Hi,
My husband and I recently took our cat to the dentist to get a tooth pulled - somehow things went incredibly bad with the anesthesia & her heart stopped beating. They were able to resuscitate her, but they think she was without oxygen for 3-5 minutes (!). We were able to bring her home after 4 days at the emergency hospital, and physically she's doing ok, but now she's blind... and we think maybe deaf as well? Does anyone know anything about neurological damage in cats? In particular, they said that the blindness may not be permanent - has anyone had any experience with this? Or even just some advice about what we can do to help her through this? She's incredibly timid by nature, and I hate to think that she can't see or hear anything right now since that must be unbelievably scary for her... she's only 2 years old, but she's been through a lot medically before this (unrelated viral infection that almost killed her about a year ago) so she's pretty vulnerable...
Thanks for any help,
Annika
neurological damage - blindness? deafness?
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Bendy
Re: neurological damage - blindness? deafness?
Hi!
I have a cat, Mimosa, who also is brain damaged from trouble with anesthesia. She stopped breathing, I don't know for how long. When she wok up she was blind, deaf, and having seizure like behavior.
The vet told me she just needed REALLY good care.
I had to syringe feed her and keep diapers on her for the first two weeks. Slowly she regained motor skills, her hearing and sight began to come back.
I had to do a lot of physical therapy with her, but now she can walk (she only has 3 legs so it was extra hard for her) and eat on her own. Her hearing is fine now, her sight is limited.
Everyone I talked with said that a lot of attention was key to her recovery. I held her all the time, she went everywhere with me. Sometimes it was very frustrating, then suddenly she would be able to do something new!
Her story is on my website, along with a timeline of those first months.
She definitly is not a normal cat, but she is content and sometimes manages to play. I have heard of other cats making much fuller recoveries than hers.
I hope your baby recovers well!
Bendy kitty
www.i-love-cats.com/meow/bendy/
(sorry for all the pop-ups, i can't do anything about them).
I have a cat, Mimosa, who also is brain damaged from trouble with anesthesia. She stopped breathing, I don't know for how long. When she wok up she was blind, deaf, and having seizure like behavior.
The vet told me she just needed REALLY good care.
I had to syringe feed her and keep diapers on her for the first two weeks. Slowly she regained motor skills, her hearing and sight began to come back.
I had to do a lot of physical therapy with her, but now she can walk (she only has 3 legs so it was extra hard for her) and eat on her own. Her hearing is fine now, her sight is limited.
Everyone I talked with said that a lot of attention was key to her recovery. I held her all the time, she went everywhere with me. Sometimes it was very frustrating, then suddenly she would be able to do something new!
Her story is on my website, along with a timeline of those first months.
She definitly is not a normal cat, but she is content and sometimes manages to play. I have heard of other cats making much fuller recoveries than hers.
I hope your baby recovers well!
Bendy kitty
www.i-love-cats.com/meow/bendy/
(sorry for all the pop-ups, i can't do anything about them).
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Guest
Re: neurological damage - blindness? deafness?
Also check out http://www.handicappedpets.com ; there is a bulletin board there as well.
Re: neurological damage - blindness? deafness?
has your cat been put on steroids? a lot of times they will help reduce the inflamation of the area of the brain that is affected..don't know why this happens but occaisionally you see it in and anesthtized cat...you give the minimum safe dose but some respond differentl....i think a lot of TLC and time, and possibly sterpods should solve the problem....manual exercise also helps if there is a deficit in walking....good luck
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Annika
Re: neurological damage - blindness? deafness?
Hi again,
Our cat seemed to be recovering pretty well from everything I mentioned above (she's still blind, but adapting pretty well), until this past Sunday. On Sunday night, and then again last night, she had some pretty serious seizures. Much worse than the little ones she had when we first brought her home. Those were 15-30 seconds long, and just involved the jerking of her head. These last two were much longer, and much more intense - involved the jerking of her entire body, and to the point where both times it woke us up in the middle of the night. Our vet keeps saying it's not that big a deal, but I really don't understand why these are happening now, after 3 months of no seizures. My fear is that this is an indication of something worse to come... any insight or advice you have would be great - even if just some advice on how to make things safest for her during the seizures?
This is just so upsetting - she's been through so much already, and we've already had two occasions when we were sure she wouldn't pull through. I t's already sad enough that she's so young & already blind - I've had a really hard time accepting that she isn't going to get her sight back. But I hate to think that the rest of her life is going to be like this!
Our cat seemed to be recovering pretty well from everything I mentioned above (she's still blind, but adapting pretty well), until this past Sunday. On Sunday night, and then again last night, she had some pretty serious seizures. Much worse than the little ones she had when we first brought her home. Those were 15-30 seconds long, and just involved the jerking of her head. These last two were much longer, and much more intense - involved the jerking of her entire body, and to the point where both times it woke us up in the middle of the night. Our vet keeps saying it's not that big a deal, but I really don't understand why these are happening now, after 3 months of no seizures. My fear is that this is an indication of something worse to come... any insight or advice you have would be great - even if just some advice on how to make things safest for her during the seizures?
This is just so upsetting - she's been through so much already, and we've already had two occasions when we were sure she wouldn't pull through. I t's already sad enough that she's so young & already blind - I've had a really hard time accepting that she isn't going to get her sight back. But I hate to think that the rest of her life is going to be like this!
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guest
Re: neurological damage - blindness? deafness?
Is she taking anything for the seizures? I had a little brain damaged girl develop them 6 months in, and I strongly urge you to have a plan in case they become more frequent or of a longer duration.
Re: neurological damage - blindness? deafness?
A vet who tells you seizures are "not a big deal", doesn't deserve your business....see a NEW vet promptly.
Seizures are very serious matters, and you need to get to the underlying cause (i.e., organ disfunction, viral disease, CNS problems, etc)....In seizure treatment, the goal is to manange the patient where no more than one seizure occurs in a three-month time period. In other words, there is medication available to manage the seizures and to prevent the severity of them. The seizure activity you have described demands a thorough check-up from an experienced vet.
Please be advised that any seizure lasting over 1-2 minutes in a cat is serious and needs to be addressed by the vet. Equally as serious are small cluster seizures that occur simultaneously (one after another)...or a seizure that develops into a grand mal, lasting over 3 minutes with slow/poor recovery. In these cases, immediate veterinary attention is warranted.
Get to a new vet and have a full blood profile done on your kitty that includes ruling out infectious disease, CNS deficits, neurological disease, or organ disfunction. If testing doesn't reveal anything significant, you have the option of treating with phenobarbitol, which is an excellent medication to control the seizures. You will need to get frequent rechecks on bloodwork while kitty is on this med.
As for how to handle a seizure, the first thing is not to panic, but to call the nearest ER vet immediately. Do not manipulate or try to hold kitty if she is thrashing about. Simply place pillows or a heavy blanket around her to prevent her from injuring herself or "throwing" herself against an object/furniture, etc. Time the seizure so you can tell the vet how long it lasted, and pay special attention to her recovery time immediately after a seizure. Also try to determine if an external stimuli prompted the seizure (noise, bright light, etc). After a seizure, keep her calm and in a quiet environment until you can get her to your vet.
Seizures are very serious matters, and you need to get to the underlying cause (i.e., organ disfunction, viral disease, CNS problems, etc)....In seizure treatment, the goal is to manange the patient where no more than one seizure occurs in a three-month time period. In other words, there is medication available to manage the seizures and to prevent the severity of them. The seizure activity you have described demands a thorough check-up from an experienced vet.
Please be advised that any seizure lasting over 1-2 minutes in a cat is serious and needs to be addressed by the vet. Equally as serious are small cluster seizures that occur simultaneously (one after another)...or a seizure that develops into a grand mal, lasting over 3 minutes with slow/poor recovery. In these cases, immediate veterinary attention is warranted.
Get to a new vet and have a full blood profile done on your kitty that includes ruling out infectious disease, CNS deficits, neurological disease, or organ disfunction. If testing doesn't reveal anything significant, you have the option of treating with phenobarbitol, which is an excellent medication to control the seizures. You will need to get frequent rechecks on bloodwork while kitty is on this med.
As for how to handle a seizure, the first thing is not to panic, but to call the nearest ER vet immediately. Do not manipulate or try to hold kitty if she is thrashing about. Simply place pillows or a heavy blanket around her to prevent her from injuring herself or "throwing" herself against an object/furniture, etc. Time the seizure so you can tell the vet how long it lasted, and pay special attention to her recovery time immediately after a seizure. Also try to determine if an external stimuli prompted the seizure (noise, bright light, etc). After a seizure, keep her calm and in a quiet environment until you can get her to your vet.
..........Traci
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Auntie Debbie
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Re: neurological damage - blindness? deafness?
I agree with Traci on the new vet. Seizures are certainly a very big deal.
I have alot of links on Epilepsy/Seizures under the Neurological page of my website listed under Favorites (Debbie's Feline Health) on the left side of the board that may interest you.
In order to help your new vet diagnose the cause, you may tape one of her seizures for him to watch. Also, keep a log on the number of seizures, duration and occurances. You should continue doing this long term just for the sake of monitoring. In addtion to bloodwork, x-rays of the brain may be helpful, even in just ruling out certain conditions.
Pheno, and possibly a combo of other rugs can help curb the seizures, if not stop them entirely. Please don't hesitate in making an appointment with another vet (cat specialist or one specializing in neurology) ASAP.
I hope something can be done to help your kitty and that she'll never have another seizure again.
I have alot of links on Epilepsy/Seizures under the Neurological page of my website listed under Favorites (Debbie's Feline Health) on the left side of the board that may interest you.
In order to help your new vet diagnose the cause, you may tape one of her seizures for him to watch. Also, keep a log on the number of seizures, duration and occurances. You should continue doing this long term just for the sake of monitoring. In addtion to bloodwork, x-rays of the brain may be helpful, even in just ruling out certain conditions.
Pheno, and possibly a combo of other rugs can help curb the seizures, if not stop them entirely. Please don't hesitate in making an appointment with another vet (cat specialist or one specializing in neurology) ASAP.
I hope something can be done to help your kitty and that she'll never have another seizure again.
Kitty kisses,
Debbie
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"Those we shelter on earth will be our treasures in Heaven." Victor Hugo, I think
Debbie
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"Those we shelter on earth will be our treasures in Heaven." Victor Hugo, I think
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guest
Re: neurological damage - blindness? deafness?
Bendy isn't able to post to you this weekend, but she sent a message.
Mimosa, her brain damaged kitty, developed seizure-like activity recently, and Bendy says she's doing VERY well with Phenobarb. Hopefully she'll post here herself in a couple of days, but she said you can email her (I just don't want to post her email).
Mimosa, her brain damaged kitty, developed seizure-like activity recently, and Bendy says she's doing VERY well with Phenobarb. Hopefully she'll post here herself in a couple of days, but she said you can email her (I just don't want to post her email).