No one ever wants to hear that his or her cat has a heart condition that is likely terminal. However, it is helpful to understand what's going on behind all those unpronounceable names, and to learn what we can do to help make our cat as comfortable as possible for as long as possible.

One of these diseases, endomyocarditis, or inflammation of the inner heart muscle and lining, is an acute heart and lung (cardiopulmonary) disease that typically develops following a stressful event. It is characterized by interstitial pneumonia, and inflammation of the innermost portion of the heart. Pneumonia is usually severe and commonly results in death. Learn more about Endomyocarditis and Endocardial Fibroelastosis with EMB in Cats.

Other Heart Conditions in Cats

Heart Failure in Cats
Feline Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
Feline Hypertension

Every day, I receive numerous press releases, and news stories by email, many of them good, some not-so-good, and occasionally, one that is downright ugly. Here's a sampling from the last couple of days, in reverse order to the title, so as not to leave this blog post on an ugly note:

The Ugly

From the Cats Forum "From The Globe and Mail": "Toronto Humane Society officials arrested, face animal-cruelty charges."

"These are animals who are just left to die in their cages," Christopher Avery, a lawyer for the Ontario SPCA, said during the raid. "They're found dozens at a time, dead in [a] cage, every morning in this building. Read the original forum post for links to more news coverage of this arrest.

The Bad:

From msnbc news: Certain bags of Premium Edge Finicky Adult Cat and Premium Edge Hairball cat food (recalled in September) have sickened 21 cats in the south and along the northeast coast. I covered this recall in a blog early in October, and also at the same time updated my top picks of dry cat food to reflect this information. This recall illustrates the importance of rotating foods when feeding cats. Cats who obtained thiamine from other food sources should not have been affected by this food. From the Premium Edge web site: "Product testing proved no contaminants were discovered in the cat food; however the cat foods were deficient in thiamine. Diamond tracked the vitamin premix lot number that was utilized in these particular cat foods and have performed testing on another lot of Premium Edge cat food that used the same vitamin premix, and it was not deficient in thiamine. No other neurological signs have been reported on any other product manufactured by Diamond Pet Foods."

The Good:

From The Animal Rescue Site and Petfinder.com: Clicks on the purple button became over 7 million bowls of food for shelter animals in November. You can also help support the work of the Animal Rescue Site by shopping in its gift shop.

About this photo: Keith has fixed up his garage into an outdoor hotel for vagrant (feral) cats, complete with large dog beds and outdoor-safe electric blankets. He presently has 11 invited "guests," all black cats (some were born there of feral mothers), along with some uninvited dinner guests, such as the little guy shown here, a possum, and a raccoon.
_{Photo Credit: © Keith Vassilatos}

This photo was soooo cute, but I couldn't decide on a short, snappy caption for it, so decided I'd open it up to my readers with a little contest. Post your very best caption (think "short") in the comments below, and next Wednesday, I'll select my favorite 10, then we'll have a vote. No prizes for the winner, but 15 minutes of fame and some bragging rights.

More Wordless Wednesday

About.com Cats WW Archives
Wordless Wednesday on About.com
Wordless Wednesday Web Site

Sunday Night as I watched the movie "A Dog Named Christmas," I was touched by the idea which was the premise for movie, inspired by the book of the same name, written by Greg Kincaid. Animal shelters are generally overflowing and understaffed, especially during the hectic holiday seasons. What a lovely concept: to foster a shelter cat or dog, and to give him or her a real home, instead of a lonely cage, if only for a few weeks.

And what a pleasant surprise to find out that Petfinder.com was also inspired by the movie to create its own Foster a Lonely Pet for the Holidays program. Over 2,000 shelters and rescue groups are participating in the program, and you can find one close to you in the Petfinder database. If you've been seriously thinking about adopting a new pet, but aren't yet sure you can make the commitment, this is an excellent way to give a cat or dog a trial run. Even if you are not ready to adopt, it would be a wonderful way to bring some holiday cheer to a homeless pet. Who knows? You may be so bonded by the end of the holiday period that you'll decide to make the relationship permanent.
_{Photo Credit: © iStock Photo/Julia Pivovarova}

If you've been thinking about fostering cats and kittens, this is also a wonderful opportunity to test your mettle before making a long-term commitment. Read stories and advice from current cat fosters, and if you already foster cats and kittens, post your own story.

Related Reading:

Holiday Help for Animals in Need
Fostering Dogs for the Holidays
Shelter Cat Adoption