Cat Biting Tail And Making Horrible Fighting Sound

[SteveJohn]

she has started to do it more and more recently, she will bite her tail and make a horrible noise like a cat fighting noise and when I try stop her she will hiss at me.

She goes out in the mornings at like 6:30 and I’ll pop back for lunch and she comes in about 1. She has toys, scratch post, cat tree, treats, food, water, litter tray. She will moan all night to go out but I won’t let her because she gets into too many fights last time she did.

Is it boredom? Anxiety not being allowed out? She isn’t confined to one room she can basically roam the house and has windows to look out. What more does this bloody cat want. Should I take her the vets for a checkup?

She is eating, playing, comes and makes a fuss but every night she will bite and scratch at her tail and make that sound.

 

[catsknowme]

What are her other symptoms, especially her expressions? Are her pupils dilated? What is positioning of her whiskers and ears when this is going on? Is there any "skin rolling" (like a horse does to shake off a fly)? Just based on her vocalizations, I would consider "feline hyperesthesia". But perhaps she got bitten at the base of her tail during a cat fight. Or could it be fleas or an embedded tick's head or a lodged sticker?
Answers to questions as these will give your veterinarian a lot of valuable information.
In my experience, vets are also very interested in videos, especially with sound so that they can distinguish play trills vs. growls, etc.
How much play and social activity is she getting? I find that cats with strong hunting (working) urges are similar to Border Collies and other working dogs - they need extra vigorous play plus mental stimulation. For cats, I attach a teaser toy to the end of a retired fishing pole or lunge whip so that the diameter of circle of play is greatly extended - think across room dashes and high leaps into the air. You want her energy spent. After, you can do comfort grooming followed by a meal or snack ( the hunt-clean-sleep pattern of apex predators).
Here is a link to a thread that considers hyperesthesia:
Advice For Hyperesthesia For My Cat

Please keep us updated on how things are going!

 

[SteveJohn]

I’ve just brought her one of these at lunch and she going mental for it. She gets plenty of exercise in and outdoors so no idea why she is still going abit crazy. Gonna have to have a vet trip I think.

She is only 2 though still and very playful, she does hunt outdoors and catches a lot.

 

[catsknowme]

What a beautiful panther kitty! She is so pleased with her new toy! How far does it extend? The vet visit is a great idea - you may want to prepare for sedation and keep her on an empty stomach. Please let us know what they think is going on. It might help others who view this thread to see a video of an "episode".

 

[SteveJohn]

UPDATE: Took Luna the vet and she was checked out by one vet at first who was shocking and didn’t know what
feline hyperesthesia was, kept pressing on her tail again and again and again until she finally hissed which I’m it surprised about ffs. Anyway asked to see another Vet and she knew her stuff, did lots of tests and she seems fine apart from when she pulled her back legs to test hips etc and she did moan out a bit. She thought it could be nerve related. Instead of give me a anti inflammation medicine she gave me something called gabapentin. It is to help with nerve pain and calm her down a bit. So far she hasn’t been as bad to be honest but she still sees her tail as a play thing.

 

[catsknowme]

Thank you for the update! Bravo for getting a better vet Gabapentin sounds like a good choice as it helps with neurological pain, including overactive nerves (thought to be part of hyperesthesia) and stops seizure activity and is showing promise as a mild sedative for cats who are troubled by vet visits. Although I have seen plenty of horror stories online about its use in humans ranging from alopecia to hallucinations, my personal experience has been overall good, including for 3 special needs people in my life, myself and a former cat who suffered from FH. My people have been on it for years for chronic conditions. In my experience, the dosage divided into twice daily doses shows more benefits than the single dose at bedtime, particularly for pain management. The US National Institute of Health has been studying more about cats (Amen!) and this is a discussion on gabapentin & kitties that you might find interesting:
Effects of a single preappointment dose of gabapentin on signs of stress in cats during transportation and veterinary examination. - PubMed - NCBI

I know that you will continue to monitor Luna. Your observations during the vet exam are A+! She is so blessed to have you looking out for her. Maybe she was kicked or stepped on as a kitten and her back or pelvic girdle hurts. Please keep us updated!

 

[catsknowme]

I have no idea why my reply launched three times...

 

[SteveJohn]

Well it’s been a couple of days since taking the medicine prescribed and it’s not really done much because tonight she has been as bad as ever chasing and biting her tail.

Personally think it’s gonna be along road finding out what’s wrong with her

 

[catsknowme]

I was so hoping that the gabapentin would help! Poor Luna! It seems to me that something is really plaguing her in that area of her body. If it is soft tissue injury, it could be very hard to detect.. Do you know her history? maybe kids pulled her tail or she was kicked or got caught in the fan belt of a car - it's so hard to know.
Jcatbird , @Furballsmom - do you have any thoughts?

 

[ArtNJ]

Might find some new possibilities in here, seems like a good article:

Problems with a Cat Attacking His Tail

 

[Jcatbird]

I would think you should give the drug more time in her system. It often takes time before the chemicals are fully effective. Sometimes it was a matter of finding the right medication too. I have seen this in cats before. One had gastric and urinary problems that were apparently causing some pain. Another had a bite on her tail from something that we decided might have been a spider or tick. It was difficult to find in her fur. Coincidentally, she was also a black kitty. I have also seen a single flea drive a cat to distraction. That particular cat had a nervous disposition and any time he ever got anything on his tail he just became frantic but it was not a constant or regular behavior. He acted as though his tail was some strange creature to be attacked. The last of the experiences I have had was with a cat that had taken a fall. A missed jump on a staircase and she suffered a concussion. That was many years ago but even then our vet felt she was having mild seizure activity. There were usually signs of lethargy after the seizures. What you describe at the vet visit does sound like she has pain in her back end. Were any X-rays taken? Are all other functions normal? Eating, drinking, urinating and poo okay? Any apparent stiffness after a long nap. How does she act after very active play? Does she like to jump to high places or prefer to stay in lower spots. All these answers could give clues to the vet. If the medication does not help then check all the above for new insight. Sometimes it takes a bit of detective work to figure out what our kitties cannot verbalize. Watch her facial expressions and body language closely. Tail tucked under her body indicates fear or pain. Tail straight up is a happy cat tail. Ears back can be a dislike, displeasure or frustration as well as anger or pain. One ear back, got an itch.
The more photos or video you can take the more you can observe your cats reactions to everything around her. Keep a photographic record if you can and review it from time to time. I find that to be an invaluable tool with my kitties. I photograph a couple of activities of my FIV and FeLV cats on a daily basis and keep them in a file. Sometimes we don’t notice gradual changes but looking back at earlier photos made me notice a subtle weight loss in one of my kitties. Please keep us posted. I hope that the medication will take effect and provide you both with a solution.

 

[fionasmom]

I am not sure from reading if Luna went into what you believe might be FH in front of the vet or not. Sorry if I misread. I do have a cat with FH and I brought several videos to the vet to watch, since it never happened at the office. It can be hard to diagnose because the source of the episodes can be something else, like the pain that the second vet found; however, one does not rule out the other.

 

[SteveJohn]

Thanks everyone look what I’ve just found on the bottom of her tail.

Now is this from her biting it or is this a flea bite?? It’s red and scabby.

 

[fionasmom]

I think it is too scabby for a flea bite, but I stand to be corrected.

 

[SteveJohn]

I think it is too scabby for a flea bite, but I stand to be corrected.

Do you think it’s actually from her biting then ?

 

[fionasmom]

It could be given it looks like a small tooth puncture.

 

[SteveJohn]

Disappointing was actually hoping it was a flea bite or something to explain her constant tail hate at the moment. Arhhhhhhhh

 

[fionasmom]

Hopefully others will give you an opinion as well; I could be wrong.

 

[SteveJohn]

Honestly doing my head in now abit, she woke up about 6am started meowing to go out and before I could get up she started making the cat fighting noise obviously attacking her tail.

She sees it as a play thing, I’ve managed to get a video of her doing it but not sure how I can upload on this site.

 

[di and bob]

There are several creams and salves at farm supply stores, like Tractor Supply and online for ichiness, pain, sores, etc. There are even some that discourage licking/biting an area because they are bitter. Just make sure it is for cats. She may have some itching, etc. going on there. SOMETHING is wrong! some anxiety meds take several weeks to take effect, maybe gabapentin is the same. Have you tried an injection of a steroid? That takes care of many skin problems and many others in my cats. you might want to ask the vet...

 

[SteveJohn]

Managed to get a video.

She has been out all day, comes in sleeps for a while, wakes up and then this is when she starts to play with her tail and bite it and hiss.

It seems to twitch and move then she notices something and goes for it.