What is Overground Strip (OS)?
Overground Strip, or OS as it's more commonly referred to, was a
name coined by a Cave Kat that ventured out into the open. A
disease caused by the body's reaction to a new climate, it's
fairly harmless.
What are the symptoms?
The most noticeable symptoms are loss of fur in patches and a
temper (of course, that could be because the kat/minena is losing its fur).
OS can last up to three months before the fur starts growing in
again, and it isn't particularly harmful.
What causes it?
Sudden, extreme climate changes that the kat/minena isn't used to can
cause this condition. If the kat/minena has experienced the climate
before the risk is greatly lowered, but completely new climates
often upset the system enough to cause fur loss.
How is it spread?
OS is not contagious and cannot be passed from kat to kat or
from any other creature to a kat. It's purely an environmental
disease.
Where is it found?
OS is found all over Tryne in any type of kat and minena. The disease seems
to be associated with the stress of being out of one's climate,
so wherever there are travelers, there will be OS.
How can it be prevented?
Relaxation is suggested, and there are a series of breathing
exercises a kat/minena can do after entering a foreign climate. The
calmer the kat/minena is and the less the kat/minena is reacting mentally
to the climate, the better.
How is it treated?
There is no treatment once OS develops, and one can only wait
until the body adjusts to the new climate. The condition
certainly isn't harmful or painful, however... it causes more
embarassment than anything else.
What are your chances of getting it?
Protectors, Guilders, and other travelers are at the most risk.
Eventually, as the body becomes adapted to swiftly changing
climates, there is a smaller risk of developing this condition.
Valleys, being the most carefree of kats, have a small chance
of developing OS simply because they never really care about
their climate.
Contributed by Cheshire
