Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Case Report
  • Published:

Uterine infection in a cat research colony

Lab Animal volume 42, pages 365–367 (2013)Cite this article

A breeding colony of 20 cats was housed and cared for at Texas A&M University, an institution that is accredited by the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International. We housed a total of 18 intact female cats and two intact male cats (only one of which was used for breeding) in large cages in an open-air room. All of the female cats were group-housed, with two to five cats per cage, and the male cats were both singly housed.

We used cats in the colony in a research study on potential contraceptive effects of the drug cilostazol. Cilostazol is a phosphodiesterase-3 (PDE3) inhibitor and was originally developed to improve blood flow to the legs in humans. Subsequently, it has been found that PDE3 inhibition also prevents maturation of oocytes, and we have recently demonstrated that cilostazol is effective in preventing pregnancy in mice1. Similar contraceptive effects are desirable for use in domestic species for which overpopulation is a concern; therefore, we attempted to use cilostazol to prevent pregnancy in naturally cycling cats. We carried out a controlled crossover study in a group of six female cats. We administered cilostazol (1 mg per kg body weight) or placebo to the cats twice per d for 8–28 d, depending upon the timing and duration of estrus, and then bred each female cat to one male cat to test the contraceptive efficacy of the drug. Five of the six cats in this study became pregnant and gave birth to healthy litters. After the study was completed, we did not use these cats in any other studies.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1: Ventrodorsal radiograph of Cat A's abdomen.
Figure 2

References

  1. Albarzanchi, A.M. et al. Cilostazol blocks pregnancy in naturally cycling mice. Contraception 87, 443–448 (2012).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Davidson, A.P., Feldman, E.C. & Nelson, R.W. Treatment of pyometra in cats, using prostaglandin F2α: 21 cases (1982–1990). J. Am. Vet. Med. Assoc. 200, 825–828 (1992).

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Lysková, P., Vydržalová, M., Královcová, D. & Mazurová, J. Prevalence and characteristics of Streptococcus canis strains isolated from dogs and cats. Acta. Vet. Brno. 76, 619–625 (2007).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Brodey, R.S. & Fidler, I.J. The clinical and pathological findings in bitches treated with progestational compounds. J. Am. Vet. Med. Assoc. 149, 1406–1415 (1966).

    Google Scholar 

  5. Potter, K., Hancock, D.H. & Gallina, A.M. Clinical and pathologic features of endometrial hyperplasia, pyometra, and endometritis in cats: 79 cases (1980–1985). J. Am. Vet. Med. Assoc. 198, 1427–1431 (1991).

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We thank Derick Whitley for providing pathological and histological expertise.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Section of Comparative Medicine, Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX

    Amanda C. Fisher &  Vincent C. Gresham

  2. Veterinary Physiology and Pharmacology, Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX

    Virginia R. Fajt, Kimberly K. Green &  Duane C. Kraemer

Authors
  1. Amanda C. Fisher
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Virginia R. Fajt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Vincent C. Gresham
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Kimberly K. Green
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Duane C. Kraemer
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Duane C. Kraemer.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Fisher, A., Fajt, V., Gresham, V. et al. Uterine infection in a cat research colony. Lab Anim 42, 365–367 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/laban.281

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/laban.281

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing