Mysterious Neurological Condition

Gerry B

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Hello. First-timer here.
The vet said my cat's illness is neurological. Could be a stroke. They can't help. Second opinion, w/o knowing what the 1st vet said, agreed. He had some minor seizures, has spatial problems, perception is off. Normal hearing, jumps at sounds. Stopped meowing almost completely (he used to be a gabby-guts).
Emo is a 9 1/2 yr old Ragdoll, male, altered, declawed (got him that way). He stopped eating & drinking, stopped grooming and purring. I started experimenting with different foods and got him eating a little, but still no drinking water. I add water to the food and he has 2 - 3 low volume urinations daily, had 1 BM a day until yesterday.
I'm frantic. I don't know what to do. All they want to do is put him down. I can't go through that again. Any thoughts?
 

1 bruce 1

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Hello. First-timer here.
The vet said my cat's illness is neurological. Could be a stroke. They can't help. Second opinion, w/o knowing what the 1st vet said, agreed. He had some minor seizures, has spatial problems, perception is off. Normal hearing, jumps at sounds. Stopped meowing almost completely (he used to be a gabby-guts).
Emo is a 9 1/2 yr old Ragdoll, male, altered, declawed (got him that way). He stopped eating & drinking, stopped grooming and purring. I started experimenting with different foods and got him eating a little, but still no drinking water. I add water to the food and he has 2 - 3 low volume urinations daily, had 1 BM a day until yesterday.
I'm frantic. I don't know what to do. All they want to do is put him down. I can't go through that again. Any thoughts?
First, this sounds terrible and I'm very sorry you're dealing with it. 9 is FAR too young for this =(
Did this come on suddenly, or was it gradual? Did the symptoms all come on, or around the same time, or did they come on separately? Did he have any prior seizures before this happened? Is he walking normally, or stumbling/walking "drunk"?
I'm no vet and even if I were I couldn't do anything over the internet but I understand your being upset and worried.
 
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Gerry B

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Thanks for your concern. I appreciate it.
Emo's condition started almost a month ago, little by little. Took me a week to realize he hadn't "said" anything lately. Cats are good at hiding their illnesses, I'm told. I took him to two different vets. They both offered to euthanize him.
He's walking carefully, takes forever to slide off the couch, seems to have depth perception problems. The only normal thing he's doing is following me (very slowly) to the kitchen! Some habits are hard to break, apparently! He was such a good eater, not picky at all. Now, I'm doing everything but "here's comes the airplane" to get him to eat. :yummy:
He's had little foot seizures for at least a year. Vet said not to worry, so I didn't. Now I'm thinking these were signs. Are there cat CAT scans? I'm always looking to see it he's still breathing. He's running out of his nine lives at this rate.
I had a Maine Coon for 19 1/2 years so I'm totally unprepared for this guy's exit. Would you put him down?:sniffle:
 

SeventhHeaven

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With any cat having seizures or sickness I always found feeding holistic no grain free food showed improvement. Boil chicken feeding him the juice instead of water. Has the Vet suggested Sub Q fluids?
There's nice back massages that offer relief depending on symptoms if you search youtube they can recover from strokes to almost normal again in time.

*How much is he suffering? Is he in pain? Can he improve with meds? can you commit to long time care and costs?
 
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denice

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Since this came on gradually I don't think it is a stroke but it definitely is neurological. If you live in an urban area or near a vet school then yes there are CAT scans. Pretty much any specialist, tests or procedure that is available for people is also available for dogs and cats. Beware though these things are very very expensive.
 

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Thanks for your concern. I appreciate it.
Emo's condition started almost a month ago, little by little. Took me a week to realize he hadn't "said" anything lately. Cats are good at hiding their illnesses, I'm told. I took him to two different vets. They both offered to euthanize him.
He's walking carefully, takes forever to slide off the couch, seems to have depth perception problems. The only normal thing he's doing is following me (very slowly) to the kitchen! Some habits are hard to break, apparently! He was such a good eater, not picky at all. Now, I'm doing everything but "here's comes the airplane" to get him to eat. :yummy:
He's had little foot seizures for at least a year. Vet said not to worry, so I didn't. Now I'm thinking these were signs. Are there cat CAT scans? I'm always looking to see it he's still breathing. He's running out of his nine lives at this rate.
I had a Maine Coon for 19 1/2 years so I'm totally unprepared for this guy's exit. Would you put him down?:sniffle:
No, I wouldn't put him down unless he was crying out in pain or obviously very unhappy and didn't care if I was in the room or not. The fact that he's still eating, still walking (even carefully) and following you into the kitchen is good. :yess:

I'm cat stupid sometimes, but I've seen vestibular syndrome in dogs (a really bad case of vertigo, people and cats get it too). It's usually shown with really uncoordinated walking and very careful (or deliberate if you will) steps as if they're dizzy or feeling "drunk" and each step is cautious.
I'm not saying it is, isn't, or could or couldn't be, but if it is, the good news is they do come out of it, but the bad news is it usually happens again and you just gotta play through the pain.
The seizure thing would bug me a bit (good on you for noticing this for an entire year!!!) When you say "foot seizures" is it like a short, quick jerk or a fast twitch? I would personally think the two are some how related, but who knows how?
I think you can do CAT scans on cats or MRI's, but it might be costly as a warning. I don't know if they're sedated for this so it's something to ask your vet about. They may want to refer you to a specialist, which may be a good option if you can financially swing it and your kitty is game for it. :sunshine:
Things probably look scary and bleak right now, but keep your chin up.
 

Mamanyt1953

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Yes, there are cat CAT scans. Finding someone with the equipment could be a challenge. IF you are able financially, consider going to the nearest University that has a Veterinary Medicine School. It will NOT be less expensive in most cases, but they are practising cutting edge medicine with the latest and best in equipment and diagnostic tools.

Once you have the water and food issues a bit more under control, remember that cats adjust to all sorts of conditions. If he isn't in pain, he will not spend one minute thinking about what he used to be able to do, and regretting. He'll be far more interested in what is happening in his world RIGHT NOW.
 

Jem

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May I ask what tests the vet performed before coming to the conclusion that is was probably a stroke?
 
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