrexham DistrictandDeesideBranchis232232.<br />
TheweeklysubsidisedveterinaryclinicatDeesideisheldattheQueensfery<br />
WarMemorialInstute,ChesterRdWest,Queensfery,Deeside,Clwyd,CH51TP<br />
(bytheentrancetoASDA)onTuesdaysbetween2.00and3.30pm.Noappointment<br />
isrequired-justturnupbetweenthesemes(withyourproofofbenefit).Further<br />
informaoncanbeobtainedfrom thewebsite:www.rspcamobileclinic.co.uk
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