Are Torties more prone to health problems????

[catfamily7995]

I'm pretty sure that Tortoiseshell isn't an actual breed, but rather a color pattern. My boyfriend and I had adopted a beautiful 7 or 8 month old Tortie from a shelter about six years ago, and she recently passed away. we had four cats at the time she passed, and it was so sudden. She started coughing and in a matter of five seconds she was gone. She didn't like other cats, but she tolerated the others in the house and very rarely she would allow them to lay next to her. She had such tortitude, and was our little baby. We were wondering if any one else has had any health problems with their Torties, or knows anything about if they are prone to any health issues . We have been searching night and day for answers.

Our Babygirl, Les.

IMG_0082.JPG

• catfamily7995
• Oct 16, 2014

 

[savvysmom]

I actually don't know the answer to your question, but my tortie is about 4 1/2 years old and has osteosarcoma. She was meowing at me more often and I went to pet her and found a mass under her arm on her ribs. Vet said we can't really do anything for it, so I'm just keeping her happy until her time comes... She still catches birds and other animals too. I'm surprised how well she still gets around despite having a baseball in her armpit... Sorry to hear about your cat.

 

[pushylady]

You're right in saying that Tortoiseshell isn't an actual breed, but a coat pattern.
I'm sorry you lost your cat so suddenly. That must've been a nasty shock.
I haven't heard of the torties being prone to illness though, just the "tortitude". My friend has a beautiful long haired tortie who is almost 18 and has been healthy her whole life. She's just starting with kidney issues now though.

 

[catfamily7995]

Thanks so much you guys, it means alot to me that you replied. I'm very happy i found this website, and I'm new to this whole thing, not sure how to reply individually to you so i will write two separate paragraphs.

savvysmom,  Thank you, and I'm so sorry to hear that your poor baby is sick :c  but at least you can still spend time with her and make her happy and comfortable for the remainder of her days. I honestly hope that she lives a long happy life with you despite the circumstances. I wonder if it has something to do with the genes, since most of them are females? Not sure how that has to do with any of this really, I didn't know what osteosarcoma was until i just read your reply and looked it up. It's good that shes still an active kitty though! Either way Torties are awesome cats I wish you the best, and your reply really helps me alot, so thank you so much

pushylady. eighteen's not bad, and it was definitely a shock. I was on the phone with my mom when it happened and my boyfriend started telling me to get off the phone he needed the flashlight and i could hear the concern and urgentness in his voice and i knew something was wrong. when i walked into the room she was just laying under the bed :'c I miss her so much. She wasn't my cat originally, she was my boyfriends ex's and she just left the cat with him. I loved Les with all of my heart, she was truly an amazing cat, even though she always hissed at me when I walked by haha but she was also very loving and would sleep in my lap at night. I'm sorry about your neighbors kitty, my moms cat had similar problems (kidney failure) at the same exact age, just a different breed. I do wish the best for them and their kitty

 

[maurene]

I have a tortie too. She is 14 yo. At about age 8 she was diagnosed with a heart condition. And then just about 1 month ago diagnosed with hyperthyroidism. But she's not had the minor illnesses like UTIs or stomach issues that are pretty common in cats. Oh...she did test diabetic once but a change in food fixed that.

I too have wondered if torties are more prone to certain health issues. But I think my male tabby whose the same age has had more issues (but less serious) than my tortie. Maybe its a male v female thing. I thought I read once that male torties are likely to be sterile.

Sorry you lost your tortie.

 

[catfamily7995]

maurene, wow. Is the heart condition serious? We thought she might have had a heart attack due to an underlying heart problem. When we adopted her, the people at the shelter didnt know ANYTHING about her. which is weird, because usually they know alot about their cats. They had stuck her in the cat room un spayed, which again is REALLY weird because usually they spay and neuter every animal that comes in, along with microchip. But anyway, she was in the cat room and we think she got pregnant because over the course of a few months we watched her go from kitten sized to and then all of a sudden not so kitten sized anymore and  she had devolved a  super saggy belly and there was also a litter of tortie kittens in the same cage next to her. well, we took her to the vet after we adopted and everything seemed to be in order and nothing stood out to the vet, although we never had any tests done except for the regular ones, and de worming and vaccines because she seemed really healthy and happy. We wonder if she did have an under lying heart condition...I am real sorry that yours does and i hope the best for her. I too read that male Torties are born sterile, so again they have weird genetics.

 

[amccrory1974]

Hello,I don't normally blog but I could not help but respond to your post because we just had a similar incident happen to our dear, Pip.  She was a Tortie also and we have only had her for approximately 5 years.  Beautiful, sweat and sassy, unique kitty with her tortitude.  She started vomiting this past week and began to eat only her moist food for the past few days.  We thought she was mad because there was a lot of activity and several changes going on in the household because she was acting a little more needy than usual until yesterday when she fell to the ground screeching.  By the time she got to the vet, she had no pulse in one leg and was losing in another, they could not figure out what was wrong so we rushed her to the animal emergency clinic where they believe she had the signs of blood clots due to a possible heart disease, aorta thrombosis or saddle thrombosis.  The cot had cut off circulation to her legs and began causing neurological damage.We too, lost our baby girl.

R.I.P Pip.jpg

• amccrory1974
• Jul 27, 2016

 

[neely]

I'm very sorry for your loss, my heartfelt sympathies go out to you.

  We adopted, Neely, who was a torbie,  (part tortie and part tabby), at approx. 2 yrs. old.  She had all the personality traits of a tortie, definitely catitude!  Neely passed away at 13 yrs. old.  She had FORL, (feline oral resorptive lesion), around 8 yrs. old and was diagnosed with cancer of the mandible at 13.  The only info. we had from the shelter when we adopted her was that she was an owner surrender.  Since we have adopted all our animals I like to say that they don't come with a resume.  I noticed your kitty was also adopted and unfortunately that means we don't know that much about their health history or previous living environment.  Our present persian, Carleton, came from a terrible hoarding situation and we worry about his health too.  The only consolation I can offer is that you cherished Les and lavished her with all your love and attention.  She will live in your heart forever.

 

[pegleg]

A friend's legendary ginger boy went the same way at 8 years old. The vet said it was an underlying heart problem and that they are more common than most people, and vets, realise. Also that there's nothing that can be done in these cases.

I'm sorry for your loss and yours A amccrory1974 .

S savvysmom I had a hamster who also had a tumour larger than his head in his armpit, he got on fine with it and lived for over three years. Good luck to your kitty.

 

[jennyo]

I'm pretty sure that Tortoiseshell isn't an actual breed, but rather a color pattern. My boyfriend and I had adopted a beautiful 7 or 8 month old Tortie from a shelter about six years ago, and she recently passed away. we had four cats at the time she passed, and it was so sudden. She started coughing and in a matter of five seconds she was gone. She didn't like other cats, but she tolerated the others in the house and very rarely she would allow them to lay next to her. She had such tortitude, and was our little baby. We were wondering if any one else has had any health problems with their Torties, or knows anything about if they are prone to any health issues . We have been searching night and day for answers.

Our Babygirl, Les.

IMG_0082.JPG

• catfamily7995
• Oct 16, 2014

I'm pretty sure that Tortoiseshell isn't an actual breed, but rather a color pattern. My boyfriend and I had adopted a beautiful 7 or 8 month old Tortie from a shelter about six years ago, and she recently passed away. we had four cats at the time she passed, and it was so sudden. She started coughing and in a matter of five seconds she was gone. She didn't like other cats, but she tolerated the others in the house and very rarely she would allow them to lay next to her. She had such tortitude, and was our little baby. We were wondering if any one else has had any health problems with their Torties, or knows anything about if they are prone to any health issues . We have been searching night and day for answers.

Our Babygirl, Les.

IMG_0082.JPG

• catfamily7995
• Oct 16, 2014

I'm pretty sure that Tortoiseshell isn't an actual breed, but rather a color pattern. My boyfriend and I had adopted a beautiful 7 or 8 month old Tortie from a shelter about six years ago, and she recently passed away. we had four cats at the time she passed, and it was so sudden. She started coughing and in a matter of five seconds she was gone. She didn't like other cats, but she tolerated the others in the house and very rarely she would allow them to lay next to her. She had such tortitude, and was our little baby. We were wondering if any one else has had any health problems with their Torties, or knows anything about if they are prone to any health issues . We have been searching night and day for answers.

Our Babygirl, Les.

IMG_0082.JPG

• catfamily7995
• Oct 16, 2014

This beautiful cat, Les, looked *identical like my sweet girl, Chloe. She was 17 or 18 (rescue) when I had to put her down. She was such a sweet-tempered cat.

Chloe had a congenital defect where the long bone of her back legs slipped out of the knee cap. A (botched) surgery to alleviate future arthritis lamed her but she soldiered on for another 8+ years.

(BTW, I would *not recommend this surgery; it was aggressive and greatly worsened the problem it was meant to alleviate. It was also ridiculously expensive as well as ineffective.)

She only had one very brief episode of pneumonia-like illness when she was 10 that presented as breathing difficulty prior to late life kidney disease and the congenital defect with her back legs.

Otherwise she was extraordinarily healthy and mild-tempered.

 

[TortieLvr]

I'm pretty sure that Tortoiseshell isn't an actual breed, but rather a color pattern. My boyfriend and I had adopted a beautiful 7 or 8 month old Tortie from a shelter about six years ago, and she recently passed away. we had four cats at the time she passed, and it was so sudden. She started coughing and in a matter of five seconds she was gone. She didn't like other cats, but she tolerated the others in the house and very rarely she would allow them to lay next to her. She had such tortitude, and was our little baby. We were wondering if any one else has had any health problems with their Torties, or knows anything about if they are prone to any health issues . We have been searching night and day for answers.

Our Babygirl, Les.

IMG_0082.JPG

• catfamily7995
• Oct 16, 2014

I don't know if they are prone to any illnesses but my Tortie named Patches is 15 and was recently diagnosed with kidney disease, a bladder infection and a heart murmur. We just rushed her to the vet this morning because she was getting worse on the meds they gave her and the vet told us it doesn't look good for her prognosis. I'm so sorry you lost your tortie suddenly and didn't have a chance to say goodbye that makes it worse. Torties are very unusual cats with tortitude. Torties and Calicos will forever be my favorite kind of cats. Patches holds a very special place in my heart and if anyone could pray for her to make it through this I would be indebted to you.

 

[jen]

My torti lived perfectly happy and healthy until about 14/15 when she got GI lymphoma and I put her down this past July. So I don't think it is a "torti thing" especially since torti is simply a coat coloring. All the things mentioned can happen to any cat.

 

[mizzely]

Mine is 9 and has never been ill

 

[verna davies]

I have a 3 yo torbie who has Eosinophilic Kerititis which is quite an uncommon illness. I dont know if torties/torbies are more prone to illnesses, I think any illness can affect any breed or colour but they certainly have catitude.

 

[Minni+Marionette mama]

Hello,I don't normally blog but I could not help but respond to your post because we just had a similar incident happen to our dear, Pip. She was a Tortie also and we have only had her for approximately 5 years. Beautiful, sweat and sassy, unique kitty with her tortitude. She started vomiting this past week and began to eat only her moist food for the past few days. We thought she was mad because there was a lot of activity and several changes going on in the household because she was acting a little more needy than usual until yesterday when she fell to the ground screeching. By the time she got to the vet, she had no pulse in one leg and was losing in another, they could not figure out what was wrong so we rushed her to the animal emergency clinic where they believe she had the signs of blood clots due to a possible heart disease, aorta thrombosis or saddle thrombosis. The cot had cut off circulation to her legs and began causing neurological damage.We too, lost our baby girl.

R.I.P Pip.jpg

• amccrory1974
• Jul 27, 2016

That so sounds like a smiller Incident that happened to my 16 yr old skittles who passed away in April, she was throwing up her food for years so we tried all kinds of dry food and wet food thinking it was her belly. Well a week before she passed, we noticed she wasnt eating like normal so we tried to feed her tuna and chicken (canned). Then I took her to my vet and she did x rays and had to send them out to a radiologist (that would take 4-5days toy get back) the vet thought she had feline asthma. Sent her home on meds then Friday night I get home shes walking around and then would fall over. So i rushed her to caves they gave her a few meds and and she saw a cardiologist come to find out she had an enlarged heart and one side was working harder then the other and had a heart murmur, so they did iv fluids under her skin because she need it and we stayed for a few hours for oxygen/ Observation And gave her a meds and sent us home. Long story short I got her home layed her on my chest to go to sleep with me and she just wants right. So I rushed her back to caves but we didnt make it there in time she passed on me in the car on the way there. We miss here dearly! sorry for long story.