Lola fights with her tail like something is hurting her

[lolita_greeneye]

Hello all and thank you in advance for reading.

I have a 11 month old gray Somali cat, named Lola. She is a very calm and sweet cat (although she has her attitude). About 3 or 4 months ago, she developed a thing about fighting with her tail. At first I thought it was nothing and my vet advised it was just normal behavior, but it has gotten worse and worse.

Her tail starts to wave from left to right, thus hitting her on her sides and making her scream and hiss at the air. I have uploaded a video in YouTube so you can see what she does. She seems to be in pain and I don't know what to do and neither does my vet.


Has this happened to anyone or know anything about this? Any comments are welcomed and very much appreciated.

Thank you again.

 

[arlyn]

First off, welcome to TCS, though I am sorry of the circumstances that bring you here.

This sounds suspiciously like a manifestation of Feline Hyperesthesia.
Read more on FHS here

Hopefully, this will give you and your vet something to work with.

 

[rafm]

Is your kitty normally talkative? I ask because what I see in the video is a kitty playing with her tail. My 13 year old cat plays with his tail very loudly and in the middle of grabbing his own tail, he'll take off running and carrying on.

But, I am only seeing a small 1 minute or so video of your cat. Is this your first cat or are you pretty familiar with cat behavior?

 

[lolita_greeneye]

Thank you Arlyn and RAFM for your replies. She is not a very talkative at all.. she meows here and there when she has a toy in her mouth but that's about it. She is my first cat.

I had a look at some youtube videos on Feline hyperesthesia and some are very different from her behavior. I have seen the ripple effect on the skin a few times, not nearly as much as the waving tail and screams. Also there is no shaking of her head or staring into space, but she does run around the apartment very fast once or twice a week.

 

[darlili]

Hmm, I'm assuming her tail isn't always that poufy, but I think I'm seeing a cat that's either excited about something or playing. And she's beautiful. Do you have cat trees or anything else for her to jump and climb in? Does she have windows she can look out? Do you play with her a lot - I wonder if she'd like fishing pole toys (like da bird).

Cats' tails do get all poufy when they're either angry or playful - it can be tricky sometimes for a new cat owner (pointing at myself) to figure out the difference. I'd show my vet the video, just to be safe, but my little girl often vocalizes when she's either very excited about chasing something or playing.

She's gorgeous, again - you're very lucky to have such a pretty kitty.

 

[rafm]

If this is your first kitty, I would make some changes to her environment, get her a cat tree (very nice and affordable ones can be found on Amazon), some toys and make a few windows available to her and see if that helps.

Try some catnip too. You'll love watching her play if she's into the nip.

 

[feralvr]

Welcome to TCS

. Two of my cats play with their tail, Perla and Presley. Although, they don't vocalize like that. They usually do it when I am preparing their meals. It seems to be excitement more than anything.

Lola's tail looks puffed up and she seems excited and wanting to play. Maybe a bit bored and her tail has become some sort of play thing

. I think I would purchase a tall cat tree or two and set them by a window. Have two or three daily short play sessions with her using wand toys. (But don't leave those toys out, put them away when you are done, they have long strings) Even ten minutes will do wonders. See if that helps. I wonder if she wants a companion to play with

. Of course, I would want to make sure this is not a health issue first. She is a lovely kitty and I hope the play sessions will help curb her energy a bit.

 

[taterbug]

Has the vet x-rayed her tail or her spine? She acts like she's in pain to me, the way she tries running away from it. Poor baby....

 

[minka]

Hmm, you might have to get a cat behaviorist for this..
It does look to me like she is distressed about her tail and not that she is playing with it. You would need someone who could teach you to teach her to not pay attention to her tail, similar to how you teach a dog to ignore other dogs while on a walk. I don't know how you would do this however..

 

[rewboss]

My first thought was boredom, to be honest, but it's hard to tell. I presume you've had her since she was young and this is new behaviour -- has anything else recently changed? Something that might, say, upset her routine, or perhaps a family member moved out, anything at all?

 

[speakhandsforme]

About the tail -- since she is a Somali, isn't that puffy tail just normal? Correct me if I'm wrong

 

[misstorri]

Im with tatterbug, She seems like she's in pain and I would recommend an xray. I know it sounds expensive but their usually not as bad as you would think. (unless they have to put her to sleep) It baffels me b/c she seems quite pissed!

 

[katkisses]

Is there any chance that she may have fleas?

 

[cami&thomas]

It sounds to me like maybe she has allergies or some other condition on her tail that is causing pain or discomfort. I would check for any signs of her chewing (like with allergies) and if nothing, I would get her in to see the vet in case there is truly an issue with pain.