DEAR READERS: I harp a lot in this column about not allowing cats to roam free, while knowing that many cats do like the outdoors and need some environmental enrichment. This is ideally achieved by living with another cat and having an easy-access outdoor enclosure through a flap door set in a window or door. These cat patios, or “catios,” are becoming more popular and easier to construct.

The company Catio Spaces offers DIY catio plans in a variety of designs and sizes for windows, decks, patios or yards. Each plan is a downloadable PDF with detailed directions, illustrations, a materials list and a tools list. Each plan is easy to follow and rewarding to build. Bonus information includes guidelines to acclimate a cat to a cat door and a new outdoor space, plus tips for cat-safe plants, decor and accessories to promote exercise and enrichment.

Catios can be left natural, or painted and decorated to complement the home, the owner’s personal style, or each cat’s personality. Catio Plans start at around $40, and 10 percent is donated to animal welfare organizations. For more, see catiospaces.com/catios-cat-enclosures/diy-plans.

Special offer for veterinarians: Catio Spaces offers DIY Catio flyers and tips for vets to pass on to interested cat owners. To request a sample flyer or quantity of 50, email info@catiospaces.com. And veterinarians can help educate cat parents on the benefits of catios using this guide: https://is.gd/iq0Wxt.

DEAR DR. FOX: What types of pain are associated with Cushing’s disease in dogs? -- S.M., Fargo, North Dakota

DEAR S.M.: This endocrine disease is quite common in dogs.

A tumor in the brain or in the adrenal glands results in the production of high levels of adrenal hormones. These affect the dog’s physiology and behavior, causing panting, weak muscles, and evident discomfort from a swollen abdomen. Anxiety and chronic discomfort -- but little actual pain, until the onset of peripheral neuropathy -- are of primary concern after appropriate medications are prescribed. The painkiller tramadol, widely prescribed for dogs, is actually not an effective analgesic for dogs with this disorder.

Discuss your concerns with the attending veterinarian. If the disease has not progressed far enough to cause damaged vision and high blood pressure, and provided thyroid function is normal, I would highly recommend 6 mg of melatonin and 200 mg of L-theanine at bedtime, along with and 3 mg of melatonin in the morning and mid-afternoon.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)

DEAR READERS: In India, dozens of Muslims have been killed, and many more injured, by extremists calling themselves “cow protectionists” while the police simply stand by, according to the recent BBC TV documentary, “India’s Cow Vigilantes.”

Traditionally, Muslims and low-caste Hindus (Dalits) ate the meat of cows and working bullocks; the dominant Hindu populace does not consume beef for religious reasons, but consumes a lot of cows’ milk. Now, spent cows and exhausted bullocks, food for many people, instead go to “cow shelters.” In many of these shelters -- as my wife, Deanna Krantz, and I documented in our book “India’s Animals: Helping the Sacred and the Suffering” -- the animals slowly starve to death or die from injuries and infections due to a lack of proper veterinary care.

The government that claims to provide feed for all these impounded animals is riddled with corruption, the shelter cattle being worth only their skin and bones. Poor people cannot afford feed for their family milk cows or goats.

The Hindu veterinarian whose work we help fund (and whose name we will not give, for his own safety) writes:

“Humane slaughter is highly preferable and must be practiced. Changing food habits by enforcing law is unacceptable and will jeopardize the very secular nature of the country, constituted as a ‘Sovereign Socialist Secular Democratic Republic with unity in diversity.’ Many Muslims and others are vegetarian, and many Hindu men eat beef when away from home.”

This is the first instance to my knowledge where animals regarded as sacred have been made to suffer on such an enormous scale because of politico-religious fundamentalist bigotry. The Indian government should outlaw violence in the spurious name of cow protection, and recognize the ecological and economic good that comes from recycling the cows who gave them milk and meat. After all, India is the world’s second-largest exporter of beef (primarily from water buffalo). For more details, visit drfoxonehealth.com.

I should add that vegetarian Hindus and Jains caring for captive carnivores, from lions to eagles, have crippled and starved them, forcing them to accept a lacto-vegetarian diet. Imposing such dietary restrictions on obligate carnivores because of religious beliefs and customs is clearly unethical and culturally absurd.

DEAR DR. FOX: I have an 11-year-old female cat, Tina, who started to lose weight over the last four months. At first, I did not notice, as she is a fluffy cat and sleeps most of the day in my room.

Last week, I was petting her and felt her bones. I called my vet, and he came to check her out. He took blood and palpated her neck and showed me a lump on her thyroid. The blood test confirmed that she has hyperthyroidism. We immediately ordered thyroid medicine from a pharmacy, but it will take five days to be delivered.

What can we do in the meantime? I have been giving her dry food all day, and wet food two to three times a day. Is there a recommended food for cats with hyperthyroidism? I can supplement her food with eggs, meat, etc., but I would rather give her something with vitamins and minerals geared towards caloric intake.

She was 12 pounds in October. Now, she is 8.2 pounds. I am afraid that she will continue to lose weight and suffer. -- K.I., Freehold, New Jersey

DEAR K.I.: Your cat is one of thousands with this disease.

The domestic cat is the modern-day canary down the mineshaft, sharing with us the same environment and exposure to harmful chemicals in our air, food and water. Many of these chemicals cause cancer in cats, dogs and their caregivers, as well as the general population exposed to the DNA-damaging fallout from the Age of Chemistry. The incidence of many cancers in children is also increasing.

The definition of “progress” must now be recalibrated from the perspective of One Health, though disease prevention is politically unpopular and financially threatening to responsible parties. The political influence of the pharmaceutical industry, with its exorbitant, seemingly unstoppable price hikes in the U.S., is evidence enough that we, the public, must become more responsible for maintaining our own health and that of those we care for.

It is too late to turn the clock back for your cat, but you can help improve her condition -- which is often associated with increased irritability, appetite and anxiety with excessive fur-pulling and grooming -- by offering her a pinch of catnip, which most cats like for its arousing, then calming, effect. I call it “cat Valium.”

If she’s not allergic to fish, I would give your cat a canned sardine daily, and feed her a high-quality, grain-free canned or freeze-dried cat food.

Your cat may otherwise be healthy enough for treatment with a radioisotope that destroys the tumor and the thyroid gland, which is the most effective treatment when available and affordable.

AN OUTSTANDING BOOK

In the emerging field of One Health that recognizes the benefits of caring relationships between us, animals and the environment, we have a very valuable contribution by Carol Novello with Ginny Graves. They have written the outstanding book “Mutual Rescue: How Adopting a Homeless Animal Can Save You, Too” (Grand Central Publishing, 2019).

The beauty of this book is not only in the personal accounts of the physical, emotional and spiritual benefits that animals provide, but also in the referenced documentation of scholarly articles that validate these claims. There is no sentimentalizing or anthropomorphizing in this book, but some parts may make readers cry.

Those who have not yet experienced the affection and trust of an animal, or who, for various reasons, are disconnected from realizing the many profound benefits of having animals in their lives, should be given this book, as should all high-school students, whose education and well-being will be enhanced. Helping rescue or foster animals, walking neighbors’ dogs and volunteering at the local animal shelter or wildlife rehabilitation facility are antidotes to “climate grief” -- the paralyzing and depressing anxiety over the state of the environment. Becoming activists for good causes can improve mental health.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)

DEAR DR. FOX: I read a recent statement about socializing feral cats and caging them. My parents raised applehead Siamese cats when I was younger, and I’ve had a multi-cat household ever since. My parents caged cats for breeding and showing purposes, and I have caged cats for behavior issues, food allergies, and for the safety of feral cats and the rest of my clowder (group).

My observation is that the cats, even the ones that must be caged for food allergies, become very attached to their cages or their own personal space. Right now, I have an 18-year-old cat with food allergies that is caged at night, while I’m away from the home and when I clean. And I have two feral cats caged about 90 percent of the time due to behavior issues and the safety of other cats. But even when the doors are open, they are usually found in their respective cages.

I believe this is like a dog that has been properly crate-trained; the crate/cage becomes a safe haven, not a punishment. Their food and water are there, along with a litter box, toys and bed, providing a safe zone.

Unrelated: When will an animal behaviorist be a standard part of a veterinarian’s practice? I mean an individual that specializes in behavior, not just a few classes that the vet took at school.

And finally, I don’t have to tell you that your daughter Camilla is amazing, but she is! Her Project Coyote is dear to my heart. Education is the best defense for these beautiful creatures. I live in Indiana and the hunting is cruel. I support her nonprofit organization, and share her website regularly. -- T.S., Indianapolis, Indiana

DEAR T.S.: Your observations about some of your cats staying in their cages when the doors are open, and that they regard it as their den, confirm what I have long advised. I encourage cat owners to put a small cat-carrying crate in a low-traffic corner with a soft towel or blanket inside, and put in treats on occasion, including catnip. Keep the door open at all times and encourage the kitten or cat to use it as a den. This would make life so much easier and far less stressful for the cat when a veterinary appointment is due.

On the topic of behaviorists, there is an American College of Veterinary Behaviorists (see their recent book “Decoding Your Dog”), but regrettably they are few in number. I am one of the founders of applied veterinary ethology, advocating for decades to have related courses that are required, not elective, for students in all veterinary paths (companion animal, farmed animal, “exotic” animal, laboratory animal and zoo animal).

According to veterinarian Dr. Karen L. Overall: “Most colleges of veterinary medicine have historically lacked, or still lack, full-time programs in veterinary behavioral medicine led by board-certified veterinary specialists” in applied ethology or behavioral medicine. This is unacceptable. Any creature with a broken spirit can never fully recover from physical illness or injury. Ethology, the science of animal behavior, essentially studies animals’ ethos -- their spirits, so vital to determining and providing for their well-being and quality of life.

I am so glad that you know of my daughter Camilla’s Project Coyote. I am very proud of her dedication and recent successes getting coyote-killing contests outlawed and exposing and stopping the practice of setting dogs onto them while they are in cages. These efforts take endurance and the support of people who care. I do not fund her, since what we have to spare goes to two veterinarians working in India, where my wife, Deanna Krantz, once ran an animal refuge and 24/7 in-field veterinary service. (For details, check my new website, drfoxonehealth.com.) The region in India is one of the last wild preserves left for elephants, tigers and leopards. Human and livestock encroachment is relentless.

(Send all mail to animaldocfox@gmail.com or to Dr. Michael Fox in care of Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106. The volume of mail received prohibits personal replies, but questions and comments of general interest will be discussed in future columns.

Visit Dr. Fox’s website at DrFoxOneHealth.com.)