medical

Some cat emergencies come on suddenly and are overt, but others start off vague. Here's how to recognize an emergency situation and when to bring your cat to the vet ASAP. All tips are brought to you by Dr. Eric Barchas via Catster.

 The following list is designed to help you recognize cat emergencies that always warrant an immediate trip to the vet. However, it is not exhaustive, and you may find yourself in an ambiguous situation not covered on the list. Remember that when in doubt it is always safest to have a vet evaluate your cat. A physical exam that reveals nothing wrong causes no harm; doing nothing about a critical situation can lead to a fatal outcome. 

Seven-year-old Madden Humphreys of Oklahoma was born with two rare conditions — a bilateral cleft lip and complete Heterochromia iridum, or different-colored eyes. And he hasn't had it easy. One cat that looks exactly like him changed his life forever.   

Ollie is a cute adopted kitten who was a healthy and happy cat until one day he began throwing up everywhere and eventually just stopped moving, according to an emotional post written by his owner on Imgur. At the emergency vet, they did blood tests and x rays and found a hard mass inside his stomach and intestines. The vet told his owner they needed to do an emergency surgery or he would die.