We have had a very busy couple of months both at the Cat Clinic, personally and with other Veterinary activities.
 Please note – Amy & Richard are away on conference in Europe from the 27th March until the 4th of April. Dr. Sally Coggins will be in sole care of the practice as we could not find a feline specific locum Vet for these 8 days. We ask that for understanding during this time, as we may post-pone some routine surgeries and reduce the available consulting spots for Saturday 2nd of April.
Amy & Richard have welcomed a bundle of joy into their lives – little Stella. A whirlwind of flying Oriental ninja attack moves has gotten their 2 flabby middle age Tonkinese back into fighting shape – but they are all best of friends after only a short time. Of course, Stella rules the house at only 15 weeks of age! They hope to adopt another kitten soon to get back to a household of 4 cats.
Richard was recently away presenting lectures in Hong Kong & Beijing on behalf of the ISFM (International Society of Feline Medicine (www.isfm.net). This was the first conference of its kind in Asia and was aimed to promote the awareness of their Feline friendly practice program. Richard had a ball re-uniting with many of the tremendous Vets he met last year when he spent 3 weeks lecturing and seeing practice in China.
Thanks to this trip, Amy & Richard have formed a committee to oversee the formation of an Australian Feline Veterinary Interest group as part of the ISFM. This adds to Richard’s commitments within the Australian Veterinary Association and Amy’s within the Australian College of Veterinary Scientists.
They are very much looking forward to their “vacation” AKA conference in France.
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 The Singapura cat takes its name from the Malaysian name for Singapore. The Singapura was brought to America in the 1970's. Hal & Tommy Meadow bred the first Singapura’s, though there was little paperwork to support this claim and there is still some controversy as to whether these pixie-like cats are a naturally occurring breed or the result of a Burmese x Abyssinian hybrid. The CFA still recognise the breed as naturally occurring.
The Singapura is the smallest of all the recognised cat breeds. What they lack in size they make up for in personality, having been often described as “monkeys of the cat world”. Dainty and elegant, the Singapura has changed very little over the years. People are usually drawn to their angelic faces, huge expressive eyes and large ears that lend them a slightly alien appearance.
The Singapura has a moderately stocky and muscular build. The head is rounded. The ears are large and the eyes are huge, almond shaped and can be green, hazel or yellow. Their nose, which is salmon toned and eyes are accentuated by dark eyeliner like outlines. The tail is slightly shorter than the body, slender with a black blunt tip. They have a close lying, satiny, ticked coat of sepia brown. This is the only accepted colour. This means that the individual hairs on the cat have alternating bands of sepia brown and the warm ivory ground colour. This gives the appearance of fine sand. Their muzzle, chin, chest and underside are all a warm ivory colour.
They have no inherent health problems and are generally a very robust cat.
The Singapura is affectionate, good natured, gentle and extremely playful. They have no ‘off-button’ and will play for hours, stalking every movement of toys, fingers and toes. They are cheeky, lively, extremely curious, and full of mischief, affectionate, intelligent, inquisitive, fun loving cats, which actively seek out human company. They are non-confrontational and will rarely enter into a dispute or quarrel. The females tend to be the more dominant sex while the males are a little easier going.
The Singapura is a great family pet; it gets along well with children and is an outgoing breed which thrives on companionship. If you are away from home for long periods then it is recommended your Singapura has a feline companion. Be it another Singapura or another breed. Their coat is very short and requires little to no grooming. Singapura’s are suited for indoor life. Provide plenty of toys, as well as your attention. Scratching posts for sharpening claws and climbing are a must, the taller the better.
To see some Singapura antics check out the following Youtube links.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LSbZKFRvKU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BG0bosCbhyI
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 Kurt was a little stray boy taken in by the lovely people at the Save-A-Dog scheme (SADS) in Stonnington. It was obvious to his carers that Kurt had a problem; he was born without 2/3 of both his upper eyelids. This is a rare condition called eyelid agenesis or eyelid coloboma . His corneas were becoming badly damaged and had started to turn brown, affecting his vision. This was due to the hair from his eyebrows was sticking directly into his eyes due to the absence of eyelids.
Kurt was brought to see Richard. He and Sally had recently read a publication written by Australian ophthalmologists where they had created upper eyelids for cats similar to Kurt by moving skin from the corner of their lips to form a new eyelid. Neither had attempted this, but they offered to try this technique as seeing an specialist ophthalmologist was not possible.
The other alternative was to freeze the remaining tissue around the eye to kill the hair follicles. The cost was covered by small donations from the public to SADS for Kurt and the Cat Clinic donated their time for free.
Kurt had his eyes lubricated 3-4 times per day to minimise the hair rubbing his eyes until he was 6 months of age and big enough for the surgery. He underwent two separate procedures a month apart. The technique involved making a skin flap, using the corner of each lip and rotating it to fill the defect of the missing eyelids. The edge of the lip is soft and hairless, so is perfect for this application.
Kurt was such a great little patient and recovered very well and didn’t bother at his stitches. He did look a bit funny with all the stitches - but as you can see by the results, we are delighted with his results. He can even blink as the muscles above the new eyelids have compensated and therefore allow him to lubricate and protect his eyes. He can now get a good night sleep as well, being able to fully close his eyes for the first time.
Kurt was recently adopted out to a loving new home. There are many more beautiful cats (and dogs) looking for loving homes at SADS.
www.saveadog.org.au
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