If Gucci is a small dog, confine him to a pet carrier secured to the backseat with a seatbelt. If he’s a larger dog and you drive a station wagon, SUV, or van, put him in a crate attached by strength-rated anchor straps to the cargo area. If he’s a big dog and you have only a backseat, secure him in a harness connected to the seatbelt.
Pet travel restraint equipment is unregulated, and manufacturers aren’t required to adhere to any particular performance standards or even to test their equipment before they market it. So, it’s not surprising that the majority of carriers, crates, and harnesses don’t adequately protect pets during a crash.
Fortunately, the Center for Pet Safety, or CPS, a nonprofit research and advocacy organization, conducts rigorous crash testing on pet carriers, crates, and harnesses using realistic canine and feline crash test dummies. You'll be relieved to hear that CPS never uses live animals in its testing.
One study of 100 randomly selected cats evenly divided into four age groups—0 to 5, 5 to 10, 10 to 15, and 15 to 20 years of age—found that 92 percent of those tested showed signs of DJD on X-rays, properly called radiographs. The prevalence was similar in each age group, although severity worsened with age.
In 91 of the 100 cats, DJD was present in the legs, most often the elbows, hips, knees, and hocks. The spine was affected in 55 cats. Researchers scored the radiographs for severity and learned that DJD worsens 14 percent every year of life.
Another study of 116 healthy indoor cats age 6 years and older revealed DJD on the radiographs of 96 percent of the cats. Front legs were more commonly affected than rear legs.
DJD usually affects joints on both sides of the cat’s body, so most arthritic cats don’t limp or exhibit other clinical signs of the disease.
Some, however, become less active overall and less willing to jump up onto or down from furniture. They climb and descend stairs slowly and stiffly. The twisting required to groom themselves is painful, so some arthritic cats develop mats on their rumps.
Litter box habits may change, particularly if the cat must use stairs to access the box or climb into a box with high sides.
Fortunately, your veterinarian can prescribe a treatment that decreases pain, improves function, and prolongs life for cats with DJD. Treatment options include weight loss, dietary modification, supplements, medication, laser therapy, and acupuncture. Helpful environmental changes include providing ramps onto furniture, placing chairs by counters, and locating low-entry litter boxes on every floor of the home.
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