Yellow Fat Disease

Is an extremely dangerous condition as oily fish such as red tuna can harm your cat in two different ways

If you have turned your cat into a pure tuna junkie you may actually be killing them. Tuna flavored cat foods are not the cause of this condition, feeding your cat human tuna is the cause.

Yellow fat disease is most commonly referred to as Steatitis or Pansteatitis in cats and it is caused from a diet that is way too high in unsaturated fatty acids, and as a result is causing a Vitamin E deficiency in your pet.

Oily fish, especially red tuna, is extremely high in unsaturated fatty acids, and actually harms your cat in two different ways.

The first is that Vitamin E is an essential and very important antioxidant that your cat needs and tuna is very low in this vitamin; and high levels of unsaturated fats also work to destroy and dioxide Vitamin E.

As a result, your cat is not getting enough of the vitamin, what it is getting is literally being destroyed by these high levels of unsaturated fats. Tuna flavored cat food does not harm your cat as it is not pure tuna. It is a combination of other meats and additives that are formulated especially for cats.

Vitamin E Deficiency :

Vitamin E is a fat soluble vitamin and foods rich in this vitamin are plant oils that are found in safflower and wheat germ. This vitamin plays a critical role in your cat in the formation of cell membranes, cell respiration, but more importantly in the metabolism of fat.

It also acts as an antioxidant and protects various hormones in your cat’s body from oxidation.

When your cat develops a deficiency of this vitamin, it is believed that it results in lipid per oxidation as well as a deposition of ceroid pigment in the adipose tissue. The adipose tissue is a type of a connective tissue in your cat that is made especially for the storage of neutral fats, or lipids.

They have names that are reflective of their actual physical appearance such as white fat, which can be yellowish in tint, or brown fat. A deficiency of Vitamin E also can cause cellular damage in skeletal muscle, as well as the heart, testes, liver and nerves.

It is a very deadly situation for your cat.

Brown Bowel Syndrome is also a deficiency of Vitamin E and is found in both cats as well as dogs. With this disease, your pets bowels will be severely affected which could cause them to ulcerate, hemorrhage, or degenerate very rapidly. It also can affect the cells of your cat’s eyes and the testes.

However, in cats the primary form of a vitamin E deficiency is Yellow fat disease where the fat in your cat does not metabolize properly.

Symptoms:

The first symptoms you will see in yellow fat disease will be your cats coat turning both very greasy and dull; and both seem to happen almost overnight as it can hit that rapidly. They will also be anorexic just as fast but the reason is not that they are suddenly picky or have no appetite; it will most likely caused by the severe pain that they are in.

They will also develop a very high fever and it will be very difficult for you to even touch them or take their temperature. They will by now be in severe pain and will have an extreme reluctance to be touched or even to move as this disease is causing them a great deal of pain. Yellow fat disease is most common in young, overweight cats, and affects either sex the same.

Treatments :

Treatments for Yellow fat disease will be fairly straight-forward. You will need to immediately eliminate canned tuna from your cat’s diet; it is killing them. Then you will need to supplement them immediately with vitamin E.

Dr. Wendell Belfield, DVM, in several of his publications has recommended 1200 IU per day of vitamin E supplements until yellow fat disease is cured.

You may also have to force fed your cat until they regain their strength back. However, there are also other treatments as several veterinarians may recommend using corticosteroids. Corticosteroids are some of the most beneficial medications in medicine today, but they are also very controversial.

Some people will go to their veterinarian on a regular basis for this type of treatment while other may become extremely angry at the mere mention of using this type of treatment.

However, they are alternatives and can assist in almost any type of condition.

Cortisol plays an important part in controlling the salt and water balance in your cat’s body, as well as regulating carbohydrate, fat, and protein metabolism. When your cat’s body becomes stressed, it releases a compound known as ACTH from your pet’s pituitary gland in their brain. This compound than stimulates adrenals that produce cortisol.

As a result, they help the immune system by blocking the substances that trigger allergic and inflammatory reaction.

However, there is a drawback to these drugs, as they impede the basic functions of your cat’s white blood cells which are designed to attack and destroy these foreign bodies and keep the immune system functioning properly.

This interference of the white blood cells puts your cat at an increased risk of being subject to several types of infections.

Summary:

Yellow fat disease is the result of a Vitamin E deficiency in your cat. Although there are alternative methods of treatment, the safest, quickest, and purest way is to stop feeding your cat pure tuna and simply build their levels of Vitamin E back as quickly as possible.

Natural Treatments for Yellow Fat Disease

More About Diseases in Cats:

Anal Gland Disease Feline gland disease, also known as impaction, is most often related to dogs but your cat is every bit as likely to contract it as a dog.
Aortic Thromboembolism Feline aortic thromboembolism, which is also referred to as saddle thrombus, is a blood clot in your pets system and is a common complication that is associated with heart disease.
Atrial Fibrillation The symptoms of feline atrial fibrillation will not be real specific, and as a result, can be very difficult to detect.
Aspirin Toxicity Feline aspirin toxicity is so dangerous that if the dosage exceeds the toxic level and is repeated, it can induce a coma in your cat which could rapidly cause their death.
Cardiac Disease Cardiac disease in cats is a situation where the heart in your pet is affected by one of the following conditions; dilated cardiomyopathy, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, or restrictive cardiomyopathy.
Castration in Cats Feline castration does not come without a risk as any type of medical surgery always presents a potential threat to your cat.
Cat Scratch Disease Most people that develop cat scratch disease will get it from their cat, either by bites or by scratches.
Reproductive Problems One of the biggest frustrations in feline reproductive problems is either a spontaneous abortion or a re-sorption process.
Dangerous Foods Your cat has a very unique set of nutritional requirements, and feeding them table scraps could very easy throw off the balance, placing them in a dangerous to deadly situation.
Heart Attacks in Cats Feline heart attacks are different than in people simply because they do not experience what is referred to as myocardial infractions.
Heart Murmurs Feline heart murmurs are auscultatory sounds which are best described as internal sounds in the body that are created by your cat’s heart.
Heart Worm Disease Although it is thought that feline heartworm disease was isolated just to mosquito heavy areas, it is actually a serious threat in all 50 states and in most countries other than very frigid environments.
IMHA in Cats Feline IMHA disease is very difficult to understand, and because of this difficulty, there are no known preventive measures.
Mastitis in Cats There are several symptoms with feline mastitis that you can watch for other than just checking the volume of the glands or the milk.
Nicotine Dangers There are a myriad of symptoms with nicotine dangers to your cat that will alert you they may have ingested nicotine, but the cause may not be just from cigarettes.
Plague in Pets Feline plague is a bacterial infection that is caused by Yersinia pestis which is transmitted by rodents.
Pyometra in Cats Feline Pyometra is a disease that threatens all middle aged cats that have not been spayed and is a medical term for an infected uterus.
Strokes in Cats Feline strokes are a very serious condition and the thought that your cat may have actually suffered from a stroke is frightening.
Stupors in Cats There are five basic levels of consciousness that are recognized in cats and it’s extremely important to understand the differences.
Vaccination Reactions Although it is still considered for vaccination reaction to be uncommon, it will be anything but uncommon if it affects your cat.
Zoonotic Disease in Cats Feline zoonotic diseases will poise the highest risk of infection to two groups of people; young children as well as anyone with a suppressed immune system.