Cat Struggling To Walk For 10 Months

[Furballsmom]

Lily is still eating and drinking and behaving just fine.

I'm sure glad to hear this, thanks so much for the update!

 

[LuluM]

Sudden update: it’s been a while since I’ve updated about Lily. As of now, nothing has worked to help Lily’s legs and I have given up hope in finding a solution. Since he is already a senior cat, I plan to just let him be in his natural state until his final moments. Even though he is permanently disabled, I will give him lots of love and care and allow him to live his life comfortably. I will continue giving him steroids as suggested from my previous vet as it helps keep his appetite.

 

[Jem]

I'm so sorry he has not been able to recover. You tried so hard.

Just in case, as I'm not sure if I'm repeating anything already said, I apologize if so.

To help with his comfort, gentile massages of his legs would be very beneficial to ease muscle discomfort and stiffness. There are also heating pads and beds, specifically made for cats (pets) that would probably go a long way in letting him rest easy. They are much safer than traditional "human" heating pads.

I wish you both the very best, and please give him a hug for me. (I'm giving you one too!)

 

[LuluM]

I'm so sorry he has not been able to recover. You tried so hard.

Just in case, as I'm not sure if I'm repeating anything already said, I apologize if so.

To help with his comfort, gentile massages of his legs would be very beneficial to ease muscle discomfort and stiffness. There are also heating pads and beds, specifically made for cats (pets) that would probably go a long way in letting him rest easy. They are much safer than traditional "human" heating pads.

I wish you both the very best, and please give him a hug for me. (I'm giving you one too!)

Thank you I will give him lots of hugs

 

[Furballsmom]

 

[Furballsmom]

Just wanted to let you know that we have you-all in our thoughts and prayers.

 

[LuluM]

Just wanted to let you know that we have you-all in our thoughts and prayers.

Thank you, I really needed this today. Lily’s legs have not been improving and we don’t know what else we could do.

 

[Furballsmom]

 

[Leomc123]

Im sorry lilly hasnt gotten better , if she isnt in pain and is still a happy cat with you helping her to do things , then i would do the same. There are many cats out there who are not in pain but are disabled and enjoy life still. For my leo if he wasnt in pain, but just not able to move around i wouldnt have put him down, cause he still would have been happy without the pain. Atleast you still have lilly even if she cant run around she can still be managed.

 

[Furballsmom]

What with the holiday season going strong, I wanted to send my thoughts your way

 

[nunnc84]

Hello everyone,
This is my first time posting and I am in a state where I don’t know what to do with my cat. My cat Lily is 10 years old and struggles with his hind legs. Back in August, Lily suddenly started limping with his shoulders hunched forward. He suddenly stopped eating, drinking, and going to the litter box. I knew he was in pain so I went to the vet and all they did was take his blood test, blood pressure, and x-ray. All results came back normal so they couldn’t figure out what was causing him pain. Based on physical examination, they assumed he may have pancreatitis because he would hunch forward when touching his abdomen. All they gave me was pain medication and sent us home.

Later that night, Lily urinated on the floor and started meowing in pain. I thought at that moment he was about to pass away but luckily he did not. I went to the vet once more and all they could provide was more pain medication and a fluid shot to keep him hydrated. Over time, I fed Lily cooked chicken, baby food mixed with pancreas supplement, and fancy feast kibble. He gradually started getting better although his walking was still bad. His hind legs would spread outward and his stool would come out in small pebbles. He also could not stretch his leg to scratch his ear so I had to help him. He had a consistent appetite although it was less than my other healthy cat. Months go by and Lily seemed fine except for his walking so I did not feel urgent to take him to the vet considering he gets extremely stressed when taking him out.

Fast forward to this past week, Lily’s walking started getting worse and his hind legs would spread out while he sits or walks. He would trip and it seemed like his legs were weak. He also started losing muscle as well. I took him to a different vet this time and the vet told me that he may have nerve issues in the spine since his legs would not react when pinching them. We took another blood test since it was 10 months since the last one and the results came out the same. He did not have diabetes nor any viruses so those were ruled out. My vet told me that it could be a neurological issue and suggested steroid, buprenex(pain meds), and Clindamycin(anti-inflammatory). I have searched online all day for any possibilities for why he cannot walk and there is too much to figure out. At this moment, Lily can barely walk his way to the litter box. His legs are still spread outward and when he is laying down his back legs stick out straight. His appetite is getting low and he seems lethargic. He can eat while laying down.

Based on my perspective, I feel my cat may have gotten some nerve damage from the excruciating pain he felt back in August when he was meowing in pain. I have yet to truly find out what really was the cause of that pain as the vet only assumed pancreatitis without suggesting taking tests for pancreatitis. Lily did not have a seizure as I was by his side at all times and his body is not stiff in any places. His eyes are clear and he takes interest in his surroundings so I am doubtful about it being neurological. He also plays with strings although he would never attempt to use his back legs to play. Lily has the ability to kick and scratch, although not as much power, but still capable. His tail goes up however I have noticed that when I massage his thigh his tail would slightly twitch. I am planning on visiting a specialist although I am wary because the past two vets that I visited had no answers other than medication. I am also hesitant about getting an MRI because of the risks from radiography as well as putting him under anesthesia for “possible” answers. If possible, I would like any opinions or ideas of what may be wrong with Lily as well as what action should I take from here on out.

Hi

Idon’t remember how much I told you.
Luna has been walking for months now. She has a hip joint that goes in and out. After a lot of pain medication she walks with out medication!

 

[Furballsmom]

Luna baby!!! Wow

 

[LuluM]

What with the holiday season going strong, I wanted to send my thoughts your way

Thank you I appreciate it so much. Lily hasn’t gotten much better but he is strong. I still haven’t gotten much answers about his condition. He does have some constipation issues which I’m trying to fix with pumpkin and miralax. As of now he cannot walk himself to the litter box, he always meows every time he needs to go so I carry him over to it. Most of the day he just sleeps simply because he cannot walk at all. I try to carry him around the house and play with him so he can at least experience some joy. I am still open for any suggestions or tips if anybody has any. If anyone has a cat with a similar condition or knows how to care for a disabled cat I would appreciate any help I can get.

 

[sandyshores]

My peanut has degenerative joint disease, diagnosed thru a MRI and then a biopsy done and sent out. This was 3 1/2 years ago. Was moderate when first diagnosed....Now severe in knees and moderate/severe in elbows. Pain meds or sedatives (gabapentin) made it worse as got her too doped up so had even harder time walking. Only thing that worked was prednisolone as it is a pain and anti-inflammatory. Started with twice a day for a week, then once a day for a week, then every other day for a week, then every 3 days for the last 3 years..... 6 months ago upped it to every other day, and one month ago upped it to every day as she has a limp and can't jump to couch. I give her the lowest lose (in liquid form compounded with chicken marshmallow) of 0.25ml. I always get the liquid suspensions as I can squirt it in her mouth and don't have to worry about putting it in her food and her not eating all her food. Seems to not mind it with the chicken marshmallow flavoring! Ortho specialist and my vet say that low of a dose even every day is ok and doesn't affect kidneys. Also giving her Dasuquin Advanced. However she is 16 1/2 years old and has had kidney elevations in the past and now she has stage 2 CKD but it is staying the same over the past yr and not going up. With peanut, any food I put on my fingers, she licks off even if she won't eat what I put in her plate. She eats the raw diet I make, tried getting her off that but she lost 1.5 pounds doing that (she is only 6.5 pounds at her best weight!). I did find tho when I tried getting her off the raw the only food she even ate some of was the Wellness Chicken and Herring or the Wellness Salmon and Trout (which I think now they have discontinued the salmon and trout). But I personally don't like giving my cats a lot of fish so went back to the raw diet eventho my vets don't like it. She definitely doesn't like K/D. My vet suggested testing blood pressure... boy the cuff is tiny for a cat! Did that 2 times and came back high both times so she is on blood pressure medicine now too. Vet said high blood pressure can affect the other organs. The vet also had me get an Acid medicine for her stomach, Famotidine, but haven't given her that as she is eating fine. Maybe that would help your cat, as the vet explained it to me it was kind of like tums to us. My 16 1/2 year old male has IBD, or slow growing lymphoma. Found on an ultrasound. You have to have another kind of invasive test done to see which but they both are treated the same - Prednisolone and Miralax for the constipation. He is harder to figure out as he can go for weeks without either, then he stops eating and pooping and I have to give him baby food with Miralax and Prednisolone for a few days, starting with 0.25 Prednisolone the first day, 0.2 the second day, 015 the third day and then the 5th day .015 again. He seems to pop out of it in a couple days. Still working on figuring out what to do with him as hate to give him the Prednisolone all the time if he can go for weeks without it. But do think the Miralax is key for him so starting to make sure he gets that every day - just seems when he doesn't poop every day, he doesn't want to eat so maybe just the Miralax will keep hiim in check. Time will tell. Don't know if any of this will help you but thought I'd reply.

 

[Furballsmom]

boy the cuff is tiny for a cat!

Lol

 

[LuluM]

My peanut has degenerative joint disease, diagnosed thru a MRI and then a biopsy done and sent out. This was 3 1/2 years ago. Was moderate when first diagnosed....Now severe in knees and moderate/severe in elbows. Pain meds or sedatives (gabapentin) made it worse as got her too doped up so had even harder time walking. Only thing that worked was prednisolone as it is a pain and anti-inflammatory. Started with twice a day for a week, then once a day for a week, then every other day for a week, then every 3 days for the last 3 years..... 6 months ago upped it to every other day, and one month ago upped it to every day as she has a limp and can't jump to couch. I give her the lowest lose (in liquid form compounded with chicken marshmallow) of 0.25ml. I always get the liquid suspensions as I can squirt it in her mouth and don't have to worry about putting it in her food and her not eating all her food. Seems to not mind it with the chicken marshmallow flavoring! Ortho specialist and my vet say that low of a dose even every day is ok and doesn't affect kidneys. Also giving her Dasuquin Advanced. However she is 16 1/2 years old and has had kidney elevations in the past and now she has stage 2 CKD but it is staying the same over the past yr and not going up. With peanut, any food I put on my fingers, she licks off even if she won't eat what I put in her plate. She eats the raw diet I make, tried getting her off that but she lost 1.5 pounds doing that (she is only 6.5 pounds at her best weight!). I did find tho when I tried getting her off the raw the only food she even ate some of was the Wellness Chicken and Herring or the Wellness Salmon and Trout (which I think now they have discontinued the salmon and trout). But I personally don't like giving my cats a lot of fish so went back to the raw diet eventho my vets don't like it. She definitely doesn't like K/D. My vet suggested testing blood pressure... boy the cuff is tiny for a cat! Did that 2 times and came back high both times so she is on blood pressure medicine now too. Vet said high blood pressure can affect the other organs. The vet also had me get an Acid medicine for her stomach, Famotidine, but haven't given her that as she is eating fine. Maybe that would help your cat, as the vet explained it to me it was kind of like tums to us. My 16 1/2 year old male has IBD, or slow growing lymphoma. Found on an ultrasound. You have to have another kind of invasive test done to see which but they both are treated the same - Prednisolone and Miralax for the constipation. He is harder to figure out as he can go for weeks without either, then he stops eating and pooping and I have to give him baby food with Miralax and Prednisolone for a few days, starting with 0.25 Prednisolone the first day, 0.2 the second day, 015 the third day and then the 5th day .015 again. He seems to pop out of it in a couple days. Still working on figuring out what to do with him as hate to give him the Prednisolone all the time if he can go for weeks without it. But do think the Miralax is key for him so starting to make sure he gets that every day - just seems when he doesn't poop every day, he doesn't want to eat so maybe just the Miralax will keep hiim in check. Time will tell. Don't know if any of this will help you but thought I'd reply.

Thank you, this helps me a lot because I have been using prednisolone on Lily every other day and not much has improved so we decided to get him off the prednisolone. So far he is still okay, but we always have prednisolone with us whenever we need to restart it again. Even though he is constipated Lily has a big appetite. Another concern I have is that since Lily can’t exercise, he can’t lose weight and I would like him to lose some since that would maybe help him lift himself up. Currently he weighs 14 lb and I’ve tried feeding him diet food which helped a little bit but since he doesn’t move at all he ends up regaining after a while. Recently I have been helping him use his legs by gently holding him up by putting my hand under his belly to help him stand and he can use his legs on his own when I do that. I do believe that Lily’s condition is some degenerative disease. I’m not really on board with getting an MRI for Lily.

 

[LuluM]

Update: The Miralax and pumpkin have helped Lily’s constipation and he has been going to the litter box everyday. The only issue is that he is starting to lose strength in his legs and even his front legs are getting weaker. As of now he cannot move on his own whatsoever and I always carry him to the litter box and made a little tent for him to sleep in. Although his legs aren’t working well, he has a big appetite and drinks plenty of water. He also has the urge to move around at night but because his legs won’t listen to him he just lays in my bed right next to me. I’ve been doing some research and the closest I could think of his condition is spinal nerve issues, arthritis, or possible joint disease? I don’t have any good vets around my area so I can’t consult with someone helpful I considered a specialist however I don’t have the money to spend another $2,000 on tests to get no answer on top of stressing Lily out and making his condition worse. I’ve been trying to reach out to online vets with no luck and I really want help.

 

[Furballsmom]

Is there a university veterinary medical department you could talk with?

 

[Mamanyt1953]

I do understand your desire for privacy, but if you could tell us what country you are in, and if the USA, just what state, we might be able to help you a bit more directly. It's a great big world, and different services are available in different places, as well as those who provide emergency monerary assistance for vet bills. SOMETHING needs to be done for your baby...

This really begins to sound like something for a neurologist. Yes, there are cat neurologists out there.

 

[LuluM]

I do understand your desire for privacy, but if you could tell us what country you are in, and if the USA, just what state, we might be able to help you a bit more directly. It's a great big world, and different services are available in different places, as well as those who provide emergency monerary assistance for vet bills. SOMETHING needs to be done for your baby...

This really begins to sound like something for a neurologist. Yes, there are cat neurologists out there.

I live in Nevada. The vets that I have gone to are ones that had the best reviews or places my friends recommended. None were able to fully help Lily. I did find a specialist however I would need a referral and also get Lily off the steroids before they examine him. Even then, I am iffy about the specialist as I read some bad reviews. I am also scared of letting Lily get an MRI as I have heard about fatal cases. I just want to go down the right path carefully as I have already gone through two wrong ones.