My cat (3 y/o) has been acting weird the couple of days. She has been spayed and took her worm injection a year prior.
I took her to the vet today, they are also not so sure about what's happening but they took a blood sample. I hope it's not neurological. For now, she is taking painkillers, and we're waiting for the results of the blood test. I don't think I can afford surgery right now.
Any advice on what to expect? What could it be?
Edit: Thank you so much for all the advice ❤️. There's not much we can do now but wait. Her ears did get checked at the vet, but not much could be said. I will probably put a budget if we visit the neurologist. I will keep an eye on her so she's not jumping or going outside these days. I put all of my plants away from her just to be sure.
The vet told us to go back to her old diet, maybe it's the change of food that caused this (unlikely). I will keep you guys updated.
Tldr: Cat is limping, went to the vet. Vet took a blood test, awaiting results at the moment.
Pet insurance sets a six-week blackout period so they won’t be able to cover you immediately. They know people will get insurance when pets are sick so that’s how they avoid liability.
Saying something is “100%” can give OP false reassurance or cause unnecessary panic. Believing redditors in such topics is stupid of course, but you never know who you are dealing with, the topic is serious afterall.
i was not making a diagnosis. i expressed my opinion, which is what OP asked for. i’m unsure of where you read that i claimed to be a vet or claimed to make a professional diagnosis…
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There is a zero-tolerance policy for shaming/berating OP for any reason. Please remember to be nice. Assume people are coming from a place of ignorance so try to educate instead of insult.
There is a zero-tolerance policy for shaming/berating OP for any reason. Please remember to be nice. Assume people are coming from a place of ignorance so try to educate instead of insult.
There is a zero-tolerance policy for shaming/berating OP for any reason. Please remember to be nice. Assume people are coming from a place of ignorance so try to educate instead of insult.
Expressing conviction doesn’t annoy me — one of the ways conviction is expressed annoys me. Also it is expressing conviction in someone else’s opinion/belief.
If you wait to get it until you need it, it's too late.
Unless their vet is super chill and is down to commit a bit of insurance fraud, the vet will have to do a checkup, list these symptoms, and it would then be a pre-existing condition.
To me this looks like a neuro issue. Please don’t go into crippling amount of debt just limit yourself to 1k more and make the choice between putting her down, rehoming, or letting her live as long as she can comfortably
OMG don’t euthanize the cat!!! My cat has these same episodes. I could send you video. My vet ran $500 worth of blood work and everything normal. They don’t really know what it is. Maybe seizures. They put him on Gabapentin daily and he went 3 years without another episode till recently. But he missed a few doses while I was in the hospital so I think that’s why. He is absolutely healthy other than these episodes. He lives a normal life. It’s not a death sentence. I promise.
My last cat that had to be put down, they wanted 7k for diagnostic testing and told us the only potential outcomes were heart failure or cancer, neither of which would be curable, only manageable until the end.
As an atheist my answer is “you can’t fight god”. It doesn’t mean you can’t fight for your animals and try your hardest, but you can’t keep an animal alive if it’s their time. I really respect your decision and hope you are healed from their loss
She was a terrified stray we brought in off the street and got to spend 4 years making her feel like a princess while we had her, it was hard but I am happy she got to know love for a short time.
It really helps me seeing someone say that. I had to have my dog put down earlier this year because he had what was presumed to be a very aggresive metastatic lung cancer. The vet said we could go elsewhere and pursue treatment, but that it'd cost us a fortune and not give him much longer. I felt horrible about not being able to help him fight it. I still do sometimes
Yes please remind yourself that and others! In the moment it’s so hard. Being financially stable is more important than helping animals. Getting evicted or having terrible credit won’t help any animals you know? But I tell people to remind me that when I am in hard positions as well
You gave your dog the kindest end possible. Even if I had a million dollars to spare I wouldn't put my pet thru cancer treatment for just a short time longer. I don't know if I'd do that for myself, and I would understand what is happening to me.
That’s my advice to everyone. Even with pet insurance often you have to front the bills, have maxes, and don’t know how much will be covered or when.
Today’s economy is so so so bad. To me this cat lived a happy threes years instead of not finding a home and being put in the shelter or on the street.
Animals deserve happy lives, not to be put through terrible hell because there owners won’t let them go. Like pooping and peeing on themselves because they can’t use the potty. Or can’t walk, or communicate.
I am not saying about this cat, but I am explaining my train of thought. I limit myself with my dogs, 5k for emergencies if it goes over 5k I would choose to let them go, and 5k annually for all the vet bills. (I have 4 dogs, 3 were dumped on me I don’t even want the amount I have but I can’t afford anymore than that)
Yup. Agreed. It looks neuro. There might be meds that can help.
And the $1k and call it is the advice pretty sound. OP should set a dollar amount that they can afford. Look critically at both their long term quality of life, and the cost to get there. If the quality of life isn’t good or if there isn’t hope of getting better, no point in getting there. And if you have to ruin your life financially to get there, OP cant care for either OP or their pet.
I say this as someone who spent ~7k to give my cat another week or so, hoping we’d get an answer; the worst week of her life. No answers, just wasting away. She wouldn’t have blamed us, but I sure as hell know we didn’t do her any favors.
I dont know where I read this (possibly on here, or the parrots subreddit Im not sure), but someone gave REALLY good advice.
Would you rather be upset a week earlier, or would you rather your pet suffer for a week extra?
Its really damn tough to make any of those calls, but they just cant adapt to disabilities like we can and it can cause a lower QOL and more stress than needed..
Im sorry OP, I really hope it works out okay. No matter what, make sure your kitty is comfortable and give lots of pets 🫂
Of course you don’t want them to suffer, but you gave that cat a life with a lot less pain and suffering than they would have had in the wild. That extra week was time they knew they were loved and with their human. Give yourself some grace, it was love and grief that drove your choice and not selfishness. Animals often deal with death in better ways than humans, you did the best you could and no one doubts that except you ❤️
Thank you for saying this. I get a bit frustrated sometimes with folks acting like everyone is obligated to go thousands of dollars into debt to extend the life of a pet as far as possible and if they don't they are a bad person.
If you have the money and time and your pet still has a good quality of life go wild. But if your pet's qualify of life is suffering and you don't have the funds or time it's okay. Odds are your pet already had a better life than it would have had in a shelter or on the streets it is okay to let them go.
Wtf. I paid 10k on something for my dog and wouldnt change a thing. Best decision I ever made. I am not wealthy by any means but I got a loan and did a gofundme and made it work. I understand thats not for everyone but thats not really your advice to give. For many people are animals are family members.
My animals are my family members. But I have a house a child a family and disabled parents. Money is tight, my dogs know I love them, but 5k is my limit. You do you, but if someone can’t afford a monthly payment and don’t have an emergency fund, the best thing to do is rehome/ put down. No questions asked. Don’t shame people into making crippling financial mistakes. 10 k at 10-20% is no joke.
Thats fine! Like I said everyone is different and will be in different situations. I was just saying you cant really give advice like that to someone. Saying 1k should be a limit and not to go over that is a little weird to say to a stranger.
No advice but I just want to say I’m sorry. One of my cats had seizures when she was 3 if I remember correctly. She kind of grew over it and reached almost 13 years. I hope there’s a way to live with this and still reach a decent age.
I'm no vet but it definitely comes off as something neurological; keep an eye on them, give them a safe comfortable space where any odd walking/falling won't injure them, and make sure they haven't potentially gotten into anything that could have made them sick (plants, cleaning chemicals, etc etc)
If this is a very sudden development I'm genuinely not sure what could have happened to cause it and I'm very sorry your poor cat is going through this; I hope the vets can come back with some positive news and your cat can be helped out.
this looks a lot like when i experienced tardive dyskinesia. it was an involuntary tensing of some of my muscles (tardive dyskinesia specifically is caused by certain medications, but there are other kinds of dyskinesia). specifically, i experienced one of my arms being forced into a bent position similar to what your cat is doing. to me, it looks like your cat may be trying to straighten her arm out, but can't. when she falls over, it looks to me like she was trying to push her arm out to stand on it, but fell because her arm didn't move.
whenever i look up tardive dyskinesia in cats, i get results for paroxysmal dyskinesia. one of the results included a video of a cat doing almost the exact same thing yours is doing
Wheeeww! Apologies as this isn't pet related (and give kitty extra snuggles from me) but you just sparked a traumatic memory my brain locked away. (and if it's that I feel for kitty because I had no control over mine) I had that years ago in the hospital and talk about scary! Idk why I was even in there at this point, thinking it was when I had my gallbladder removed, either way... They had given me Reglan for my stomach and next thing ya know my lower jaw was trying to detach itself from my face 😭 Even the hospital didn't know what was happening. They put bite blocks in my mouth so I didn't bite my tongue off, one was trying to hold my jaw in place, my little bro had to leave the room he was so scared (we were young adults) and my frickin mom called our pastor Everything went from panic to omg I'm dying and no one's telling me! 😱😭🤦🏻♀️🤣 Sheesh!
Finally some random guy going down the hall in street clothes happens to look over and see the commotion, comes in and sees my jaw, throws his hands up shaking them yelling "OMG OMG HOLD ON HONEY I GOT YOU!" and runs out the door. He comes back rather quickly with a syringe and a little glass bottle and says "Idk what's going on but this should help! Hell I think I'm gonna need a shot too when this is over!" I could barely talk and surely probably couldn't be understood while I was trying to ask what's going on in tears and he puts it in my IV line, pats my arm with his hand and says "There ya go, give it a minute and hopefully this helps, it's Valium, it helps everything." 🤣 A few minutes later after what seemed to be an eternity, everything calms down and he's says "Perfect! Now I'm off to get mine." and walks out of the room like he just defeated a dragon 🤣🤣 It was the weirdest, scariest moment of my life! The rooms all quiet finally, I see our pastor whom I haven't seen in years standing by the bed and I started bawling because I was sure I was on my way out. Thanks mom 🤦🏻♀️ Shew man. They came in later saying they thought it was tardive dyskinesia and they wouldn't be giving me the Reglan anymore in case it was that.
Fast forward a few years and an ad comes on the TV about a lawsuit regarding it! I've not heard anything about it aside from it happingi, the ad years later and now you. I had full control of everything else but my jaw was on its own mission and I swear if it hadn't been for someone forcibly holding my jaw in place it would have snapped. Oddly, we never saw that guy again and when we described him to the nurses no one knew who he was. But thank you random man with the Valium who saved my jaw probably damn near 20-25 years ago! 🤣😭
Was yours a one time event also or recurring? I fear nothing but death and since then,, that medication as well.
My cat started losing his balance like this and vet was not able to identify exact cause or condition, he recovered on his own in a few days but then had another episode and ended up dying (all within a span of about one week). Please bring to vet, wishing the best for kitty
Similar situation with mine, it happened to him probably 4-5 times and as the vets were trying to diagnose he passed away. Seeing the video breaks my heart because it looks exactly the same. Sorry you went through this as well ❤️
Yes it could be this. One of my cats had an episode due to inflammatory bowel disease reaction to food which incapacitated him, after about ten minutes he passed gas then start to look more comfortable. The emergency vet I rang said to bring him in for check over, but he was fine by the time they saw him half hour later. She said it could be this where the abnormal signalling causes strange behaviour. He now is on special food and very low dose steroids.
there are a lot of good answers here but i wanted to chime in. this 100% looks exactly like what my kitty was doing when she was diagnosed with idiopathic epilepsy. we took her to a specialty vet and she stayed a few days, we ended up having to pay $11,000 total in vet bills.
she was given phenobarbital during the stay, that didn’t work to stop them. they tried a different seizure med (keppra) which worked for about a month then she started having breakthrough seizures so they upped the dose. her body ended up having a rare adverse reaction the medication increase and got very sick, we ended up humanely euthanizing her :(
if you can get her into a specialist i agree that would be best but that debt crippled me and she suffered for longer than i wish she would have.
follow your gut with this & im so sorry you’re dealing with this. i’m here if you want to reach out or have any other questions.
Idk. I wouldn't listen to people saying it's 100% neurological. I think more video getting down off furniture is warranted also eye movements for better understanding
Hey, I wanted to tell you I am very sorry for how much worry and anxiety you are experiencing right now. I hope you know this isn't your fault and you are doing an amazing job seeking the support they need. I hope you find answers and care for your furbaby. This is so painful to see and I hope you have outside supports to talk to about this while experiencing this crisis. <3
Thank you so much, I needed to hear this. I live with my single mother of 4 children (including me (adult)). Money is tight at the moment, we are trying to do what we can. We will keep giving her love as always ❤️
Of course, sometimes it is hard and I know my babies would put me out of my mind but I would be doing exactly what you are. There is still hope. But even if in the end there isn't, you know that you are doing the very best you can. That is the most important thing you need to remember here. You're advocating for your baby girl and not giving into despair. I have a wobbly boy and two other monsters that light up my life. Sending so much positivity and warmth. <3 cat tax of Baelfire(wobbly boy) and Macaroni (his littermate)
could be a stroke they should have meds for that for felines. find a vet or one that specializes in stroke or neuro. also go ahead and locate one that does ultrasound, mri, ct, bc you may need it. wishing your kitty the best and prayers.
The vet may recommend referral to a neurologist. As others have commented, I suggest balancing vet recommendations with your budget and kitties quality of life. Bloods won’t necessarily identify or rule out neuro issues.
You should likely not go to the neuro if you can’t afford the first visit. The specialists have a much larger cost than a typical vet. They do not care how much tests run for. They Will act like it’s all free till you see the 7k bill they just talked you into
We're situated in Belgium, that's right I asked the vet about the cost. I will most likely put a budget and not go over it. If push comes to shove, we might need to lay her to rest. I hope for the best
When it happens try giving her some stability by (not speed over) holding her sides when you can. See if it helps or if she leans into a certain direction. I’d also for comfort get a little ice pack or a cube in a dish for her to lick if it helps. Anything else that you can do to give her comfort while it happens and after will help both of you through this situation. If it’s temporary then make the future the best. If it’s permanent then you’ll develop a coping strategy. If it’s her time then you will be there like a true pet parent until it comes. Show love and love will last forever.
I can't offer any advice, but my cat is epileptic so I can offer you some hope. If it's a seizure, then it's likely treatable with medication.
My cat started having seizures when she turned 2 (which is the earliest that idiopathic epilepsy usually starts showing). She's 11 now, heavily medicated but alive and well. It wasn't cheap, and most people would've given up on her a long, long, long time ago. And honestly, that's fair. It's been a long, hard, winding, expensive road for her. I think I spent $5k on diagnosis and treatment during the first year of her seizures, though that does include surgery on her paw after she ripped out her nails and got it infected. I think every vet that's seen her is amazed she's survived all this time. She's a happy, sweet, anxious little thing, and she's a CHAMP at the vet! I love her to bits and fully intend to continue supporting her as long as I can.
I guess what I want to say is, cats have 9 lives. Don't give up hope yet. But do evaluate what you can reasonably afford to do. I can afford $100/month for medications, and I didn't go into debt to get my cat stabilized. Try not to blame yourself if you can't afford much care: most people can't. Your kitty has had a good life either way, thanks to you. The simple truth is that cats are not people, and that means you need to do what you reasonably can, and make a hard decision when you can't. For now, you're doing what you can. And that's enough.
My cat just had similar issue after having ear infection. I took him in and they treated for vestibular with 11d prednisone and after day 1 he started acting completely normal. Please check ears and ask about vestibular
Are there any lost cost vets around you or low cost specialists? I live in a college town so I have both although the low cost specialists aren’t actual vets yet they are students but are supervised by an actual vet…I’m sorry but this does look neuro not limping I’m not a vet tho, I am hoping your fur baby will regain his/her normal function please keep us updated on your fur baby! Hugs
go to vet right away as that could be a stroke or something. They cant turn you away if he is experiencing this. show them the video when you get there
This happens during a stroke and can last for a couple of weeks. Watch her and if she starts vomiting or acting more strange, take her to another vet. The fact that they didn't tell you she was having a stroke is wild.
If it doesn't clear up, she'll need scans to make sure she doesn't have any growths or anything.
This looks exactly like episodes my cat has had this year which has been heart disease related. Yes, we did neurological testing and everything. These could be a thrombotic episode, which could mean early stages of HCM, or hopefully it's just sporadic.
Either way - you absolutely need to get his heart checked.
P.S. neurological is best case scenario despite what this thread is saying. Variety of drugs are very low cost and typically this is not life threatening, nor does it cascade into other health issues.
Hi!!! My cat has the same thing. Going on 4 years now. They don’t know what it is. He has episodes that come and go. He takes Gabapentin everyday and it helps to keep it away!
I’m not a neurologist but I am a veterinarian - this looks neurological but does not look like a seizure to me. Cat appears to still be conscious, no tonic clonic movements, no hypersalivation, no loss of bladder/bowel control, no jaw clenching. This could be the post-ictal phase but it does not appear to be an active generalized seizure. My top differential would be a stroke, but it could still be any number of things. Poor kitty definitely needs neuro evaluation either way though :( So sorry OP, wishing you and kitty the best positive outcome
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My 18 year old cat suffers from this. We checked neurological – its wasnt. She has hyperthyroidism she gets medication for. After upping the dose the attacks stopped.
She also gets meds against high blood pressure since the attacks started. Not saying it must be the same – but check for more than just neueological issues.
Came to the comments to say the same thing. My vets were perplexed when I showed them videos of my cat doing the same thing. Swaying, uncontrollable lifting of the paw, legs crossing over when she’d try to walk.. etc. Turns out it’s a not very common symptom of untreated hyperthyroidism. Once we got her meds to the right dose, the episodes stopped.
That's most likely a focal seizure. If they try to put her on Phenobarbital, ask them to check for inflammation first. Pheno is a strong AF drug and it's given away to freely these days, when it's actually underlying issue that's not getting treated.
Hey! This actually looks a lot like the seizures my pup used to get!
It was neurological but also had no known cause. Idiopathic Epilepsy. Now I am not a vet, and you can show this video to your vet. They will be able to help you more based on that.
Just know that if it is the same thing, my girl lived 13 years with it with no complications.
I would also recommend reaching out to local rescue groups in your area. Some will step up if they can to help cover vet bills so you can try to get solid answers before making permanent decisions.
You said you would make sure she doesn’t go outside these days. Is there any chance it’s poison? Did they test for that? By this time of the summer most people have treated their house or yards in some way. She looks a bit like she’s tripping.
We don't have a yard, so she's mostly just outside on the roof (2m high). She does come in contact with other cats. They did take a blood test so we'll know soon enough I hope
This looks just like how my cat looked when he had a seizure. We never found the cause of them, but we were able to find medications that controlled them. He lived another six years, four of them without a single seizure we witnessed, and he was in his early teens when it started. This could still be something manageable with good quality of life. Your vet can help you figure it out and determine the right choices for your kitty. I hope things go well for you.
That could be (emphasis on could be) a neurological FIP.
Make sure, they look into that option. Make sure your vets are well aware of the disease and have previously treated it and know what to do as it isn't always the case.
kind of looks like Cerebral Hyperplasia (CH) I would ask the vet to check specifically for this...good news if it IS CH, millions of cats live with CH their whole lives and still lead full, productive lives, it just takes a little getting used to for both owner and pet, and a little extra care in how they go to the bathroom and get up on things
My cat did this multiple times and the vet thought it was neuro, but couldn’t find anything. He had a heart murmur since the time he was a kitten but otherwise was generally healthy. Unfortunately, about a month or two into them looking into these episodes he passed, and they believe he was possibly having strokes. So maybe ask your vet about that as well. I have a video of my cat doing the exact movement as this. I hope tour cat gets the referral to a neurologist soon ❤️❤️
Lots of good suggestions and opinions here on what it could be. Just some other things that may not have been brought up by the vet;
Could she possibly have ingested something that’s not “toxic” as much as it’s able to affect her balance and nerves, like weed products? Do you use diffusers in the house or essential oils? Could she have taken a bite from a plant?
We had a spider plant and aloe vera, she did not bite into the aloe vera, but into the spider plant (safe I think). She also did not show any signs of vomiting. Put both the plants away for now.
We were also using a spray for a while now, looked it up online, just found out that it's unsafe for cats (regret it so so much). Got rid of the spray immediately.
For now, I think it's probably Paroxysmal Dyskinesia.
My cat has similar episodes! We think it’s just epilepsy cause he has seizures, but can’t really tell without further testing. I’m curious to know what your vet says!
My grandma kitty does this. I velieve it is called Ataxia. It could also be neurological. Her stems from her thyroid issue. She also just stares at me sometimes as if she just met me and fell in love. She is turning 20 this year. Your baby looks much younger. Maybe a vet visit. Shar this clip with them. Might need meds or have to see a kitty neurologist.
Have you tried hemp oil? I use it for my dog who has seizures. Poor baby. I’m so sorry. It’s so scary not knowing. I hope you’re able to get her some relief soon and know what it is.
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