My cat got a rabies vaccine this morning and now I think she has autism.

[laconicsax]

:hi:

[varkam]

1. Quick! Someone call Jenny McCarthy!

She'll know what to do!

[Lost in CT]

2. Don't give them any ideas.... nt

[Duer 157099]

3. Interesting concept. But how would you know?

Seems to me that cats are, by nature, already autistic.

[MountainLaurel]

7. Good point

Maybe they stop meowing?

[aquart]

4. Amazing how cute you think you are.

[laconicsax]

5. I know, I'm adorable!

[cosmik debris]

6. Be careful or you might catch it too! n/t

[hedgehog]

8. On a serious note, is there an animal model for autism?

[semillama]

9. That's actually an interesting question

Wouldn't "animal autism" be selected out of breeding populations? I think you'd have to assume that "AA" would really only be noticeable in social animals. And traits that cause an individual to be non-social in most species would probably put that individual for high risk of predation, especially in young individuals. It seems to me that autistic individuals might only survive in species exhibiting high intelligence and adaptive cultures (i.e., Homo sapiens).

[LeftishBrit]

11. Some people think so.

The earliest theory, so far as I know, is that damage to the amygdala (a part of the brain that deals with perception and processing of emotions) in monkeys and rats can lead to social abnormalities somewhat parallel to those in humans with autism. More recently, people have looked at other parts of the brain and at the effects of gene mutations.

www.ninds.nih.gov/news_and_events/news_articles/news_article_autism_mouse_model.htm

www.the-aps.org/press/conference/steamboat/1.htm


One problem in using animal models is that many of the impairments found in people with autism involve behaviours specific to human beings: use of language; pretend play; 'theory of mind' (understanding of thoughts and beliefs). It's controversial whether any other animals can have theory of mind, but at any rate not to the same degree as human beings.

[beam me up scottie]

10. No worries, it's completely normal for indigo/crystal cats. If you're still unsure, call an expert.

Like this one: