Kitten Has Tremors And Hind Leg Weakness, But Is Otherwise Happy

[Phocine13]

we are fostering a 15 week old kitten who has been with us since she was 7 weeks. She has always been slower and weaker than her siblings, but recently has started falling over and has Parkinson’s-like tremors of the head/neck. Her falling is always precipitated by her rear legs sliding out from under her, never her front legs, and she always falls to the side, never to the front. We think if as she had an inner ear or sensory problem, her falling would not always be hind legs to the side. She is eating, gaining weight, playful and friendly. She has always fallen over even with the gentlest of petting, but so did her siblings for the first week. We took her to the vet a few days ago for her last set of shots and for a follow up fecal to see if she was rid of the round worms she had 3 weeks ago. We hadn’t noticed her falling until she fell off of the exam table (before the vet got in the room we were trying to corral 3 active kittens). Then we watched her walking on the floor and noticed she was falling basically every time she tried to change directions, just like she did when recovering from anesthesia post spaying at 11 weeks. As we talked with the vet about it we started to realize that the fact that she never climbs the tall scratching post and never wrestles with the other kittens could be attributed to muscle weakness. The vet said possible problems could be FIP, cerebellar hypoplasia, or toxoplasmosis. Given that she is eating and playful, none of those diagnoses seem to fit, but the fact that her balance/strength have gotten worse rather than better is troubling. Has anyone experienced anything similar? Vet advises wait and watch, but I’m worried that waiting for a proper diagnosis could result in permanent damage.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi! Welcome!!
Could you get a video, and send it either to a different vet for a second opinion or even get your current vet to do a consultation with another vet (although that sounds like s/he isn't really interested in doing that?), or to a university veterinary medical department?

 

[Phocine13]

Yes video is a good option. I've been laying on the floor with my phone to get a good clip of her falling. I have got one. The tremor doesn't really show up in video because I can't get the camera to hold still enough to show the very small tremor. The vet did spend a lot of time explaining what symptoms she was seeing that led her to those 3 possibilities. It was only after we got home and thought about other behaviors we had noticed that we realized none of those 3 seemed quite right. It is hard for a vet to narrow down a world of possibilities when they see an animal for 15 or 20 minutes. It is the weekend now, so we'll go back to the vet next week. My research doesn't turn up anything that would explain all the symptoms combined. A lower spine injury could explain the hind end problem, but not the neck tremor. A parasite, virus, or bacteria could explain both the neck and the hind legs, but then we'd expect her to be feeling poorly, lethargic, not eating well. CH would explain muscular problems while feeling well, but wouldn't explain that the muscular symptoms are getting worse.

 

[Bella's Mommy]

Maybe she has CH? o.o

 

[Phocine13]

it is a possibility although her symptoms weren't as pronounced when she was a few weeks younger and CH usually ins't progressive.

 

[Luminita]

Hi! I have a 4 month old kitten who has exactly the same symptoms as your kitten. He is eating, gaining weight, playful and friendly. He has started falling over and has Parkinson’s-like tremors of the head / neck. His falling is always precipitated by his rear legs sliding out from under him, and he always falls to the side, never to the front. He eats very well, is happy and plays all day. His medical tests tested positive for coronavirus, he may have FIP, but the diagnosis is not confirmed. However, please tell me what happened to your kitten. Thanks a lot!

 

[fionasmom]

OP has not been back since August 2018.

Phocine13