Please Help, 3.5 Month Kitten Is Having Stress Seizures.

[Lemingas1]

Hello everyone, pleasue excuse me for grammatical errors I might make.
About 4 months ago my 6 year old cat gave birth to her one and only kitten. Everything was fine up until this point; she would look after him, play with him, feed him, etc. However, suddenly she began ignoring it's offspring, started hissing and growling at him (by then kitty was about 3 months old). The mother cat was in the 'heat', as well as, pregnant again. Now she will not only hiss and growl, but also attack and beat the little one. He got so afraid, that he stopped playing, became extremely passive. The kitten has developed these seizures now whenever it gets really scared. It chews on it's jaw, his eyes "roll up" and he starts to shake/twitch when he feels extreme fear. We spayed the mother cat hoping that it would help. Unfortunately, the same aggressive attitude towards kitten continues. We tried seperating the two, but the scent of it's mother in the house , still alarms the little one, makes him scared again/have seizures. We explained the same situation to the vet. He prescribed vitamins and asked to report to him if anything changes.

Our family love both cats and won't give them away. What can we do make these cats like each other, as such problem can't last forever (locking cats from one another)? Has anyone dealt with such situation? How can we return kitten to pre-seizure/fearful emotional state? Please help. Thank you.

 

[maggiedemi]

Is the boy cat neutered? I would try that and see if it helps. Also, you can try re-introducing them if you have a spare room you can put a gate on or stack two baby gates.

 

[Lemingas1]

Is the boy cat neutered? I would try that and see if it helps. Also, you can try re-introducing them if you have a spare room you can put a gate on or stack two baby gates.

Thank you for the reply. He is not neutered, vet said he is too young for that. Will this help though? Re-introduction will not be possible; at the sight and smell of mother cat (she also will run towards him, hissing and growling), kitten will get scared. We also fear, that it would worsen kitten's condition and lead to more seizures.

 

[di and bob]

Four months old is old enough to be neutered. I have a feeling mama is weaning the little one and doesn't want him near anymore. The age is about right. As long as he stays away it would be fine. They can get very aggressive at keeping the little ones away. There has to be a way to reintroduce them after keeping them apart for awhile and he is a little older and more on his own. But I wouldn't reintroduce them until he is neutered. Keep him in another room and then switch rooms with mama to swap scents. You might try putting mama in a dog crate/cage so that baby can see/smell her without being attacked. I don't think this will be permanent, just until he gets older and is completely weaned. Mama may be still hurting from her spaying and wants to keep him away too. It takes up to 6 weeks for the hormones to completely leave her body, so taht may help too when she is more calmed down.Please keep us posted!

 

[lacy2000]

Thank you for the reply. He is not neutered, vet said he is too young for that. Will this help though? Re-introduction will not be possible; at the sight and smell of mother cat (she also will run towards him, hissing and growling), kitten will get scared. We also fear, that it would worsen kitten's condition and lead to more seizures.

I get my foster kittens neutered at 2 months old or when they are above 2 lbs. Your boy is old enough. Talk to your vet about it or try and find a place that will do low cost/free neuters if the vet won’t do it.

 

[Lemingas1]

Thank you di and bob, and lacy2000 for replying. I'll talk to vet about that. I am just wondering, how will it change mother cat's and/or kitten's behaviour and attitude towards each other? The main thing we want to get rid of are these fear induced seizures. It is really heartbreaking to see little one have stress seizures.

Thanks.

 

[abyeb]

I’m sorry to hear this is happening. I’ll attach an article about seizures in cats that you might find helpful: Seizures In Cats

 

[di and bob]

Neutering reduces any aggressive tendencies in both mother and son. She may accept him better if he smells 'neutral' and not like a tom cat. My big feral toms fight each other immediately, but totally ignore the neutered boys. The thing that does bother me though is that no matter when you get him neutered make sure the one doing the surgery is aware of his condition. He should be hooked up to a heart monitor. The seizures may come on when he goes to the vet or during surgery, so make sure they are ready for anything that comes up. she should not be allowed to rush him, say NO loudly and remove her from the room. He needs to get more comfortable in his own home. I really wonder if at all possible to get him a playmate, another boy, to keep him company and away from her.

 

[CatsUnderfoot2]

It is not unusual for a Mama cat to drive away a kitten after weaning. It is very unusual for the kitten to have seizures when stressed or scared. Most kittens his age are being exposed to many new things, or even going to new homes and being introduced to new people and pets, and don't shut down and have seizures. Stress and fear may be triggering seizures in your kitten, but I am concerned that your kitten may have an underlying, undiagnosed seizure disorder.

I would show your vet a video of your kitten's seizures. If the vet confirms that these are true seizures, your vet should offer general bloodwork to verify that your kitten is otherwise healthy (good liver, good kidneys, etc,) especially before he is placed under anesthesia for a neuter. Your vet should also offer testing for infectious diseases (FeLV, FIV, Toxoplasma, etc.) I don't know Mama's history (recent rescue? Indoor only her whole life?) but it is also unusual for an intact female cat to only have 1 kitten in 6 years. And that 1 kitten has seizures. It is possible that Mama is carrying an infectious disease which causes kitten fetuses to die, and causes surviving kittens to be born with seizure disorders (this may not be the case here, it is just a possibility based on the information you have provided.). Your kitten may also have a congenital disorder causing the seizures.

If all the tests come back normal or negative, your vet should be able to find an anti-seizure medication to give your kitten. Once the seizures are controlled, kitten will be in a better place to be reintroduced to Mama. Until them, he will likely be most comfortable in a quiet, safe, sunny room/area, away from Mama, stress, fear and other triggers. Please don't feel guilty about keeping him confined, he will be much happier in an environment which doesn't trigger the seizures.

Thank you for taking such good care of this little guy.