Cat Forums - Stiff in the back legs littlelab - Mon Oct 29, 2007 3:02 pm Post subject: Stiff in the back legs
My poor old cat who has got to be about 12 yrs old is getting very stiff in her hind quarters, she also seems to have muscle wasteage, do you think this could be age related or something that needs vet attention?
Hcollie85 - Mon Oct 29, 2007 3:24 pm Post subject: stiff
I think its age and you could see a vet as well to see what the vets think
Heather
coliel - Mon Oct 29, 2007 3:39 pm Post subject:
hi
persanaly at 12 i would persanaly not worry too much as long as the cats in no pain, obviosly if she needs pain killers you must take her to the vets but other wise i would just keep an eye on her.
she is 12 and although cats can live much longer than this i think they are definatly going to start aging - the other thing to think about is weather you would pay out on a cat that is 12 any way?
i would definatly give pain killers and any thing to keep the cat comfortable and if nesasary put the cat to sleep but persanaly i wouldnt pay for canser treatments or expensive operations at 12.
hope she is fine though
love coliel
nahatalie - Mon Oct 29, 2007 5:40 pm Post subject:
Aw, I hope she is alright. Does cod liver oil work in cats? lol. Maybe just take her to the vet for a check for peace of mind, they will be happy to advise you about caring for elderly cats and they might need to put her on a course of pain killers or anti-inflamitories for the discomfort. I think pretty much all animals, humans included suffer from muscle wasteage in old age to a certain extent. In addition, how about reading up on it by doing an internet search or perhaps finding a book about elderly cat care in the library or pet shop?
littlelab - Mon Oct 29, 2007 7:17 pm Post subject:
Off to the vets tomorrow, it maybe she has had a stroke Hcollie85 - Mon Oct 29, 2007 7:26 pm Post subject: stiff
TO be honest i dont think your cat has had a stroke cuase it could affect one side of her
clareabella - Mon Oct 29, 2007 9:00 pm Post subject:
awww hope she is ok, let us know how she gets on at the vets littlelab - Tue Oct 30, 2007 1:17 pm Post subject:
Well we are back from the vets, he doesn't know what is causing the Ataxia in her back legs but we have steroids, Antibiotics in case of an ear infection as she is leaning her head to one side and ear drops, if she is till the same in a week we have to go back for a check up and possible MRI scan, thank goodness for insurance.
clareabella - Tue Oct 30, 2007 3:34 pm Post subject:
awww i hope she gets better soon, give her lots of cuddles from me coliel - Tue Oct 30, 2007 7:20 pm Post subject:
hi
i hope it all works out ok for you !!!
would you consider treatment on your cat then?
i always think when they are older it can be more harmful and trying to them to cope with being away from home, operations, recuvery etc than to just keep them comfortable and let natcher take its course.
its horrable when a pet is ill as you want to keep them alive as long as possabe,
i hope its nothing serious,
love coliel
littlelab - Wed Oct 31, 2007 8:52 am Post subject:
Yes Coliel I would consider treatment, don't forget vet medicine is now so advanced they can do open heart surgery and brain surgery on animals, its as good if not better than human medicine and procedures.
Cats can live to 20 years, so Mollie is only half way through her life, so I want to give her a few more years, plus I have insurance which is a god send should we need it.
Cats and Dogs cope very well in vet hospital and in fact many verts prefer them to recover at home therefore reducing stress.
In the old days, it was often better to put the animal to sleep as the knowledge just wasnt there, we now have some amazing research going on into all manner of animal illness and there have been some amazing breakthroughs.
SengaB - Wed Oct 31, 2007 1:16 pm Post subject:
Hello littlelab,
sorry to hear about your cat. Yes it's true, we are prepared to do anything to give our pets a bit more time and to keep them comfortable. And any way , if for years you've been paying animal insurance, then why not get something back. Watch out with the pain killers though. Pain is natures way of ringing off the fire alarm bells, it's a warning. When the medication starts to ware off, the pain could get more intense. This happened with my darling Dutch, I started giving him a pain killer after five hours and in no time the effect wore off after three hours. Just warning you, pain killers mask the truth
Good luck and take care.
sengaB
littlelab - Thu Nov 01, 2007 6:18 pm Post subject:
Well, I have just got back from having a tetanus shot as Mollie decided that she doesn't like taking tablets and decided to chomp down on my finger as I struggled with her, I nevern new such a tiny puncture could cause so much pain!!!
honeydlc - Thu Nov 01, 2007 7:07 pm Post subject:
Just seen this, sorry to hear about Mollie Natalie!
How is she doing after a couple of days on the steroids and antibiotics? Did the vet take a blood test? Some medical conditions can cause ataxia. I'm sure the vet thought of that but just checking lol.
Sorry to hear about your finger too, I know just how painful a cat bite can be when they really crunch down hard!
Lots of <<<healing>>> vibes for Mollie! (And you!)
XXX
