#vet med in warrior cats

[careforcritters]

Vet Med in Warrior Cats: Oncology (Cancer)

Disclaimer

Pebblefur, a Windclan deputy who appears in Code of the Clans, was stated to have died from a “strange, agonizing lump in his belly”. Shellheart, a former Riverclan deputy and father to Crookedstar, was also stated to have a similar painful lump in his abdomen, which caused him to retire and is suspected to be the cause of his death. The medicine cat in Crookedstar’s Promise, Brambleberry, stated that she had seen this condition before and that cats who suffer from it never get better. Ravenpaw has this same condition in Ravenpaw’s Farewell, which leads to his death.

These cats are likely suffering from a form of gastrointestinal cancer, and the most common presentation of GI cancer in cats is small intestinal lymphoma. Signs of intestinal cancer include vomiting, inappetence, diarrhea, and weight loss. While vomiting and diarrhea were not mentioned in the books, Shellheart and Ravenpaw both appear to be suffering from pain and gradual weight loss. Intestinal tumors can also lead to perforation, which would cause death fairly rapidly. Most lymphomas are small cell, which is a low grade lymphoma, and has a slow onset and progression of clinical signs. This is consistent with the three cats in warriors who were seen to have cancer, as Shellheart and Ravenpaw both knew that they were dying as their pain slowly got worse. 

In a veterinary clinic or hospital, small intestinal lymphoma would be diagnosed with a combination of histopathology, immunohistochemistry, and PCR for Antigen Receptor Rearrangement. It would be treated with a combination of chlorambucil (a chemotherapy drug) and prednisolone (an anti-inflammatory). Expected survival time is about two years with treatment. Medicine cats would have no way to know what the cause of the symptoms was, and would have no treatments for it even if they did. The best that they can do is to provide supportive care and try and ease their pain until death.

In the novella Cloudstar’s Journey, Petalfall is described as having periodic seizures and progressive weakness after suffering from an illness. As the prey grows scarce in Skyclan, she eats less and becomes weaker and has more frequent seizures until she passes. It is possible that Petalfall could have had a tumor in her brain since they can cause seizures, but this is never confirmed. Since the seizures were noted to have started after Petalfall fell ill, she is more likely to be suffering from meningitis or encephalitis after the infection spread to her nervous system. This topic will be covered in the neurology section. 

Other common cancers in cats that are not seen in warriors include squamous cell carcinoma of the mouth, skin, and nose, fibrosarcomas in skeletal muscles, and mammary tumors in intact females. All of these tumors could be visible in later stages without imaging or surgery, but none of them appear to be mentioned in the series. As stated before, medicine cats don’t have diagnostic or treatment options for any type of cancer. One explanation for this is that the warriors’ lifespans are shorter than most domestic cats and that many characters die of other causes before reaching an advanced age. However, since they live outside, have near constant sun exposure, and none of them are spayed or neutered, I would expect a much higher rate of squamous cell carcinoma (especially in pink skinned cats) and mammary gland tumors.

sources:

Gieger T. Alimentary lymphoma in cats and dogs. Vet Clin North Am Small Anim Pract. 2011 Mar;41(2):419-32. doi: 10.1016/j.cvsm.2011.02.001. PMID: 21486644

Withrow and MacEwen’s Small Animal Clinical Oncology

#warrior cats #veterinary medicine #oncology #Inspired by today's lecture in GI tumors (This counts as studying right?) #vet med in warrior cats #warriors

[brickworm-deactivated]

#warrior cat ocs #shes a turkish angora kittypet that smuggles her leftover vet meds 4 th warriors :] #also #shes a show cat :]]] #my art #my ocs #procreate #digital art #cats #artists on tumblr

[creativeusernamerighthere]

more will solace hcs

he’s deaf in one ear and hard of hearing in the other so he uses hearing aids

people started wanting to learn asl to accommodate him and he ended up teaching a class for those interested. almost everyone at camp goes

hes an outgoing introvert: he loves being around people but sometimes he needs to recharge by himself

he has autism spectrum disorder, undiagnosed until he gets to camp and one of his older siblings tells him he might be autistic. they send him to chiron and they were right, though he still doesn’t have a diagnosis in the mortal world

hes pretty good at masking but during his time at camp has gotten better at being ok with not having his mask up

he does the flappy hands stimming when he’s excited and he’ll jump up and down but only in front of people he trusts

otherwise for stimming he fingerspells (basically spelling out words in asl) either the alphabet or a long word that he hears, and he fidgets with his jewelry. he likes beaded jewelry like his camp necklace for this purpose

he wears tons of elastic beaded bracelets, like covering half his forearms, so he can play with them but also because he likes all the different colors and patterns. elastic specifically so he can easily push them up or take them off for when he needs to heal people

he doesn’t like healing bc it means people are hurt. yes he’s glad that he can help, but he would much prefer he didn’t have to be a healer at all

along those lines, he wants to be a tattoo artist when he grows up. he’s ok with being a doctor bc he thinks that’s what he’s supposed to do (eldest child syndrome and being raised as a healer). he’d feel guilty for not helping as many people as possible if he didn’t become a doctor, but especially after all the wars, he’d much rather just be doing art, especially tattoos bc he can make them heal quicker. working as a doctor will be taxing on his mental health as an adult

on that note, i think he’ll go to med school, drop out after a couple semesters and start his work as a tattoo artist after realizing just how bad his mental health can get from healing (the trauma of all the injuries and deaths he has seen is too much, especially since when they’re covering a type of injury in his med school classes, often times he associates a friend with said injury)

he could never decide on a favorite color as a kid, but now if you ask him it’s sunset orange and twilight

he was obsessed with yu gi oh or pokemon or magic the gathering when he was younger

he wasn’t into warrior cats but all the other kids at camp were. he didn’t often interact with annabeth bc she was a cool older kid, but during his first school year at camp, the year before percy got to camp, she begged him to be their medicine cat

he listens to audiobooks. especially when doing arts and crafts or doing menial tasks

he (and a lot of battle of manhattan vets) has trauma and flashbacks from the song staying alive

unironically listens to country music, everyone makes fun of him for it

also secretly loves taylor swift

definitely listens to a lot of classic rock too

he and leo tried dating once, went on a singular date and decided that was that. they didn’t actually like each other, it was really just peer pressure

definitely in the same school year as that, but whether it was before or after is up for grabs (im leaning towards after), he dated connor stoll. it wasn’t very serious and they both knew that, so no hard feelings when they broke up, they kept being close friends. both have physical touch as a huge love language, so you could always find them with their arms around each other. while will and nico probably do a lot of casual touches that are less noticeable like a hand on the others knee, connor and will are both big personalities and so they were all over each other. talk about pda. the amount of times their friends and siblings found them making out wasn’t even funny, not to mention they were always sitting on each others laps and hugging each other from behind, etc

they broke up after two or three months when they both decided they needed to focus more on the war with the romans and on spending all their time with their siblings and friends, just in case

the apollo cabin runs a tattoo parlor (under the radar). it’s been running for who knows how long, at least decades, a secret that each head counselor passes down to the next generation before they go off to college. now will runs it, as the lead healer of the cabin. this was his first exposure to tattoos and what led him to his aforementioned dream of being a tattoo artist

speaking of tattoos, after getting the sun on his chest and realizing it didn’t hurt too bad, he let his siblings experiment on him. he doesn’t mind having a couple of small tattoos in odd places, so long as he agrees to the design beforehand. so what if he has a ghost on one wrist and a frog on the other? it’s cute, he likes it, but he never would have thought of it if he didn’t give his siblings some creative freedom

he loves doodling and drawing. no painting or any other media than pencil, charcoal, or one color pen, but he does some awesome drawings

#will solace #percy jackson #percy jackon and the olympians #nico di angelo #connor stoll #heroes of olympus #leo valdez #tattoos #cabin 7 #trials of apollo #pjo series #pjo fandom #pjo hoo toa #headcanon

[cryptidclaw]

I would love to do some cute little doodles of my cats in the warriors universe but i CANNOT imagine my cat Button being a warrior.

She hates exercise and refuses to play with anything except for craft store pompoms, she can tell if its not a pompom and will not play with it. She only drinks water fresh from the sink and would rather dehydrate herself than drink out of her actual water bowl. We changed her food to special vet prescribed senior cat wet food which is fancier than her old stuff but she protested and refused to eat for ages. She would not be able to handle a mouse from the woods at all. The only person she wants to interact with is me, and she fights her brother constantly, but she always loses, because she is weak, but she thinks she’s tough shit. 

She could be a medicine cat but she would be the kind of med cat who hates all her patients and her job and if anyone pisses her off she will slap them in the face and kick them out of the medicine den. 

She is an evil old woman. I love her so much, she’s so nice to me, but only to me lmaoooo 

Anywayyys her brother Wally could be a warrior, he’s a good strong boy. kind man, his only problem is that he’s obsessed with food. He loves everyone and likes to climb up on my shoulders and ride around with me.

The criminal button v

Her and her sweet brother v

#cryptid rambles #warrior cats #this is just my excuse to ramble about my cats #I love them so much #Button will also barf or pee on my stuff if i leave the house for too long out of vengeance

[swoopingsilver]

You know, hearing all this talk of banning books brings back so many memories of reading books that went over my head at the age I was reading them. Animorphs and its anti-war messages and the descriptions of the morphing. Warrior Cats and its often time graphic descriptions of animal injury and mutilation. I think I read Call of the Wild when I was like, 7. All those books did was make me interested in helping animals and go into vet med.

However, my mother did get something almost banned, or at least more regulated, in my school when I was in elementary school because of what she read online.

She made it harder for kids to use hand sanitizer. In middle of the 2008 flu season.

She read on Facebook about some case of a girl licking the stuff off her hands. Not to wild, tbh. Kids are dumb and you give them something thats pretty and has little colorful beads in it and smells like cupcakes or whatever, they’ll put it in their mouth. But apparently this girl decided to keep doing it, and ended up ingesting a lot and got sick. She ended up in the hospital. Okay, yeah, kinda bad.

My mom shared it with all of her friends, and since she was the Girl Scout troop leader at the time, her friends included the PTA moms. And the PTA moms LOST THEIR SHIT. They apparently thought their precious little children were going to start chugging the hand sanitizer. Because telling little Johnny not to drink chemicals is too much work on their part or something.

To settle them down, the school agreed to do a few things.

No hand sanitizer where the kids could not be monitored. This means they stopped filling the dispensers in communally used areas. It also means the hand sanitizer in classrooms had to be put up out of reach and could only come down if the kids asked for it, or right before lunch.

Kids could decline using hand sanitizer before lunch. Before hand, everyone had to use it.

Teachers had to ensure that kids were rubbing the sanitizer in enough that they couldn’t lick it off.

Now. As expected, kids didn’t want the teacher to sit and stare at them while they were rubbing in hand sanitizer. So they stopped using it.

Like I said, it was in middle of the flu season. You can guess how that went.

Anyways can’t wait to see the results of banning LGBT, BIPOC, and any other book that might make their kids think for three seconds does to the new generation.

[banamine-bananime]

I’m Vis, mid-twenties vet student. I only think about dairy med and space marines please talk to me about them ✌️

He/she cis lesbian btw

Some things I love:

- CATTLE. COWS. everything about em. dairy production med. youngstock, replacement heifer development, naughty little calves in general. livestock welfare and sustainable production.

- other ruminants and camelids and horses and pigs and poultry and bees are also very very good i love their medicine too

- media: rvb (most of what will be posted here), homestuck (yes. still.), dungeon meshi, svsss, mdzs, hxh, mha, the southern reach, drv3, helluva boss, star trek ds9, discworld, warrior cats, lost, hhgttg, dc comics, many others

- amphibians, arthropods, and other weird little dudes

- botany, ecology, biology in general

I’ve got an rvb aesthetics sideblog

sometimes I write rvb fic

my catchall tag for running my mouth or making stuff

also i'm trying to archive transcripts of all rvb scenes by characters and interactions wish me luck

#it seems like people have moved away from about pages to pinned posts so

[jarvis-cockhead]

the warrior cats medicine cat roleplayer to vet med student pipeline is so real

#i know two of them.

[mud-castle]

Sorry.

Smal medicine cat who ran into Thunderclan territory when Yellowfang was exiled, we think?

The small Shadowclan medicine cat.

Unless we're mistaken and that was a different character.

(Someone in my system tells me I may have been thinking of LittleCLOUD, sorry.)

- Deulara

Oh, Littlecloud.

Now that's interesting.

Cinderpelt never gets hit on the Thunderpath since Fireheart doesn't take the time to visit Princess when he grabs herbs from the gardens. He barely manages to push her out of the way of the car (which actually breaks the end of his tail). Tigerclaw is very "apologetic" about that even though it was totally Cinderpaw's fault for getting in the way and even more Fireheart's for not being able to control her.

So Cinder becomes a warrior...which means she can't and doesn't do anything when Littlecloud and Whitethroat come begging for help. I could just have them die and be done with it, but that's no fun.

Now, Fireheart doesn't care about their lives, but he likes cats to be indebted to him, so he tracks them down and casually mentions that the twolegs are their best chance of survival. So they go to the Twolegplace and stumble onto Smudge and Fire convinces him to grab his twolegs to help them. They are taken to the vet and eventually return healthy and immune to catching the sickness and Little decides he wants to be a med cat after that and goes to Runningnose for apprenticeship while Whitethroat sticks around Smudge and eventually joins the Hope Colony.

They both know of the colony's existence and it took care of them while they were recovering. So, probably not good when Tigerstar starts bringing the Colony to the forest.

#dark mirror au #ask

[qwanjiro]

YO vet Taka is an au I have not thought of! Is he is still interested in politics in this au? Not only is he a vet but a social justice warrior as well. Mondo is screwed, this is gonna be his biggest crush ever. Also how is chuck?

This is quite a long one, be sure to buckle up!

Hmm.. in this AU Taka doesn’t really interested in politics actually. Or rather, not as much as he used to. You could say he did an 180 degree turn on his life choices after he learned the truth about the *real* political issues nowadays (which is, surprisingly, fucked up).

‘You don’t need to be a police officer or even a Prime Minister to change the world. You just have to try your best, and treat the people around you with sincerity’. That’s what Takaaki had said to a devastated Taka. Supporting his son all the way.

So with his father’s blessings (who’s really joyful that his son won’t experience the same hell as him) Taka came to conclusion that he’ll do something. Don’t know what yet, but something. Other than political stuff.

He can’t think of anything though, he just mindlessly looking for majors that might suited him and more to his liking, but he found none. Until one day he came across an injured cat lying helplessly on the park bench, he dropped everything and swiftly treated its wounds with his mediocre skills. He may be intense, but caring is his second nature.

What he didn’t expect though, his senior, Gundham Tanaka, had been standing still behind him this whole time, with a med kit in hand. Upon being noticed Gundham strode to him, grabbed him, and said something along the line : “You mortal are one of the thousands- hah, millions even! That has not shivered upon witnessing the true god of mischief. I see you are proven yourself to be a worthy opponent with gifted golden hands! Say, mortal, are you ready to sell your soul to the underworld?”

Vet.. Gundham was offering Taka a job at his vet. THE infamous Tanaka vet. He didn’t even asked his name yet..

But.. he thinks.. he would really like that, actually.

So with Gundham’s help (and his own hard work), Taka manage to surpass his relevant degree, and sold his soul to the underworld. He’s happy with this.

But enough about Taka, let’s switch up to Mondo a little bit. A ‘biggest crush’ is an understatement. Taka is Mondo’s biggest BIGGEST crush. Ever. If Mondo died and reborn as someone else, he’d still simping for this guy, no question asked. But if you asked him why he liked him so hard, he couldn’t quite get it, either. Maybe it’s the way Taka handle chuck with such carefulness and such patience, maybe it’s the way his eyes lit up when chuck gradually getting better, maybe it’s his freakishly high moral and justice, or maybe the way his cheeks turned into a light shade of pink every time Mondo talked to him. Everything about him is so.. sincere. But eh, who knows how love worked?

And before he knows it. He’s screwed up big time. He thought this is just a platonic animal doctor with their appointment but it’s more like a ‘Oh shit I definitely love him’ kinda vibes. Oh well.

And chuck.. good ol’ chuck. Don’t let her cute and tiny face fool you. This girl knows what’s up. After the first visit (and completely healed up, mind you), she frequently starts getting ‘sick’ and ‘whined in pain’ to her overly worried owner who never learned. She can sense that Mondo somehow felt happier when he’s in the vet. Even when the red eyed man often raised an eyebrow at her owner after checking up a super healthy dog, But hey, two happy humans is better than one. Good girl 10/10 would be the best wingman.

#ishimondo #danganronpa #kiyotaka ishimaru #mondo oowada #you ask and i shall reply #i like the idea of Taka working under Gundham ok #hc #vet!AU #chuck

[willowheartswarriors]

I am 100% fully aware that the venn diagram of Pathologic fans and Warrior Cats fans includes only me in the center

BUT

I can’t stop thinking abt a WC crossover w/ the three doctors as med cats, with each of them approaching the job a little differently. Artemy would be a fairly traditional healer who mainly uses herbs and other natural remedies. Clara would be very connected to StarClan and frequently receive prophetic dreams/interpret them, even for other clans. And Daniil would probably be an ex-kittypet whose owners were vets or something, so he incorporates bits of modern human medicine where he can (obvs he wouldn’t have access to actual medicine but like, he might be more practiced in wrapping wounds, avoiding infection, and performing routine check-ups, as well as identifying health conditions like diabetes and seizures that others wouldn’t have a name for).

This is incredibly self-indulgent so just ignore me skjdjks but it has been taking up space in my brain

[iwritesometimes]

quarantine q&a

the ever-fabulous @lazaefair�� (AND I’VE JUST SEEN @poemsingreenink​ as well!!!<3) tagged me to complete a little cabin-fever antidote quiz, so HERE WE GO!!

Are you staying home from work/school?

staying home, but still working. technically i’m even working a little extra because i have to be on call on sundays, as we have a lot of work related to coronavirus plaguing my department. however, i get to do all this work in my PJs, from the comfort of my couch, with cats adhered to various parts of my body. so it’s, on average, a thousand times better than the way i usually have to work.

If you’re staying home, who’s there with you?

my little sister and her fiancée, and our collective five cats. guys: we live with so many cats in this house. that’s not a new coronavirus development. it’s just how we live. SO many cats.

Are you a homebody?

extremely - to be honest, i rarely go places anyway, and even then mostly with my family. all my friends are online. but even i, legendary hermit in a metaphorical cave (with wifi), am starting to feel vaguely cabin fevery. i’m going to relish a trip to the grocery store this weekend. i might cry on the vet tech when i go pick up louie’s meds.

An event that you were looking forward to that got cancelled?

my dad and i were supposed to go to NYC to see Keane this weekend. i’m so bummed we’re not going to get a chance to go. he and i rarely do things together just us, and i was hoping to take him to Levain, which is like two blocks from the venue, to try their supposedly amazing cookies. also, KEANE, who i wasn’t sure were ever going to release another album or tour again. THANKS, CORONAVIRUS. also, on a much less petty note, one of my best friends was supposed to get married next month, and now that’s been postponed. i’m glad we’re not going to either event, of course, and it’s the right thing to do. but it still sucks.

What movies have you watched recently? What shows are you watching?

so, EXTREMELY ill-advisedly, my sister made me watch Contagion with her last weekend. DON’T DO THIS. as a palate cleanser, however, we later watched Warcraft, and i loved it, and none of you can judge me. if i had seen that shit at like 10 years old i would have lost my goddamn mind. even at 33 it was pretty great to get to see Lothar as a bumbling moron and Khadgar as his magical twink sidekick. the CGI was eye-searing, the storyline was much more followable than i expected, and the shoulderguards were patently huge. it was a big dumb fun movie.

we then had some more big dumb fun bingeing The Letter for the King, right up until the point in the last episode where two of the male sidekick characters - the warrior and the bard, who had been a little flirty throughout if you squinted - OUT AND OUT KISSED, and we screamed and hyperventilated, and then they dropped an anvil of foreshadowing IMMEDIATELY after and we googled to see their fate. yeah, one of them gets killed like a half hour after that. we stopped watching right where we’d paused it. we’re still utterly furious. it was so much fucking cute fun. goddammit.

i also blitzed The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel recently and enjoyed it overall. i have watched ALL of The Repair Shop that is available to me and if you need a show to put on when you just need a fucking break, i could not recommend it more. i started Black Sails and i’ll probably continue it because everyone says it’s amazing. i tried the first episode of The Untamed and oooo boy, did it make absolutely no sense whatsoever to me and i literally could not tell you a single thing that happened in it. i keep hearing it gets better, so i’m gonna try to soldier through. THE GIFSETS ARE JUST SO FUCKING BEAUTIFUL. but lordy that was a rough experience. 

What music are you listening to?

mostly the usual “lofi hiphop study” crap i keep on to work to. i listened through most of Carpenter Brut’s discography yesterday and it was GREAT. listening to Keane, of course - their new album is so sad and frustrating, subject-matter-wise, but OOO THE SONGS ARE REALLY GOOD.

What are you reading?

lol, endless coronavirus messaging for work :’( also, all fifteen (15) fics in the hugh/elnor tag on ao3 FUCK i need to WRITE something for them.

also might fuck around and reread Persuasion for the LONGING.

What are you doing for self-care?

been HYPER limiting my time online/on social media. i’m sorry if i’ve been hard to get hold of, i’m not trying to ignore anyone or disappear. i’m just basically working constantly on wordswordswords about this stupid pandemic and then, when i clock out, playing videogames or watching my sisters play videogames (the Ori games and Hollow Knight have been a balm in these times - even if Hollow Knight is about a spreading infection and the collapse of an unjust society WHOOOOOPS) or daydreaming about nonexistent Star Trek romances and not looking at twitter, the news, discord, or even tumblr too much. i just can’t take it.

so anyway! lol. sorry. it’s late and i need to go to bed, i’ve barely been sleeping. it’s been a weird couple of weeks. i love you all and hope sincerely you’re staying safe out there and looking out for each other. take a walk tomorrow, if you can, or drive around for the fresh air. it’s springtime, the world is still beautiful, we just have to stick it out a few more weeks in our depression caves. THE ONLY WAY OUT IS THROUGH, Y’ALL!!!!!

if the following gorgeous people have any interest in divulging their quarantine agendas and haven’t done so already, i would love to hear from them!!

@northstarfan​ @boba-fettuccine​ @omicheese​ @wolfhalls​ @onyxmoonstone​ @look-and-wonder​ @bebeocho​ @shih-shoulda-had-it​

#gpoy #MISSIVES FROM A QUARANTINE SHELTER CRAWLING WITH CATS literally one of them is trying to steal leftover food from a plate as we SPEAK

[careforcritters]

Vet Med in Warrior Cats: Whitecough, Greencough, and Yellowcough

Disclaimer

The two main respiratory infections in the warriors series are whitecough and greencough. Whitecough is less severe and can progress to greencough, which has worse symptoms and a graver prognosis. Vicky Holmes states in the 3rd Erin Hunter chat that whitecough is similar to a cough (likely an upper respiratory infection) and greencough is pneumonia (lower respiratory infection), but the specific diseases that each of these coughs represent is never mentioned. The name “greencough” comes from the green fluid that cats cough up when they are affected, whereas cats with whitecough are stated to cough up clear (serous) fluid. A third respiratory disease, yellow cough, makes an appearance in the A Vision of Shadows series. The disease presents similarly to greencough but does not respond to catmint.

There is no way to tell which pathogens each of these diseases might be caused by because the symptoms of each pathogen are very similar, so they are likely caused by several different pathogens and/or combinations. Feline respiratory disease complex (FRDC) is a major cause of upper respiratory infections in cats and is caused by any of the following pathogens, alone or in combination: feline herpes virus (FVR), feline calicivirus (FCV), mycoplasma felis, and chlamydia felis. Bartonella henselae and Bordetella bronchiseptica can also contribute to symptoms. FVR and FCV specifically cause 80-90% of the respiratory disease that is observed in cats. These pathogens are spread by respiratory droplets, direct contact with infected cats, or contact with fomites (objects that have come into contact with the pathogen). Previously infected cats can carry and spread FVR or FCV without showing clinical signs. Acute signs include fever, sneezing, nasal discharge, conjunctivitis, and rhinitis. “Coughing” is not a symptom of respiratory infections in cats, but it is frequently mentioned in Warriors. Cats cough when affected by a lower respiratory infection, laryngeal infection, allergies, or heartworms, but rarely cough as a result of an upper respiratory infection. Symptoms are often more severe in very old and very young cats, which is consistent with the books since kits and elders die the most often from whitecough or greencough. Cats that have respiratory infections in warriors are often shown to refuse food, which is consistent with findings that sick and/or feverish animals are often anorexic. Calicivirus causes painful lesions in the mouth, which can also contribute to cats refusing to eat. 

FRDC is generally self limiting and resolves itself in 5-10 days in mild cases, but can take up to 6 weeks to resolve completely in more severe cases. Because of this, mild to moderate respiratory infections could be treated with just supportive care. Medicine cats do this by providing food, water, and rest to infected cats, which is why most cases of whitecough or other nondescript respiratory diseases are resolved in the series. The bigger issue is when there are more severe cases or cases that have ocular involvement. 

Ocular involvement can result from almost any respiratory disease causing agent, and can range from discharge to severe conjunctivitis, ulcers, and even globe rupture. Conjunctivitis and other ocular symptoms of respiratory disease are never mentioned in Warriors besides some mild tearing. I will be talking about this issue more in an ocular section later on, as it connects to some broader issues. 

To treat more severe cases of respiratory disease, veterinarians often use antivirals, antibiotics, and/or antifungal depending on the pathogens present. Supportive care should also be provided, in addition to feeding tubes and/or treatment of corneal ulcers if necessary. Medicine cats provide supportive care to their patients by providing them with food, water, and warm, dry bedding. For many cases of respiratory disease, this should be enough to help the cat survive since disease is usually self limiting and will resolve with time. A variety of herbs are used in Warriors to treat respiratory infections, but the most notable is catmint. Catmint is also known as catnip, and it is famously known to have psychological effects on cats by acting first as a stimulant from the smell and then a sedative from ingestion. While its effects mimic pheromones, which can be calming, there is no evidence that catmint can be used to combat respiratory disease. Catnip can also be toxic in large doses, causing nausea and vomiting. Cats also become slowly more resistant to its effects with repeated use. Chickweed and Hawkweed are both less effective treatments for greencough. Chickweed has been shown to have some antimicrobial properties, though it is most effective against salmonella and E.coli, both of which are not respiratory pathogens. Hawkweed has been used in some European countries to ease respiratory disease and asthma symptoms, but there has not been research on this. In Long Shadows, tansy is introduced as a way to prevent whitecough from progressing to greencough. Though tansy has been used for various medical issues in humans, it has never been reported to be used for respiratory disease. Coltsfoot is an herb that eases breathing, so it is commonly used for respiratory distress. Coltsfoot was historically used for coughs and respiratory distress in people, and recent studies have proved its efficacy in reducing lung inflammation. Brighteye and lovage are also mentioned briefly in Mistystar’s Omen as another treatment for coughing. These two herbs have been shown to improve symptoms of respiratory disease and allergies in humans, but have not been researched sufficiently. Lungwort is the herb that is presented to Puddleshine by Starclan to treat the emergent yellowcough epidemic in Shadowclan. Lungwort has been used to ease tuberculosis and asthma in humans, but again, there is no substantial research to back this. In addition, Birchsap is briefly mentioned as another possible treatment for yellowcough, but it’s not seen being used in the books. Birchsap traditionally has various medical and cosmetic uses in some cultures, but no research has been done to prove its efficacy. 

Overall, the Warriors series gives a fairly accurate depiction of respiratory illness while leaving out some crucial details. The omittance of any ocular involvement, especially in young kittens where it is most prevalent, is a large oversight. The description of the disease process is mostly accurate, however coughing is not as common of a symptom as nasal discharge and rhinitis. Cats in feral colonies are often carrying these diseases without actively showing symptoms, which is why bouts of whitecough can appear suddenly in a clan (especially in times of stress and poor nutrition such as leafbare, which would suppress the cat’s immune responses). As far as treatment goes, medicine cats are providing adequate care to most cats but simply taking care of their basic needs. In more severe cases, medicine is needed. While none of the herbs listed can effectively mimic an antibiotic or antiviral, hawkweed, coltsfoot, brighteye, lovage, and lungwort seem like the most accurate treatments for infection used in the books. Coltsfoot specifically has the most evidence for easing respiratory symptoms, and would be beneficial for medicine cats to use in moderate to severe cases of respiratory disease.

Sources:

https://www.merckvetmanual.com/respiratory-system/respiratory-diseases-of-small-animals/feline-respiratory-disease-complex?query=feline%20respiratory%20disease

https://www.vet.cornell.edu/departments-centers-and-institutes/cornell-feline-health-center/health-information/feline-health-topics/respiratory-infections 

https://vetmed.tamu.edu/news/pet-talk/feline-fine-the-benefits-of-catnip/ 

https://botanicalinstitute.org/eyebright/

https://botanicalinstitute.org/chickweed/ 

https://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/h/hawmou08.html

https://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/t/tansy-05.html 

https://dsps.lib.uiowa.edu/roots/coltsfoot/ 

https://www.fs.usda.gov/wildflowers/plant-of-the-week/lobaria_pulmonaria.shtml

#Vet med in warrior cats #vet med #warriors #warrior cats #long post #sorry to start off with an entire research paper but I think this one will be the longest section

[where-the-wilds-things-are]

Wild Meets Wild Chapter Two

Rusty openly gaped at what Bluestar had said.  Behind him, Princess widened her eyes while Smudge gasped. Judging by her Clanmate’s expressions, they weren’t the only ones surprised by the question.

“You want us to join your Clan?” asked Smudge. The tom looked genuinely surprised at this, and so was Rusty. Lucky Land Lane cats had mixed feelings about the Colony of Feral Cats that lived in the forest.  One group despised them, never forgetting the raids that had hurt and even killed their loved ones all those years ago. Others were curious about what life could be like outside the city, and the last was neutral.

Lionheart turned his golden head to face his Leader, shock burning in his green eyes.  “Bluestar, are you sure about this? Sure, two of them are nearly bigger than a warrior, but all still have that kitty pet softness," meowed Lionheart.

“And they are kitty pets, how can they be Warriors if they have Housecat blood?” curiously sputtered Graypaw. Rusty shot him a look, and the gray tabby at least looked abashed of what he said.

Something flashed in Bluestar’s green-blue eyes. “Warrior Blood. Too much has been spilled lately. From ThunderClan all the way to ShadowClan.”

Bluestar fell silent and Lionheart took a step forward towards them.

“Bluestar is only offering you training, young kits. There is no guarantee that you would become a full warrior. It might prove too difficult for you three. After all, you are used to a comfortable life.”

Rusty inwardly bristled before quickly becoming contemplative. He and Princess had heated cat beds, food bowls that was never empty, countless cat toys and more. Smudge even had a pool in his backyard, and they swam in it whenever their owners left. What kind of life did a Clan cat live?

“Excuse me, Ma’am, but why give us the chance then. Surely you don’t want inexperienced cats in your Clan?" Mewed Smudge. His shock had faded and a questioning gleam entered his eyes.

Bluestar was the one who answered. “You are right to question our motives, young one. The fact is, ThunderClan needs more warriors, and I can tell that all of you are thinking about what I said."

“Understand that Bluestar does not make this offer lightly,” warned Lionheart. “If you wish to train with us, we will have to take you into our Clan. You must either live with us and respect our ways or return to your homes and never come back. You cannot live with a paw in each world.”

A cool night breeze stirred the brush, and Rusty shivered with hidden excitement. Countless opportunities were opening in front of them with this chance meeting. If joining this Clan stopped him and Princess from becoming like those conceited Show-Cats from Pleasant Street, then he’d take it with open paws.

Really. Those cats spooked him. When Princess compared them with those weird colorful humans in that movie with the girl with the bow and arrow, he didn’t want to believe it. It was when she pointed out that they wear outlandish cat clothing, are vain, and even talk in an off-putting high pitched voice without barely moving their jaws made him make the connection.

“Are you wondering if it’s worth giving up your comfortable kitty pet lives?” asked Bluestar gently. “But do you three realize the price you can pay for your warmth and food?”

Rusty, Princess, and Smudge shot each other glances before looking back at Bluestar with puzzled expressions.  Was this a type of test that they had to answer to pass?

“Well, we can’t really see the stars sometimes since the city lights block them out. Do you see the stars more clearly in the forest?” meowed Princess.

“I lost count how many times my Neighbor blasts his Mixtape during the day, despite the complaints he gets from my owner and others. It’s not even good music either, just something his “band” made together. Is it quiet back in your Clan?" replied Smudge.

“Our Owners, despite giving us gifts and playing with us, always seem to leave us in our house. I don’t know where they are going, but we can be alone for hours until Constance and James come back," said Rusty.

Rusty could see the slightly confused expressions on the Clan cats and realized that maybe Bluestar was referring to something else.

“Well, I was going to say that clearly the two of you are toms despite the stench of two-leg place on your fur. But to answer your questions; the stars shine like dewdrops during the night, birdsong and the voices of your Clanmates are what you will hear, and fellow warriors can be your companions. Though can’t say I know much of the other stuff you had said,” replied Bluestar.

“What do you mean—still a tom? Are you saying you know about cats who are spayed or neutered by the vet?” muttered Smudge. At the mention of the word “vet," Rusty twitched his whiskers in irritation. He hated the sterile smell of those rooms and cold, gloved hands touching him for his check-up. That, and he was worried that he’ll be put under and wake up altered with a cone around his head, so that was another pro in the Clan side.

“You haven’t yet been taken by the Twolegs to see the Cutter,” meowed Bluestar gravely. “You would be very different then. Not quite so keen to fight a Clan cat, I suspect! As for your sister, she would have been Changed, something that would have stopped her from having kits if she wanted it.”

Lionheart spoke up, meeting their eyes with a steady gaze. “There have been stories of kitty pet toms and she-cats being altered in some way by having something taken from them. This can make them not have kits, and even make them fat or lethargic.”

“The Clan may not be able to offer you such easy food or warmth,” continued Bluestar. “In the season of leaf-bare, nights in the forest can be cruel. The Clan will demand great loyalty and hard work. You will be expected to protect the Clan with your life if necessary. And there are many mouths to feed. But the rewards are great. You will remain toms, and a she-cat. You will be trained in the ways of the wild. You will learn what it is to be real cats, your potential unleashed. The strength and the fellowship of the Clan will always be with you, even when you hunt alone.”  meowed Bluestar.

“Wait a minute, I know someone that said the Clans have healers to take care of the ill. Is this true? commented Smudge.

Princess and Rusty blinked at the same time. This was news to them. Though it can explain how the Clan had lasted this long without dying of sickness with no help from humans. It was actually pretty astonishing if it is true.

“You heard about Medicine Cats?” asked Graypaw astonishingly. The tabby tom had been nearly silent for most of the conversation, observing the three beside Lionheart before speaking up in surprise.

Bluestar and Lionheart also showed shock that kitty pets had at least heard about Medicine Cats, though they recovered from it quickly.

“Why yes, we do have cats who treat our ill. As Graypaw had said, they are called Medicine Cats, and their job is to look after us when we are sick or injured, gather herbs, and much more," softly spoke Bluestar.

“Though, I'm curious as to where you had heard this. Smudge, was it?” replied Lionheart, who looked at his black and white friend.

Realizing that he had five gazes on him, Smudge shuffled on his paws. “An old She-cat named Shanty said she had heard a lot of Clan related stuff from her late old friend. One of them was about cats knowing about how to care for the sick. Actually, now that I think about it, she said that he came from a Clan!”

Alarm came off of Bluestar and Lionheart in waves. “Did she say what her friend was called?” Bluestar asked, her voice tense. She had a strange look in her eyes. Something that was mirrored by Lionheart. Graypaw just looked confused.

Taken aback by the sudden change in the air, Smudge licked his lips before continuing. “She said that his name was Pine and that they were very close friends," he meowed. "He even saved her from being hit by a car!"

At hearing the name Pine, the Clan cats reacted to this piece of knowledge. Bluestar and Lionheart’s eyes widened before narrowing and sharing a quick look. Graypaw looked to his Clanmates and the trio in confusion. “Pine?” Then his eyes grew huge. “Do you mean Pine—”

“That’s enough Graypaw," mewed Bluestar. She sighed, her ears twitching. “That is an old name that I thought I would never hear again, until now. And I apologize if I came on a bit hostile, it was just surprised that a kitty pet has had a knowledge of our home."

As the awkward moment passed, it was Lionheart who broke the silence.

“Come, Bluestar, let’s not waste any more time here. We must be ready to join the other patrol at moon-high. Tigerclaw and Mossflower will wonder what has become of us.” He stood up and flicked his tail expectantly towards the undergrowth.

“Wait, can we have time to think about your offer?” Meowed Rusty. While it was so tempting to say yes right off the bat, he and the others needed time to think.

Bluestar looked at them for a long moment and nodded. “Lionheart will be here tomorrow at sun-high,” she told him. “Give him your answers then.”

Bluestar murmured a low signal, and in a single movement, the three cats turned and disappeared into the underbrush.

Processing what just happened, Rusty shook his head. Nervous excitement clung to his fur like a second coat.

“So Smudge, when were you going to tell us that you kinda knew about the Clans?” asked Princess who batted the tom with her tail playfully.

“I didn’t know about a Medicine Cat at all!" Rusty exclaimed, hearing a nearby vole dart away. "How do they learn how to be like a Doctor? Is there a cat equivalent of a MED School going on that we don’t know about?"

As they made their way back home, Smudge replied. “I only heard of it a few days ago from Oscar when he was on his porch. Shanty used to tell a lot of stories to him and anyone who listened. But after she had that surgery with that stomach tumor, she stays in her house now.”

“Right, it was close to being really severe from what I heard. Glad they caught it before it got worse,” said Rusty. Though he only met her once, the brown tabby was kind to him and Princess when the Wintergreens brought them to her house to talk to her owner about something.

“So what will happen now? This feels like a once in a lifetime chance, but I don’t want to regret it either.” Princess meowed honestly. Huffing, she jumped on the fence post and stared at the colorful houses. When he and Smudge copied her action, she continued.

“Let’s be honest, we don’t really know much about the city except Lucky Land Lane, Hillcrest Ave, Pleasant St, that one Pet-Smart, and HeartGold Park. Other than getting into the car to be driven to the vet, that’s all we know. Should we really leave the familiarity of home to live in the unknown?” She said softly.

Rusty looked at her before focusing on what looked like a plane blinking in the sky. “Those are really good points, Princess. But you must have heard about what Constance and James were talking about. They want us to become Show-Cats in some high brow circuit. I for one don’t want to become a pretty-up-puppet that gets used to winning ribbons. They, they want to chip us too, so even if we do leave, they can track us. The timing couldn’t be better, besides, I want to have kits later in life man.”

“Can I add something?”  Turning to Smudge, both were taken aback at the gloominess in his eyes. “I didn’t want to say it because I was still coming to terms with it, but… Donovan is coming over to stay for a while.”

Rusty recoiled and Princess stared at Smudge like he grew a second head. “Donovan? Your owner’s nephew with the creepy green eyes and yanks your tail hard on purpose? The one who tried to lure you into the tool shed that has sharp blades?  And is probably a future serial killer in the making with those vibes he gives off? That Donovan?” She hissed.

Smudge balefully shook his head. “The one and only. Apparently, there was really bad water damage to their ceiling from that bad storm, and the ceiling caved in. Charlie offered to them to stay for a bit until it’s get fixed, or until they can get a hotel. I don’t know about you two, but if joining the clan keeps me from becoming one of the dead animals that are eventually going to be found under the bed or in the bushes, then so be it.”

Licking his paw and rubbing his head, he continued. “That, or just becoming a street cat. I can’t just can’t shake the feeling that if I stay, I might die, or actually survive just to get neutered, but I also don’t want to leave Charlie,” he said sadly.

Eyes softening, Rusty gently placed a paw on Smudge’s shoulder. “Smudge, you are our best friend and both of us would never abandon you. If you want to stay as a house cat, we can decline the offer and make sure nothing happens to you until Donovan leaves. Nothing the Clan can offer can make us leave you behind."

“Rusty is correct, whatever you decide, we will follow you either way. After all, that's what friends are for, right?” replied Princess.

Smudge eyes widened at the proclamation. “Th-thanks guys, really. And you know what, I do want to join to be a Clan cat. A Medicine Cat actually. How cool would it be to become a Doctor? I want to leave my mark on this world somehow, strange as it seems. If I can become a healer or at least a trainee to one, I can help save lives and maybe even find out why they are sick!”

“Does this mean that you want to join us?” asked Princess hopefully. When the black and white tom nodded his head, she made a happy squeaking sound.

“So like a more friendly Dr. House who happens to be a cat?” playfully teased Rusty. Truthfully, he wanted to jump up and down in excitement if he wasn’t on a fence post. Smudge was going to join them!

Smudge rolled his eyes at his friend's words before he blinked. “Hey, remember what Bluestar said about how it gets cold in leaf-bare, which is most likely the Clan term for Winter? What if we bring old blankets with us as a peace offering? Sure, Lionheart said we can’t have two paws in both worlds, but when they see how helpful it is, maybe they’ll let it slide?”

“That’s a pretty good idea Smudge. Maybe we should also bring some toys for the kits, we have loads of them back at our house, maybe ThunderClan will like that as well." Rusty said. He hoped that Princess didn’t pick up on the other reason why he offered to bring toys. He didn’t want to leave his favorite plush toy behind. It helped him during some very rough times.

Unfortunately for him, Princess saw right through it and gave him a dry look. “Sure, Rusty. I’m pretty sure this has nothing to do with your Lucha Libre Pikachu toy, PK Thunder. Though, it would be hypocritical of me since I have Bonnie. Hmmm, maybe we should bring some toys just for any kittens along with the blankets and say Bonnie and PK Thunder are very special to us.”

“Is it settled then? We wake up around seven, that’s when all of our owners leave. Then after we can gather as many toys and blankets we can carry, we can say our goodbyes to our friends before carrying our cargo to meet Lionheart at twelve, since that should be at sun high,” said Princess.

With the two toms nodded, Smudge jumped to the ground before he started walking to his house. "I don’t know about you two, but I’m going to bed now so I can watch Into The Spider-verse for the last time in the morning before we join cats who probably don’t even know what technology is." And with that, he darted to the cat door and disappeared.

“Huh, he’s right. Better get around to finally watching Lilo & Stitch," remarked Rusty as he and Princess slunk through the cat doors.

Princess yawned as she settled herself on his place on the cat tree. “Speaking of movies, you do realize that this means we can’t see any new movies or their sequels, right?"  she mumbled before she closed her eyes.

Rusty shook his head. He hadn't thought of that. Shoot. Good thing John Wick 3 came on the TV last week before he leaves.

As Princess drifted to sleep, he settled on his warm strawberry cave bed and curled around Thunder. Looking around at the living room for his last night here, Rusty let slumber take him.

He dreamed of running free in the forest, free of his collar with Princess and Smudge. Of catching bountiful prey, a sea of stars and even starting a family with a cat that he got close to. Then the dream turned blurry and fast as he got visions of fire, death, and destruction. Eyes of yellow, blue, and green that held malice glittered in the dark as danger hid in the forest before it all grew into an enormous black reptilian shadow with the most intense glowing red eyes that he had ever seen. It opened its vast mouth with teeth that can swallow him whole and spoke with a voice like thunder.

I̷̡̡̨̠̭͍͓̙̎̍͋͐̇̓̾̿̂̂̽̀̾̊͝ ̴̨̲̣̫̺̬̘͕̼̻̣͕̆͛͛̔͊̏̒͝h̸̛̰͓̭̥̺̠̗̀̒͒͋̈́̊̊̎́́͊͝å̷̡̜̦̣͙͔͕̠̮͇̞̜͖̱̌̒́̍̿͗͊̍̈́̚͜͠v̴̧̤̬̹͇̱͖͈̐͐́͑͆̓̊̃͒͐̑̾͘͝ȩ̷̧̨̛͙͈͎̰̱͒̅̍̿̈̒̅̌ͅ ̸̲̞̲̲̪̬̲̖͉͝b̸̩̔̈́̔̿̓́̂̽́͆̈̚ȅ̶͕̯́̈́͛͂̚͝ę̷̣̰̤͔̯͔͈̲̜͈̤͒̾͛̈͘͘͘̚̕͜ͅn̴̲̮̳̭̈́͛̊̚͝ ̵̧̛̞̤̽̔͗̈̾̇w̷̧̧̢̫̬̰̠̯͎̲̱̟͓̳͙̋͂̆͂͊̀̀́̂̉̊́̔̊a̴̢͚̲̘̘̙͇̫̞̞̿̍̉͋̆̿̏̌̿͘̕͘̕͝͠i̴͙̞̕t̷̪̙͔̟̙̗̬͔͍̪͖̽̀̀̅̇̽̓͜ỉ̷̲̠͙͖͒n̷̝͉̰̥̪̄͑̏̃̂͒̃̋̚g̸̟̺̩͉̖̘̜̳̤͛̾̆̌̍͛̓̿̐̕̕͜͝ͅ ̵̢̢̪̣̦̳̗̥͙̞͇̰̜̌̉̾ͅf̸̞̞̗̫̹̾̇̊͑͌̈́͜ǫ̷̯̲̠̺̺̹̟̪̖̀̄̈́̔̑̐r̴̗͚̳͇͇̣̿̀̍̔̂̀̏͊̑̂̉̕ ̸̢̨͖͖̭̜̹̰͈̖̝͓̹̣͋y̷͓̟̗̩̤̪̖͊͒͜o̶̠̕u̷͓̾̍̔͐̇́̒̇̂͂̇̕,̵̨̨̡̛͉̩̫̹̼̜͓̲̱̌ ̷̱͍͔̯̦̺͕̠̯͓̗̠̺̭͘͜F̴̛̜̝̬̪͈͊͊̈́̐̑̍̒̊͗́̍͘̚ị̷̧̡̢̺̪̠̙͓̣̰̝̊̈̍͌͒ͅr̶̰̹̪͕̝̣͕̤͖̩̈́̓̄̆̊ͅę̶̰̰͕̤̹͈̝̩͇̻̠̠͌̂͊́͋̍͊̓͒̌͑̏̀̎̾ş̵̤̣̤̻̫̩͙̥̤̼̀̅͐̊̋̌́͂͐͋͜͜͝ͅt̵͕̀̽͝ą̴̨̢̳̲͓͕͕̗̖̯͔̈́͊͗̀̃̍̑̅͜͠r̴̝̤͕̤̩̘̼̠̭̒́͋̊̂̚.̶̗̱̿̈́̉

“-usty. Rusty!” he jostled awake from the harsh shaking to his shoulder. Yelping, he realized Princess was staring at him with a concerned look in her eyes. “You were making noises in your sleep and was twitching a lot. Are you okay?”

Rusty shook his head and noticed PK had fallen out of his bed, and that it was morning by the pale light outside. He could vaguely remember catching his thrush and eating it and then… nothing. So why make noises and thrash around like so?

“I’m fine Princess. I think I must have had one of those nightmares that you forget as soon as you wake up," he meowed. He belatedly felt that his throat was dry and that he wanted a drink to quench his thirst.

Princess twitched her whiskers and rolled her eyes. “So was it the one where you were being chased down a hallway by the Jigsaw doll on a bike or that girl from the Ring that wanted to drag you into the well? Though I don't know why you were scared, your ugly mug can send even Freddy running for the hills," she teased before nimbly dodging a playful paw swipe.

“Haha," he muttered as he stretched his legs and quickly went to the cat fountain. When he finished drinking, he met Princess in the kitchen. It seemed like his last meal as a house cat was venison cut up into pieces. Quickly eating the meat for the energy he’d need for later, Rusty looked on as Constance finished her coffee at the table. Leaping onto her lap, he let her pet him for the last time behind the ears.

When she left with James in one of their cars, Rusty and Princess nodded to each other. “I’ll get the blankets from the Laundry Room while you gather some toys. Don’t try to go overboard. We can’t carry all of it and we might overwhelm them as it is with them anyway." Sniffing at her, he lumbered towards the box that held many of the toys that the Wintergreens had bought them.

Soon, he made a pile that consisted of four mice rattles, five colorful balls and three plushies that were a seal, a fish, and a sheep. Three lavender-scented fleece blankets sat next to it. They were colorful, and were space-themed, jack o lanterns, and autumn leaves. Regretfully, he came to the conclusion that no, they can’t drag the cat tunnel with them. ThunderClan would never know of those wonders, unfortunately.

Convincing Princess that he should bring PK made him feel better though since she was taking the small toy rabbit too.

“Are you sure they’ll accept this? They might think it’s too much if they are like the Amish and like things simple,” asked Princess.

“I mean it’s free stuff. Who’ll turn down free stuff? Besides, maybe they’ll be grateful for the blankets when Winter comes and the toys can keep any kittens entertained,”  said Rusty.

Hearing the cat flap being opened, they turned to see Smudge come in carrying what looked like a metal lunchbox in his jaws. As he got closer, Rusty could see it had Spider-Man proudly displayed on its surface.

Setting down his cargo, Smudge shook his head. “Hello, Rusty. Hello Princess.” Looking at the pile, he shook his head. "That’s kind of a lot of things, don’t you think? Good thing I brought the lunchbox to carry herbs if I become a Medicine Cat apprentice, maybe we can cram the toys in the box? That can lighten the load.”

After some trial and error, they finally managed to squeeze the items into the box, and drag the blankets and plushies next to the rose bushes for them to collect after they say their goodbyes.

“I never want to go through that again” muttered Rusty. Squeezing all of that in was no joke, and forcing the latches to close was harder. Sometimes he envied humans with their opposable thumbs.

“Leave it behind Rusty, let's just say our farewells to the others. It’s nearly noon already," said Princess. They were back on the fence again, taking in what will be their last morning in the city.

“We should stay to the backyards, don’t want any humans to see you two and wonder why aren’t you with the Wintergreens,” muttered Smudge.

Jumping down, the soon to be Clan Cats went to say goodbye to the city of Silverpine.

#i speak #where the wilds things are #wild meets wild chapter two #wild meets wild #rusty #smudge #princess #the city of silverpine #as you can see princess and rusty had it made #like cat fountains and excersie wheels #smudge had a pool #and a flat plasma screen tv #his last meal from his house was wet chicken and gravy meow mix #speaking of him i hope you like his reasons to leave and that talk between friends #and as you can see he is a big spider-man fan #princess is more of a flash fan and rusty likes superman

[saphyrenights]

Pick 5 shows, then answer the following questions, don’t cheat. Tag 10 (or however many) people.

Stargate SG-1

Star Trek: Voyager

Teen Wolf

House, MD

Xena: Warrior Princess

1. Who is your favourite character in 2?

I don’t dislike anyone on Voyager, which is rare for me. I give Neelix a lot of shit, but I do actually like him. A little. :) When I was a kid, Tom Paris was my fave, probably because he was a Gary Stu who never got called out as a Gary Stu, and that appealed to me in middle school oop. As an adult, tho, I love Seven of Nine. She probably has the most character development of anyone on the show. Harry is second, but poor guy never got promoted. Not his fault, but it stunted some of his potential development ;_; So, I’m gonna say Seven of Nine.

2. Who is your least favourite character in 1?

Rodney McKay. I was so glad when they shipped his annoying ass off to Atlantis. I know the writers were presenting his constant misogynistic harassment of Sam as “humorous,” but it really wasn’t. Sam deserved better.

3. What is your favourite episode of 4?

Oh, God. Oh, God. Oh. God. Ummm....this list is way too long. Since it’s been a really long time since I bothered to remember individual House episode names, I can only describe the episode. It’s in the show’s final season when Shit’s Getting Real, and the writers are finally like “lol fuck it” and wrote Wilson sobbing to House, “I need you to tell me that you love me!” Suddenly, all of that subtext from over the years became canon. The little jokes, the winks and nods, they all paid off in the end. I remember being FLOORED that a network show just Did That. I’m just sad that Wilson had to be literally dying before we got it.

4. What is your favourite season of 5?

Again, it’s been a VERY long time since my memory needed to be this sharp for an old show, but I’m going to say all of the seasons EXCEPT for the last one. It was all over the place, and then Xena just fukkin dies. I get that it was a noble sacrifice, but why couldn’t Xena and Gabrielle live happily ever after? Gabby becomes a famous bard, Xena opens a dojo or something, they get married, do a lil farming on the side, boom. Done. Happy ending. But nooooo....

5. Who is your favourite couple in 3?

Season 5 was completely deleted from my memory through a very complicated and delicate brain operation I never told y’all about it. So it’s still Sciles. Feels good, man. :)

6. Who is your favourite couple in 2?

B’Elanna and Tom. But if I could picked a polyship, it’d be B’Elanna/Tom/Harry. 👀

7. What is your favourite episode of 1?

"Abyss” is almost always at the top of my list, but “Orpheus” is damn good, too. I’m picking both of those, and you can’t stop me.

8. What is your favourite episode of 5?

“The Bitter Suite!” It’s a really fun episode. And I remembered the name of it. :)

9. What is your favourite season of 2?

Probably season 4.

10. How long have you watched 1?

I started watching in season 3. SG-1 was still on Showtime, and aired on Friday nights. I usually had football games to attend (I was in marching band), so I’d set up the VCR to tape the show, and I’d watch it when I got home. My first full SG-1 ep was “Legacy.” I caught up with the first two seasons in syndication, and I was all caught up by the time season 5 came around. 

11. How did you become interested in 3?

I read some Big Wolf on Campus fanfic that crossed over with Teen Wolf. So I decided to watch Teen Wolf to see what all the fuss was about. I’m not going to go into details, but the fic I read wildly mischaracterized the show. I’m glad I checked it out for myself. I ended up loving Scott McCall so much, in spite of that stupid fic.

12. Who is your favourite actor in 4?

Robert Sean Leonard.

13. Which do you prefer, 1, 2, or 5?

Yeah, I’m gonna echo Divvy here and just say, “Fuck you” to this question lol

14. Which show have you seen more episodes of, 1 or 3 ?

SG1 literally aired over 100 more episodes that Teen Wolf, so um, math.

15. If you could be anyone from 4, who would you be?

A dying patient of the week who watches all these doctors hash out their personal drama over my deathbed while I collect all the tea they’re recklessly spilling, and then I get cured at the last second from a stupid disease I got from eating cat litter or something. Don’t ask why I was eating cat litter. That’s not for House’s team to decide, which is why I didn’t immediately tell anyone I ate cat litter when I was first admitted. All I know is that at least six of those doctors are fucking each other, one is on meth, and another one definitely killed a guy on purpose.

16. Would a crossover between 3 and 4 work?

Teen Wolf and House? Sure. Melissa transfers to New Jersey, Scott eventually follows her since a couple of his pack members are already on the east coast after they all graduate high school and deal with the bounty hunter mess. Scott decides to go to med school (some of his vet school credits might transfer, who knows), and he ends up at Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital. He only sees House in the halls, because I don’t want Actual Ray of Sunshine Scott McCall coming in direct contact with House. He hangs out with the ducklings, tho. And he does rounds with Wilson, who takes a huge liking to him and his ability to literally make patients feel better just by holding their hand...ohhh, this could be a fun sandbox to play in. I just might...eat...some sand...  

17. Pair two characters in 1 who would make an unlikely but strangely okay couple?

Jack and Maybourne. I SAID IT! Oh, and Daniel/Martouf because I shipped it when I was in like 8th grade lmao. Everything else I’m thinking, like Sam/Janet, Daniel/Teal’c, Jack/Daniel, Sam/Martouf...none of those are that unlikely. Aside from the dead people, but y’know.

18. Overall, which show has the better storyline, 3 or 5?

Let’s be honest; the writing on both Teen Wolf and Xena was never anything to get excited over. Huge plot holes, inconsistent characterization, incoherent plots, they all pretty much made up the overall experience of watching these shows. But I didn’t watch for that stuff. I just liked fun stories and nice characters. I don’t care if they didn’t make sense. Xena jumps 10 feet straight up in the air and somersaults through an open window while catching her chakram mid flip? Fantastic! Everyone in Beacon Hills suddenly becomes broke af and are struggling to pay bills because it serves the plot for one season and one season only? Great! Gabrielle gives birth to an evil doppelganger? Okay! Where did Kira go? Huh? WHere DID SHE GODOHDOJDLJD

tl;dr: neither one lmao

19. Which has the better theme music, 2 or 4?

There’s no competing with Jerry Goldsmith. Sorry, Massive Attack.

Cool, cool, cool. I’m going to tag: @anomalagous , @runicscribbles, @kimmykun, @intthewoodsomewhere, @lozenger8, @elfysparkles88, @theboywiththepurplesocks, @tombwolf, @carelesswhisper41, @pissoffghosts

#i'm too lazy to tag this #bye

[careforcritters]

Vet Med in Warrior Cats: Reproduction and Theriogenology

Disclaimer

Additional disclaimer for this one: I fully understand why a lot of these issues were not addressed in the series since it is written for children, but I still think the topic is interesting and that some concepts, especially those involving kitting, could have been more accurate.

Cats are seasonally polyestrous long day breeders, meaning that the females only cycle reproductively in the spring and experience multiple heat cycles every breeding cycle. Estrous cycles occur when the females are exposed to over 14 hours of light every day, so depending on the climate that they are in, cats are only able to become pregnant in the spring and fall. A queen’s gestation period (the time that they spend pregnant) is 2 months, so queens can have their kits from about late spring to early fall. The location of warriors is never confirmed, but it is presumed to be in England or the UK since that is where the authors are based, and since it snows every winter. With a colder, darker climate, this breeding season is even shorter. Queens in warriors are shown to have their kits at any time of year, even in the dead of winter. It is possible for some females, especially short haired breeds, to be able to cycle year-round, but not common. Narratively it makes sense to spread the litters out, but realistically the clans would have most of their kittens in the summer and fall. 

Cats are also induced ovulators, which means that ovulation is triggered by and occurs about 24-48 hours after mating. Females need to be in estrus to allow mating, but the induced ovulation makes it very likely that pregnancy will result from mating. Females may also mate with multiple males over the span of a few days, meaning that one litter can have multiple fathers. This is not something we would see in warriors since there is an unspoken societal standard of monogamy. 

Pregnant cats require almost double their normal nutrient intake in the second half of gestation, and even more while nursing. Taurine deficiency can cause pregnancy loss, as well as malnutrition in general. It would not be uncommon for a queen to lose her pregnancy if prey is scarce in her clan. There are several infectious causes of pregnancy loss, including feline herpes, FIV, FIP, feline panleukemia, toxoplasma gondii, and other bacterial infections of the reproductive tract. Many of these diseases, especially feline herpesvirus, are extremely common in feral cat populations. Early, undetected embryonic loss from these diseases could be a reason for why female cats in warriors are not pregnant as often as real life feral cats, but that is unlikely. Cats in warriors seem to be able to plan when they become pregnant (except when it's a secret forbidden romance of course), and I have no explanation for why that could be. Unless the medicine cats discovered an herb that can act as contraception (progestagens, dexamethasone (a gluccocorticoid) and dopamine agonists can all be used in companion animals as temporary contraception, but they all have moderate systemic side effects). 

At the start of parturition (birthing), queens become restless, pace, and nest. Once uterine contractions begin, the “water breaks” and a kitten should be delivered every 3 to 5 minutes. This entire process can take anywhere from 4 to 42 hours, with the average being about 16 hours. It’s unclear how much time the birthing process takes in warrior cats, but it usually seems to be much faster than this. In Bluestar’s Prophecy, when Leopardfoot has been kitting for “most of the afternoon” and then into the night, this is implied to be an abnormally long amount of time. 

Dystocia (complications with pregnancy) are pretty rare in cats. The most common cause is primary uterine inertia, which is when the queen is unable to begin uterine contractions. This would be treated with oxytocin in a veterinary clinic to induce contractions. Borage is stated to be used to help with milk let down and may work to stimulate oxytocin since oxytocin is also used to stimulate milk letdown. The other common causes of dystocia are uterine torsion and oversized fetuses, both of which would require a C-section to correct. 

When Sorreltail is kitting in The Forgotten Warrior, she is described to be in pain and having trouble passing the kits. Jayfeather gives her chervil root to help, so it is implied to be either something to give Sorreltail strength or to help with uterine contractions. Several sources said that chervil can be useful for cough, eczema, and even abscesses, but there was no indication that it could be useful during childbirth. 

Leopardfoot is also described to have a long, painful kitting in Bluestar’s Prophecy. Featherwhisker gives her raspberry leaves. Raspberry leaves have been shown to benefit with strengthening uterine tone and facilitating contractions, so this herb would be more useful than chervil root. Two of Leopardfoot’s kits die young because she kitted two weeks too early. This is called “fading” and occurs because the kits were not able to thermoregulate or breathe properly. Premature kits are less likely to be developed properly, and may be lacking in reflexes such as suckling that would have helped them to acquire sufficient nutrients and immune-boosting milk (colostrum). 

In Crookedstar’s Promise, Brightsky delivered 3 stillborn kits followed by one surviving kit, and then died. Brightsky had been sick not long before her kitting and was described to still be weak from her illness. Brightsky likely was sick with a virus that causes late term abortion, like herpes, FIV, or panleukemia. While it is possible for a cat to abort some fetuses and still deliver other fetuses to term, it’s not common, especially this late into the pregnancy. I honestly was not able to find the most concrete information on this, but it is feasible for Leapordkit to have survived. As for Brightsky, she likely died because the three stillborn fetuses mummified inside of her, causing her to develop an infection. If this were true, she would have had dark or purulent vaginal discharge and had abdominal pain even before her kitting.

Silverstream also died from dystocia after delivering her kits in Forest of Secrets. She is described to have powerful spasms that slowly got weaker, which sounds like secondary uterine inertia (when the queen is too exhausted to continue contractions). Since she only had two small kits and fetal malpositioning is rare in cats, there might have been some sort of obstruction to the birth canal. In later books, Silverstream was described to have been “blood soaked”. Possible causes of hemorrhage during birthing could be uterine vessel tearing, uterine rupture, or uterine torsion. Uterine torsion would cause an obstruction to the birth canal and would require emergency surgery. The likelihood of Featherkit and Stormkit surviving would have been very low without the ability to intervene and there are no reported cases of a uterine torsion resolving without surgery. It is most likely that Silverstream experienced uterine rupture due to the stress of contractions.

There are several other common reproductive issues that do not appear in warriors. Mammary hyperplasia is the spontaneous overgrowth of mammary tissue in intact female (and sometimes male) cats. This condition usually spontaneously regresses, but it can be confused with mammary neoplasia. Mastitis is the bacterial infection of mammary glands after parturition. This condition is not only painful and dangerous for the queen, but can cause the kits to fail to thrive. This would be treated with antibiotics, warm compresses, and milk replacer for the kittens in a veterinary clinic. Cystic endometrial hyperplasia is a degenerative condition mediated by a hormone called progesterone. Too much progesterone causes the endometrial glands to proliferate and over-secrete hormones, making the uterus an ideal environment for bacteria and leading to pyometra (bacterial infection of the uterus). Depending on if the cervix is open or closed, the queen will either have purulent vaginal discharge or the pus will build up in the uterus. While a closed cervix is more dangerous, both will cause the cat to feel extremely sick, vomit, run a fever, and experience renal dysfunction. A pyometra can quickly develop into a systemic condition, so emergency ovariohysterectomy is required to save the cat's life.

Sources:

BSVA Manual of Canine and Feline Reproduction and Neonatology. Gary England and A. von Heimendahl, 2nd Ed, 2011

L. Ari Jutkowitz, Reproductive emergencies, Veterinary Clinics of North America: Small Animal Practice, Volume 35, Issue 2, 2005

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/2055116917726228

https://www.merckvetmanual.com/reproductive-system/reproductive-diseases-of-the-female-small-animal/dystocia-in-small-animals

https://www.rxlist.com/chervil/supplements.htm

https://healthyfocus.org/health-benefits-of-chervil/

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/top-9-health-benefits-of-raspberry-leaf-tea

#I have a therio test tomorrow and spent almost 4 hours on this because priorities right? #vet med #vet med in warrior cats #warrior cats #warriors

[careforcritters]

Vet Med in Warrior Cats: Respiratory part 2: Nasal Disease (What’s up with Runningnose?)

disclaimer

Runningnose is a shadowclan medicine cat introduced in The Prophecies Begin. The other cats often joke that he is “a medicine cat who can’t even cure his own cold”. One possible explanation for his frequently runny nose is that he may have lymphocytic-plasmacytic rhinitis (LP rhinitis). This is an immune mediated disease that could be caused by frequent irritation, allergies, or a previous nasal infection, but the definitive cause is unknown. Cats with this disorder have frequent nasal discharge and sneezing and a reduced appetite, but no systemic symptoms. LP rhinitis can’t be treated with antimicrobials. Since it is an immune mediated disease, it can only be managed by drugs that modulate the body’s immune response (which is an explanation for why Runningnose could not cure his running nose). In a veterinary clinic, cats with LP rhinitis would be given steroids such as prednisolone or cyclosporine. Antibiotics like azithromycin are needed only if there is a secondary bacterial infection present. Other management practices like humidifying the air and avoiding airway irritants like dust and smoke can help reduce the severity of disease. Unfortunately Runningnose wouldn’t have much control over that. 

Another possible, but less likely cause, for Runningnose’s ailment is nasopharyngeal polyps. Polyps are benign, granulomatous masses that begin growing in the auditory tube and can travel down to the nose and throat. Polyps cause mucoid nasal discharge, but they can also cause more serious signs as they grow, such as difficulty swallowing, change in vocal sounds, and a respiratory noise called “stertor”, which is low pitched snoring sound during expiration caused by partial obstruction of the airway. Because of this, polyps can become deadly if not treated. In a veterinary office, a polyp can be easily identified and removed using gentle traction under general anesthesia. Provided a cat would be able to reach its paw into another cat’s mouth and retract the soft palate, they may be able to remove a polyp by hooking its claw onto the base of the polyp and pulling slowly and gently. Anesthesia would be preferred, but since these cats remove limbs with no sedation this wouldn’t be as painful.

Cryptococcus is a fungus that causes granulomatous disease in cats. Clinical signs of crypto include mucoid or hemorrhagic (bloody) nasal discharge and sneezing, and sometimes a “roman nose” facial deformity (which is basically a bump along the bridge of the nose due to the space occupying granulomatous mass in the nasal cavity). Crypto is treated by removing the fungal plaques and giving antifungal medication, usually fluconazole. 

Finally, another option for Runningnose’s runny nose is Feline Herpes Virus. I covered FHV in the first respiratory section, but essentially Herpes is basically ubiquitous in feral cat populations. Adult cats that become infected usually aren’t seriously ill or have lower airway signs, however the virus damages the upper respiratory tract which can allow for secondary bacterial invaders to cause more serious illness. The most common clinical signs include mucopurulent nasal and ocular discharge, sneezing, nasal congestion, conjunctivitis, and ocular ulcers. Runningnose is described as having “rheumy” eyes in The Ultimate Guide (2013), which could be taken to mean that he has ocular discharge. FHV is relatively self limiting and will resolve on its own without treatment, however the virus remains latent in the trigeminal ganglia and other peripheral neurons, meaning that when a cat becomes infected they stay infected for life. Usually, this doesn’t cause problems. However, when a cat is stressed, Herpes will recrudesce and cause the cat to show symptoms and shed the virus. If Runningnose is constantly very stressed (which is pretty believable) it is possible that his Herpes infection is always relapsing. Poor thing. 

sources

https://www.vet.cornell.edu/departments-centers-and-institutes/cornell-feline-health-center/health-information/feline-health-topics/nasopharyngeal-polyps

https://www.merckvetmanual.com/respiratory-system/respiratory-diseases-of-small-animals/rhinitis-and-sinusitis-in-dogs-and-cats

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8066322/

https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4951824

#Hello I'm here the night before a test again #I will probably redo the first respiratory section because I know I missed/got some things wrong #And there will probably be a third resp section... #warriors #vet med in warrior cats #warrior cats