Where you can find help, resources for cats and cat lovers

Dr. Fred Scott with Elizabeth, through her the late Dr. James Richards lives on

            Ithaca, NY. The 20th Annual Fred Scott Feline Symposium was held at the Feline Health Center at the veterinary school at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, July 25-27. Aside from the feline veterinary meetings, this annual event may be the most prestigious single all-about-the-cat conference in the nation.

Dr. Fred Scott with Elizabeth, through her the late Dr. James Richards lives on

            When Dr. Fred Scott started as a veterinarian, he was more interested in cow diseases. Ironically, today Scott is clearly considered a pioneer and innovator in cat health. He established the Feline Health Center 33 years ago.

            While it was Scott who started the engine purring at Cornell’s Feline Health Center, it was the late Dr. James Richards who helped to drive the Center’s success.

Richards was the director from 1997 to his untimely death in a motorcycle accident in 2007. Scott then came out of retirement to again head up the Center as an interim director.

Even after Dr. Richards’ death, Elizabeth continues to run the Cornell Feline Health Center

            “When I saw Jim’s size 10 shoes left in his office, I knew I could never fill them,” says Scott. “Still, in Jim’s memory we continue to make a difference for all cats.”

            Today, when it comes to cat health Cornell’s Feline Health Center receives accolades for their continuing cat health studies, as well as providing credible information and support to the general public. 

            “I like that people are going to the Internet to learn more about cat health,” says Dr. Jodi Korich, director Partners in Health at Cornell. “It means people care, and people want to learn more. It’s important that there are sources for credible information.”    

            The Cornell Feline Health Center website has become a one stop shop for cat owners, www.vet.cornell.edu/FHC/. The Feline Health Center’s Partners in Animal Health Program has developed several free online videos. Explaining their popularity, Korich says, “It’s one thing to read about a subject, it’s apparently another thing to see a demonstration.”

            For three years straight, the most viewed video is called Giving Your Cat a Pill or Capsule. “I think this is an award winner, perhaps we should submit it to the Sundance Film Festival,” Korich says and laughs.

            The second most viewed video is entitled Brushing Your Cat’s Teeth.  “I believe people watch that because they don’t believe you can actually brush your cat’s teeth.”

            Number three on the Cornell website hit parade is Cat Owners’ Guide to Kidney Disease. Additional videos include Trimming Your Cat’s Claws, Caring For Your Diabetic Cat, and Taking Your Cat’s Temperature.

            If cat owners prefer to speak to a real human being at the Cornell Feline Health Center, that’s also possible – call 800-KITTY-DR (800-548-8937). The Dr. Louis J. Camuti Memorial Feline Consultation and Diagnostic Service offers this free support line (operating Mondays, Wednesday, Fridays 9 a.m.-noon and 2 to 4 p.m. EST). There is a $55 fee.

            “We’re a consultation service, so when a client receives a diagnosis that isn’t understood, or there are questions about a sick cat, we offer more information – often based on the latest research,” says consulting veterinarian Dr. Christine Bellezza. “Sometimes the questions are about caring for a healthy kitten, sometimes they are about caring for an older pet and making end of life decisions.”

            Perhaps so many people call about when to euthanize because it may be more comfortable to ask a stranger  – but a sympathetic and knowledgeable stranger.

            The question most often asked is about Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP). This is a fatal illness which primarily affects young kittens. “They call for hope – hoping there is some new miracle treatment out there,” says Bellezza. “Unfortunately that’s not the case. The good news is that it’s not likely their other cats are at risk.”

            Calls to the consultation service are from around the world; cat owners from Turkey, India, Iraq, France, Germany have phoned it – even figuring out adjustments for times zones. “Thankfully, they speak English,” says Bellezza, who adds that she’s not fluent in Turkish.

            At a practical level, most problems cat owners have relate to behavior. Cornell even has an Animal Behavior Hotline, 607-253-3450.

            Meanwhile, Cornell continues to study cat health issues, and receives accolades for their work. For example, Dr. John Parker, assistant professor of virology at Cornell's Baker Institute for Animal Health, recently received Pfizer Animal Health's Award for Research Excellence for his study entitled "Feline Calicivirus-Receptor Interactions - Insights." Parker's research has been funded, in part, by the Cornell Feline Health Center.

            Experts at this year’s Symposium spoke about neurological disorders in cats, socialization classes for kittens, enriching the lives of overweight cats, cats as second class citizens, the latest on the feline herpes virus, and national effort to elevate the status of cats, called CATalyst.

©Steve Dale, Tribune Media Services