Your Cat May Be Suffering in Silence!

Cats have a natural instinct to suffer in silence. Cats can be hurting and unless you are alert to your cat's behavior you may never know it has a problem until it becomes too late to do anything about it.

One of the silent causes of a cat's suffering is degenerative joint disease (DJD). According to current research this is happening to cats more than most people realize.

What is degenerative joint disease (DJD)? A healthy joint has cartilage covering and cushioning the ends of opposing bones. When the cartilage (which does not have any nerves) wears away and the bone (which does have nerves) touches another bone without the benefit of a cartilage cushion, stiffness, pain and inflammation happen. Along with this pain, bony projections form on the exposed bone causing the poor cat more pain.

Cats have a habit of trying to not exhibit the fact that they are hurting and as a result the degeneration is often hidden until a vet notices something is really wrong.

What are the signs of pain your cat may be silently exhibiting? Of course the most obvious sign maybe lameness or a subtle limp, but most often a cat will do other things to throw you off the track such as:

• Such things a hiding, keeping out of sight, which is a natural instinct to protect themselves from predators when they are not feeling well.


• Licking and biting a particular area on their bodies, not normal grooming, but a continual licking, as if to lick or bite the pain away.


• Looking for warm or soft places to rest.


• Limiting its trips to the food and water dishes because it hurts to walk


• Missing the litter box, the digging hurts the joint.


• Grooming themselves less.


• Not jumping up on favorite chairs or places.

Research has shown that decrease jumping is the most common sign. If you feed your cat on a counter or high place and notice that it is not eating like it usually does it maybe a sure sign your cat has a joint problem. Not eating or drinking can cause your cat to become dehydrated and to lose weight.

Detecting signs of DJD can be difficult as cats are light on their feet and can compensate for the pain. Many times it is not until the cat becomes much older that you recognize there is a problem. For example when petting your cat in a certain area it suddenly growls or bites if you touch a joint, that generally is a sign of DJD. It is normal for cat owners when they see decreased activity or a loss of appetite to think it is part of aging, when it really is a sign of degenerative joint disease.

Early treatment by your vet can make your cat's life much simpler and less painful, but is sometimes hard to detect.

There are two types of DJD. Primary DJD is the result of normal wear and tear on the joints as the cat gets older. Secondary DJD is caused by other conditions that may affect the joints such as trauma to a joint from a fall, possible hip dysplasia (yes, cats can have it), congenital malformed joints, tumors, bacterial and fungal infections or autoimmune diseases.

According to a study that was done by the "Journal of Small Animal Practice" in August of 2006 it showed that DJD showed up in the elbow of cats, 45 percent of the time and in the hip, 38 percent of the time. However some vets and researchers suspect that the real cause of lameness is not a joint problem, but the instability of the lumbar vertebrae (the last bones of the back) and the sacrum (the triangular bone that attaches the lumbar to the pelvis).

It is recommended that your vet can help you determine the actual cause of your pet's discomfort by the manipulation and the feel of each joint in the front and rear limbs for heat, pain and swelling. However, it is really you, that can provide the best information by knowing and watching you cat in your everyday observations of your cat's behavior. Bonding and knowing your cat is the best advice I can give because if you do that, you and only you really know your cat and its behavior.