Feline hyperesthesia syndrome

[slykat12]

I just saw people commenting on a super old thread and thought I would start a new one on the same topic as I believe Whitney has Feline hyperesthesia syndrome or rolling skin disease.

She has an episode every day-sometimes twice a day. Her typical episode goes as follows: Out of the blue with no one is touching her body she will flick her tail, get a determined/irritated look on her face, her back skin rolls, she will then dart and leap onto something then frantically bite and lick at the center and lower part of her back. She will try licking from the right then frantically turn the other way and lick from that angle.

No fur is lost. She does not have fleas and the episodes have been going on for 3 months with nothing new in the environment, or diet. I know Whit is allergy prone as she has already had 3 pouty lips and she is only 1 year and a half old.

I have looked online and read everything I could find. Looks like a common cat ailment with no cure. So sad to see her suffer even if the episodes last less than 20 seconds. Since it is common I wanted to see what other cat parents are doing and experiancing with their babies.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Bumping this thread up for you.

I do know that at least one member started feeding her little one a raw diet and said it seemed to help, and another one would try to distract her little one with lots of play when it started.  Otherwise, not really sure.  Hoping someone will pipe in soon.  In the meantime, did you see this thread...it's not all that old:  http://www.thecatsite.com/t/277724/feline-hyperesthesia

 

[goholistic]

My Boo had hyperesthesia almost the exact same as you describe in Whitney, except Boo would also run around like crazy as if trying to get away from it. 

  It sucks to watch and you can tell they are in quite a bit of distress.

As I'm sure you saw in your research, there's no one solution for all cats with feline hyperesthesia syndrome (FHS). It could be neurological (brain tumor, neuro changes, seizure-like activity), behavioral (anxiety, stress), allergies (food, airborne, contact), toxins (vaccines, topical flea meds, pesticides, household cleaners), or a reaction to pain somewhere in the body. It's a matter of trial and error and it can take a long time.

Boo is a senior with a history of chronic constipation, arthritis, IVDD, and, most recently, allergies. So we really explored all possibilities. We ended up with a combination of things that totally eliminated his FHS - probiotics, digestive enzymes, fish oil for omega-3s, a glucosamine/hyaluronic/MSM supplement, B12 injections, B-complex supplement, elimination of chicken, beef and fish from his diet, Gabapetin (a prescription med that addresses both pain and possible neuro issues), and a Chinese herbal formula for pain (prescribed by a TCVM vet).

There's another TCS member who believes her cat's FHS is a result of vaccines.

Whitney is young. If she were my cat, I'd probably first explore behavior, allergies, and toxins. While anything is possible, the chances of her having a neuro or chronic pain issue are less likely (vs. my 15-year-old). Keep a daily log book. Write down what you feed, any medications/treatments she receives, etc. and a system for defining her hyperesthesia episodes. I used the words mild, moderate, and severe. You could also use a number rating system. Refer back to your log and see if you can draw a correlation to anything.

 

[jcat]

Our last cat had hyperesthesia, and in addition to the symptoms you describe he would sometimes go without sleep for 2 -3 days. We mistakenly thought it was due to hyperactivity. Our vet suggested allergy testing, which showed he was allergic to soy and beet pulp, both of which were common cat food ingredients at the time. Eliminating them from his diet helped tremendously, though it didn't completely stop the shivering back, whipping tail, licking, biting and ruñning. The attacks became an occasional occurrence rather than something happening multiple times a day.

 

[monkeymind]

Our cat is just over 14 months old and he suddently started displaying all these weird symptoms that we discoverd are all the weird symptoms of FHS (of course never having heard of before). They continued for about 16 hrs until we went to the vet- where he displayed No symptoms. The bloodwork showed he was dehydrated but nothing else. During that visit he received sub-q saline. after returning from the vet he was very lethargic/ still is but not as bad. Due to his blood results & lethargy we gave another round of fluids last saturday. Since then I've observed short bursts of sporadic running, but more frequent his tail going crazy, licking/scratch/biting. He's taken the top of the cat tower as his new safe place so I've been able to observe him whenever I'm not asleep. Normally he entertains himself with everything- I've never had a cat so happy to play with toys by himself but he would- hasnt been lately. He is eating & will play when i pull out the teaser toy. I keep trying to get good video to no avail. i dont think the vet knew what FHS was. Nonetheless I want to make sure we are doing everything right to rule out other causes and anything to help soothe him in the meantime. We've been trying to be really concious of not touching his rump area bc that seems to set him off. have feliaway diffusers & mixing stress essences by jackson galaxy into his food. I am concerned about whether hes drinking water & if mixing water into his food is enough to sustain him.

Based on what I've read from the other forums changes I was gone all day the night of 1st episode (I'm homebound so they are used to me here almost always), we had transferred his food very slowly from royal canin kitten kiblle to ojigen cat & kitten dry food (mixed with water). He has been exposed to little bites of the origen since he was young but 1 tsp at a time we transferred him completely 1-3 weeks prior to symptoms. In the process of comparing ingredients & my only thought is even though its a better quality food maybe allergic to something? We had just gotten a new bedspread at most a week b4 symptoms started that we didnt wash. Since reading forums we've washed all bedding & anything its come in contact with just in case. Hes indoor & his fur is soft and moist per usual. My husband is sure the vet would have noticed if this was skin related but i cant recall from the appointment. the vet is great but looked at us like we were nuts describing the bx bc he saw none of that. One of our cats is likely pica so this little boy does follow his big bro. he'll lick the floor or plastic etc. we try to have everything safely put away & use non-toxic cleaners but who knows if he got into something which was the initial reason vet gave him fluids.

Hoping for advice on next steps with the vet & at home. tips for talking to vet about next steps? he knows us to be super cautious parents after losing our 2 adults 1 & 1 1/2 years ago but also poor. we are aware that we are more senstivie bc of the experience but we also got pet insurance so we never have to go through worrying if we can do all we can for our cats if needed. it seems xrays & allergy testing looks to be the next steps. Is this the route you'd go or have things changed. Does a regular vet do allergy testing?

I saw some people say their cats didnt sleep for days and im wondering if he's just laying there tortured. sometimes he looks relaxed but other times he is in kitty loaf position or just sitting upright looking down. his balance seems great and his pupils havent been as dilated as the first few days so it seems there is some improvement or both he & us are getting used to it a little more. I can only imagine how terrifying it is feeling these sensations if he does have FHS & not knowing whats happening.

Other sidenote from forums- He hasnt had any vaccines since last Oct/November he's due for his rabies vaccine. we live in a city that requires us submitting proof of his vaccination but i'm scared to put anything like that in him right now. I know there are plus & minuses & plenty of opinons on vaccines but i'm open to hearing all. and if u know if i can get a letter from the vet or something to send the city so we dont get fined?

Thank you for your help. Also, we watched the cat from hell episodes re: FHS. We found 3 different ones- I will post seasons & episode #s later for future reference.

Re fluids- we do have fluids at home we could give him but I dont know if we should do that independtly wo consulting vet first. it has been a full week since hes had fluids and man is it harder to give fluids to a 14 month old vs. a 15 y.o. I want to inspect his skin closer & feel for dehydration but dont want to set him off. He just finished eating & his back on the top. trying to think of a way to have water up there for him

Thank you for reading my long cat mom post.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

I would have your Vet read up on FHS, and if he thinks it appropriate to withhold vaccinations, he can write a letter advising such, which should be good enough. Some cats absolutely cannot have them becaue the cause such ill side effects they can cause death and a letter stating that from their Vet is enough for an exemption.

As some of the above poster's have written, food can play a part on how well it is controlled. I've heard that grain free is best, but I have no actual hands on experience. As to doing sub-q fluids, since you know the drill, yes, if you test him for dehydration and he IS, then I would certainly give him fluids. Perhaps you can feed him wet food vs dry to help with that? And even add water to the canned food as well. After having three kidney cats, I now add extra water to my healthy cats' wet food at every single meal, just to try to stave off any more kidney disease in our household. Filtered water, no less . I'm not taking any chances!

 

[monkeymind]

Thank you mrsgreenjeens ! Great suggestions. The food we changed him to is grainfree. I watched PetFooled documentary & am reading all ingredients now. ever since ckd I want 2 do everything i can 4 our boys, I totally get ur thinking. Can't imagine heartbreak of 3ckd kitties.
Ideally we will feed them raw or wet. Great idea 2 add water 2 wet food too. I don't like feeding dry food. Do u recommend any particular wet food, since u probably know more about did prevention than me.

I've been scouring the internet for info on fhs & saw 2 people that were certain it wasn't fleas, months of tests & discovered 1-6 fleas, used advantage & cats were fine. I'm a flea magnet so figured bw 2humans &3 cats we'd know. But I just remembered the day it started, while I was gone I was near a dog. Wondering if we should try revolution or something? I will ask vet 2 read up on it. Crowley had a bad attack early today but has been much more active, playing & doesn't appear dehydrated. Just want 2 figure it out asap.






Our cat is just over 14 months old and he sudden ly started displaying all these weird symptoms that we discoverd are all the weird symptoms of FHS (of course never having heard of before). They continued for about 16 hrs until we went to the vet- where he displayed No symptoms. The bloodwork showed he was dehydrated but nothing else. During that visit he received sub-q saline. after returning from the vet he was very lethargic/ still is but not as bad. Due to his blood results & lethargy we gave another round of fluids last saturday. Since then I've observed short bursts of sporadic running, but more frequent his tail going crazy, licking/scratch/biting. He's taken the top of the cat tower as his new safe place so I've been able to observe him whenever I'm not asleep. Normally he entertains himself with everything- I've never had a cat so happy to play with toys by himself but he would- hasnt been lately. He is eating & will play when i pull out the teaser toy. I keep trying to get good video to no avail. i dont think the vet knew what FHS was. Nonetheless I want to make sure we are doing everything right to rule out other causes and anything to help soothe him in the meantime. We've been trying to be really concious of not touching his rump area bc that seems to set him off. have feliaway diffusers & mixing stress essences by jackson galaxy into his food. I am concerned about whether hes drinking water & if mixing water into his food is enough to sustain him.

Based on what I've read from the other forums changes I was gone all day the night of 1st episode (I'm homebound so they are used to me here almost always), we had transferred his food very slowly from royal canin kitten kiblle to ojigen cat & kitten dry food (mixed with water). He has been exposed to little bites of the origen since he was young but 1 tsp at a time we transferred him completely 1-3 weeks prior to symptoms. In the process of comparing ingredients & my only thought is even though its a better quality food maybe allergic to something? We had just gotten a new bedspread at most a week b4 symptoms started that we didnt wash. Since reading forums we've washed all bedding & anything its come in contact with just in case. Hes indoor & his fur is soft and moist per usual. My husband is sure the vet would have noticed if this was skin related but i cant recall from the appointment. the vet is great but looked at us like we were nuts describing the bx bc he saw none of that. One of our cats is likely pica so this little boy does follow his big bro. he'll lick the floor or plastic etc. we try to have everything safely put away & use non-toxic cleaners but who knows if he got into something which was the initial reason vet gave him fluids.

Hoping for advice on next steps with the vet & at home. tips for talking to vet about next steps? he knows us to be super cautious parents after losing our 2 adults 1 & 1 1/2 years ago but also poor. we are aware that we are more senstivie bc of the experience but we also got pet insurance so we never have to go through worrying if we can do all we can for our cats if needed. it seems xrays & allergy testing looks to be the next steps. Is this the route you'd go or have things changed. Does a regular vet do allergy testing?

I saw some people say their cats didnt sleep for days and im wondering if he's just laying there tortured. sometimes he looks relaxed but other times he is in kitty loaf position or just sitting upright looking down. his balance seems great and his pupils havent been as dilated as the first few days so it seems there is some improvement or both he & us are getting used to it a little more. I can only imagine how terrifying it is feeling these sensations if he does have FHS & not knowing whats happening.

Other sidenote from forums- He hasnt had any vaccines since last Oct/November he's due for his rabies vaccine. we live in a city that requires us submitting proof of his vaccination but i'm scared to put anything like that in him right now. I know there are plus & minuses & plenty of opinons on vaccines but i'm open to hearing all. and if u know if i can get a letter from the vet or something to send the city so we dont get fined?

Thank you for your help. Also, we watched the cat from hell episodes re: FHS. We found 3 different ones- I will post seasons & episode #s later for future reference.

Re fluids- we do have fluids at home we could give him but I dont know if we should do that independtly wo consulting vet first. it has been a full week since hes had fluids and man is it harder to give fluids to a 14 month old vs. a 15 y.o. I want to inspect his skin closer & feel for dehydration but dont want to set him off. He just finished eating & his back on the top. trying to think of a way to have water up there for him

Thank you for reading my long cat mom post.
s.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

I don't have any specific wet food in mind. One of mine eats strictly Nutro Natural Balance Chunky Chicken, and the other eats mainly raw, with one meal a day of a variety of canned foods, mainly so I can add in his probiotics and egg yolk lecithin , since they don't blend too well with the raw . I would say any wet food as long as it's grain free and low n carbs should do the trick.

And, yes, if you suspect fleas, I would think they might be a trigger, especially if the bite him on his back or tail.

 

[monkeymind]

wanted to update but i dont want to clog up the thread with the same message in another thread. when i read the fhs threads before i had not seen the one on zylkene. we have our boy on it now but my post includes other questions. heres the link to that thread if your interested or find this years from now Does anyone have experience with Zylkene? FHS kitty.

 

[carebearbaby1]

I believe my 4 year old Monster has this. His episodes can be short or be on and off for hours. When he's really bad, having several episodes a day or a very long one, I give him half of a hemp capsule that I give my dog for seizures. It helps a lot, within 15-30 minutes he's normal again. Research CBD and hemp, I use Canna Pet brand. They also make an oil which would take effect faster, but the capsules are easier to use on the dog who needs them twice daily. I started using these, in addition to Phenobarbital, on my dog when she started having break through seizures. It's a "miracle" drug, completely natural, legal and it works.