Premium
Comments on the dilemma in the January issue: ‘Farm cat with TB’
Author(s) -
Mullan Siobhan
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
in practice
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.211
H-Index - 25
eISSN - 2042-7689
pISSN - 0263-841X
DOI - 10.1136/inp.d298
Subject(s) - daughter , dilemma , sadness , grief , distress , herd , medicine , mycobacterium bovis , veterinary medicine , tuberculosis , family medicine , psychiatry , pathology , law , political science , mycobacterium tuberculosis , clinical psychology , philosophy , epistemology , anger
The dilemma in the January issue concerned a pet cat that had been diagnosed with tuberculosis on a dairy farm (In Practice, January 2011, volume 33, pages 46–47 ). The cat was a much‐loved pet of the farmer's young daughter. Martha Cannon commented that factors to be considered included the effect on the quality and quantity of the life of the cat and its owners, as well as the financial implications for the farm. While Mycobacterium bovis was a potentially zoonotic infection, the risk of spread from cats to humans appeared to be small, but was not non‐existent. It was also unlikely that the cat would be a source of infection to the cattle. Treating the cat was not a straightforward option and the prognosis was unlikely to be good. Euthanasing the cat would affect family members in different ways and could involve sadness, grief, guilt or even relief. A possible way forward would be to make the owners aware of the small potential risk to their health from ongoing contact with the cat, and ensure they consider the practicalities of dosing their cat with several drugs twice daily, every day for six to 12 weeks. If the decision was made to opt for euthanasia, the young daughter should be involved in the discussion and must be made aware that the decision was reached in the cat's best interests to prevent future distress, rather than for financial reasons relating to the dairy herd.