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Cat suffering cataplectic attacks

Hi, Can anyone kindly assist a 17yr old cat suffering from occasional bouts of cataplectic attacks?
BACKGROUND:
Domestic short haired neutered male all white cat that enjoys playing, being stroked/patted and being touched. Likes to be close to us. Always sleeps on the bed with us and spends a lot of his time sleeping on our laps.
Not obsessive but persistent when he wants food or to go out. Indicates his desire by gently clawing one of us. Grumbles and backchats a lot when he does not get attention. Quite energetic and spends time both indoors & outdoors. Not really scared of rain or thunderstorms. Sometimes goes out during the rain and comes back soaking wet. Is given primarily wet cat food, both raw and readymade precooked packs. Eats well and drinks about 6~10 oz water daily. Stool and urine are regular and seem fine.
Tendency to over groom himself and frequently suffers from hairball congestion. Eats grass when this occurs which sometimes works and when given cat food in jelly it either digests the hairball or brings it up & out with some food.
CATAPLEXY & OTHER SYMPTOMS:
About two weeks after his last booster vaccination [Nobivac FeLV] on 31st July last year he started experiencing cataplectic attacks with sudden muscle weakness and semi-paralysis without loss of consciousness. The episodes are spontaneous, last a few minutes and go away by themselves yet he remains alert throughout the episode. During the episodes he does not collapse and fall but seems to have an inability to move - struggles to move his legs. Petting and comforting him during the episode seems to help towards a quicker recovery.
We have attempted to monitor these episodes since then in order to try and establish what has been triggering them. He seems to get an episode around once every week but this could well be misleading as we may readily be missing episodes when we are not near him. So far no trigger has been identified as these episodes occur randomly with no apparent warning and there appears to be no consistency on timing or activity.
Also experiences occasional brief shudders – like a jerky wakeup from briefly dropping to sleep while standing or sitting. Could well be a touch of narcoplexy. Seems very sensitive and readily agitated by noises, even slight sounds. Walks away from the door when the doorbell rings, ignores visitors when someone other than the family comes into the house. Advocate [flea] for cats & Milpro [worms] were stopped at start of the episodes as we had initially thought they may be triggering them. Switched to Frontline Spot on applied monthly on his skin for flea treatment and currently no worm treatment.
Other than the above, he is very well.
Would be very grateful for any Homeopathic assistance on the above problems. Thank you.
 
  mork on 2019-10-29
This is just a forum. Assume posts are not from medical professionals.
I suspect the cause of all his symptoms is from the vaccine and I don't know why you had to give that to a 17-year-olds cat.
You need to somehow detox that toxic effects.

First, give Gelsemium 30c or 200c, up to 3 times a day for a few days and see how he does.

And if he has lost his appetite, give Baptisia 6 c or 30c, 3 -4 times a day until the appetite return.

You also need the Feline leukemia nosode (FLV nosode) 30c, one dose weekly until the general condition improves. This might be the most important remedy in the case.

I don't know where you live, but FLV nosode 30c is available from Helios UK.

All the best.
 
Tui 4 years ago
Hi Tui, hope you are well.
Noted, thank you very much for this kind advice. Yes we had been wondering if the vaccine was the problem but had no way of confirming this. As we were very concerned about this, in July this year we did not get him re-vaccinated.
We are in the UK and have just now placed an order with Helios for these remedies. His appetite is good at the moment so maybe Baptisa won't be required, unless he is likely to lose his appetite after being given Gelsemium or FLV nosode.
Will keep you updated on progress. Many thanks.
Have a great evening. Regards.
 
mork 4 years ago
Hi Tui, hope you are keeping well.
Current protocol: Gelsemium 3x/d & FeLV nosode 1x/wk.
Cat has been improving, thanks to you. Anxiety is now less, sleep and appetite have improved.
Cat continues to excessively groom himself [not just one spot but all over his body] & seems to be itching hence occasionally scratching himself. His last monthly flea treatment [Frontline Spot On for flea/tick/lice] was on 6th November'19 and he does not have any fleas. However his last treatment for worms was early in January'19 and we had stopped any further 3 monthly treatments due to his cataplectic attacks.
In case this symptom is due to worms/parasites, can I give him a dose of Droncit or could you recommend a Homeopathic option. Would like to ensure we don’t give him anything that could antidote his current Homeopathic meds.
Many thanks. Have an enjoyable week. Regards.
 
mork 4 years ago
You can give him Droncit. It will not interfere with the remedies.

And continue with Gelsemium and FLV nosode until he is about 80 - 90% better.

For the itching, try a few doses of Sulphur 30c or 200c and see if he stops over-grooming.
 
Tui 4 years ago
Hi Tui, advice noted, thank you. Will proceed accordingly.
Have a lovely day. Regards.
 
mork 4 years ago
Hi Tui, hope you are well.
Current protocol: Gelsemium 3x/d & FeLV nosode 1x/wk.
[Earlier also had Droncit & a few doses Sulphur 200C.]
Overall cat’s health seems to have been improving, thanks. Brief shudders still occur but not as frequently so we will continue with the protocol.
Over grooming is still a problem despite having had Droncit and a few doses of Sulphur 200C. Am wondering if you have any suggestions to remedy this.
Many thanks. Have a great day. Regards.
 
mork 4 years ago
Did she start ove grooming AFTER start taking the remedies?
If yes, you may stop giving the remedies and watch for a while.
 
Tui 4 years ago
Hi Tui, thanks for your quick response.
No he was actually grooming excessively even before start of these remedies. Hence we were thinking it was either a side effect of his ailment or worms or an itching allergy. He has now had Droncit but it only caters for Tapeworms. It may be that the problem is another type of worm. His meals had been completely changed for some time to test for allergies to no avail. He has had a few doses of Sulphur 200C with no noticeable difference.
One aspect that we are more recently observing is that with his improving health he is also becoming increasing impatient and moans a lot if his needs are not addressed immediately. These needs include door/window opened to let him go out, food when he is hungry, alternative food if he is not satisfied with the menu and wanting a lap to sit on all day. It may just be that this is a good indication of his improving health.
Have a great day. Regards
 
mork 4 years ago
There are many causes for over grooming; from strss and anxiety, fleas, allergies, and eczema, etc etc....

Have you checked his skin? Do you see scabs or small pimples especially around his neck and along the back?
 
Tui 4 years ago
Hi Tui, noted and understood, thanks.

Have examined the skin around his neck and along his back. Good news is that we cannot find any scabs or pimples in these areas. Skin looks quite good and clean. He does at times scratch himself on the neck, ears or face which develops into a scab but heals thereafter. At the moment he has some scabs from bruises on his ears. He is an all white cat and therefore quite sensitive and susceptible to sunburn on his ears. In summer we attempt to put some cat sunscreen on his ears when he allows us to do so.
He gets a monthly dose of Frontline Flea Spot On. We also occasionally brush him with a flea comb and have not found any fleas on him nor any indoors.

So based on your query the problem may well be stress &/or anxiety. As he is also still troubled by sudden sounds/noises this may well be the clue. Can we give him regular dosing of powdered Taurine or something else to help with this aspect?

Many thanks. Have an enjoyable weekend. Regards.
 
mork 4 years ago
You can give him taurine powder. sorry I am unable to suggest any remedies for his over grooming as I don't know the exact cause of it.
 
Tui 4 years ago
Hi Tui. Noted, thank you for all your useful and kind advice so far. No worries on this one, suspect the cause, as you have previously intimated, is most likely stress & anxiety possibly arising from fear of the semi paralysis states experienced during the earlier cataplectic attacks. Will proceed with taurine supplement and keep monitoring for any other symptoms. Thanks. Enjoy your day. Regards.
 
mork 4 years ago
Hi Tui, hope you are keeping well. Recovery of cat’s health is progressing quite well, thank you.
Wishing you and all forum members a merry XMAS & a happy new year.
Have a good day. Regards.
 
mork 4 years ago
Have a Merry Christmas and a happy New year.
 
Tui 4 years ago
Hi Tui, hope you are keeping safe & well.

Now already another year later, recovery of cat’s health is progressing quite well with only occasional lapses, thank you.

Wishing you and all forum members a Merry XMAS & a Happy New Year despite or rather inspite of all the Covid related problems everywhere.

Have a great day. Regards.
 
mork 3 years ago

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