Stay Curious

SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AND UNLOCK ONE MORE ARTICLE FOR FREE.

Sign Up

VIEW OUR Privacy Policy


Discover Magazine Logo

WANT MORE? KEEP READING FOR AS LOW AS $1.99!

Subscribe

ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?

FIND MY SUBSCRIPTION
Advertisement

How to Tell if Your Cat Is Sick

Experts share how to tell if your cat is sick. Some variations from normal behavior are subtle while other signs are easier to pinpoint.

ByBrittany Edelmann
Credit: beton studio/Shutterstock

Newsletter

Sign up for our email newsletter for the latest science news

Sign Up

If you feel like something is wrong — say, your stomach or your leg is hurting — you can typically explain to others what’s going on. Maybe you tell a doctor what your symptoms are and what your pain level is, while adding other information to aid the practitioner’s understanding.

But cats can’t tell us how they’re feeling.

Whatever their ailment, what are some signs that might help us understand our feline friends better and to know if something is wrong? Read on to learn what to look for when something is wrong with your cat — and what to do about it.

Not only do our feline friends communicate differently than us humans, but “cats are both predator and prey, and so they do a lot of hiding their injuries in their illness behaviors,” says M. Leanne Lilly, a clinical assistant professor at the Ohio State University Veterinary Medical ...

  • Brittany Edelmann

    Brittany Edelmann is a registered nurse who completed a master’s degree in journalism with a specialization in health and science at Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism. She has written for Discover, Chicago Health, Chicago Caregiving, The Sun-Sentinel, and Medill Reports, as well as The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

Stay Curious

JoinOur List

Sign up for our weekly science updates

View our Privacy Policy

SubscribeTo The Magazine

Save up to 40% off the cover price when you subscribe to Discover magazine.

Subscribe
Advertisement

0 Free Articles