Central Nervous System Disorder

I'm hoping someone here can help me make sense of something. I am running into brick walls trying to find answers.

Briefly: Two weeks ago, I came home from work and my cat was very itchy (9 year old male). He was fine otherwise. The itch got worse as the hours passed and I finally took him to the vet because the itch was making him frantic. The vet gave him a shot of prednisone and a shot of Acepromazine. He said the Acepromazine would calm him and help him sleep until the prednisone starts to work. I asked the vet if there are any side effects that I should be aware of and he said no. He said the cat will hopefully sleep.

I got Tino home and he was very sedated and I had to help him get up from the floor and he was dazed. I figured the Ace took effect and I watched him stagger around the house for hours trying to overcome the sedated feeling.

The next morning he still seemed dazed and staggered some but not as bad as the night before. He then had a seizure, I took him back to the vet and the vet checked his blood and said he was fine. I took him home, he slept all of that Saturday on and off, he seemed fine except for periodic episodes that seemed like he was in a trance. I asked the vet about it and he said he never heard of that but that the cat seems fine. By Sunday morning (12/10), the trances were getting worse and more seizures occurred, he declined at that point and was unable to urinate and was losing the use of his rear legs. He was miserable and it seemed he was just getting worse. I took him to the vet and the vet said he didn't know what was wrong. I said I think it's a reaction to the Acepromazine and he said he didn't think so. But he still had no answers. Tino was suffering and very frightened by this sudden decline and I thought the best thing for him was to put him to sleep and give him peace.

After two weeks, I went back yesterday to speak with the vet to ask for some answers. At least an educated opinion. Something. I'm grieving and I can't put closure on this because I don't know if I made the right decision or if Tino could have recovered because the vet was offering me nothing to go on. And in the meantime the cat was suffering. I LOVED my cat and I'm heartbroken.

Anyway, the vet said yesterday that I made the right decision because Tino would have continued to have these problems. He said the itch was a sign that this was to come because the itch is related to a problem in the Central Nervous System. I research the web and I can't find anything that says that. I also know that during the 10 minute conversation with the vet, he did not look me in the eyes once. Not once. Then he said, "well he wasn't a well cat, he had the problems with the bladder stones and was on the special diet. Well, he had bladder stones over 4 years ago and has been fine ever since. The stones were removed and the special diet is working fine. His kidneys are fine and systemically he is fine so I don't understand such a comment. Then he said "just put it out of your mind now". I think he was trying to convince me that Tino was a sick cat and it's best that he is dead now. But Tino was a happy and healthy cat and he developed an itch that could very well be from the heat in the house. It is amazing to me how this man went from saying he's fine to "well he was sick cat". Needless to say I do not trust him anymore and I will not take my other cat to him ever again.

Sorry for the drawn out story, some of you probably already read about this on here, sorry to be repeated it. But my question at this point is, does anyone know of or has anyone heard of a Central Nervous Condition that would cause these sudden seizures and that would relate to an itch in some way. I mean, an itch that started instantly one afternoon and in less that 48 hours, the cat got so sick that he was becoming paralyzed? I just can't find anything on this. My other cat (Tino's sister biologically) had a bad reaction once to a sedative and almost died but the vet at that time was right on top of things and he gave her something to reverse the effect. So why shouldn't I believe that the same happened to Tino but he didn't get the same help?

I'm being tortured by my decisions because I can not possibly know what the right decision would have been. Not without a real diagnosis or even a suspected diagnosis. He just seems to be making stuff up.

Thanks for listening and for any info anyone can provide.

Karen

Stop blaming yourself. You did the most wonderful and loving thing in the world. You gave your baby peace.

I find it very interesting that you are the second person on this site that has mentioned Acepromazine and the other person had the same results that you did.

I am so very sorry for your loss, but if the choice comes down to peace or suffering for our babies, we choose peace every time.

Bless you for being a loving meowmy.

Many sorry headbuts and sad, tearful licks from KittenKiya's Clan.

Sorry to hear about what has happened, it sounds awful.
Acetylpromazine is used quite routinely at the vets, normally for a pre-medication effect before an anaesthetic. I have found the adverse effects and warnings for you, which are on this site.

http://www.elephantcare.org/Drugs/aceprom.htm

I know its on an elephant site, but this is taken from a book used by Vets for drug listings and warnings etc

Sometimes these things just happen, and it can be difficult to find out why. I saw a cat in practice last week who had been otherwise fine but now has a really bad head tremor and isn't able to stand very well. The cat is about 7 or so and it just came on suddenly.

Your vet could have put in a bit more effort though, either running blood tests or he could have offered you a referral. It sounds like he didn't spend enough time with you to help you understand what he was giving etc. Vets generally don't have very good communication skills. Another possibililty is that it could have been a brain tumour. But I'm not a vet so I wouldn't like to say too much.

He could be thinking of Feline Hyperesthesia, which is sometimes thought to be a type of seizure disorder.

http://www.geocities.com/pndtpa/glos...eresthesia.htm
http://www.thecatsite.com/Health/86/...resthesia.html

I'm glad you're going to find another vet, since this one won't give you answers. It's very hard when you don't know whether you made the right decision. I believe that given the information you had at the time, you made the right decision for Tino. That doesn't necessarily mean you'll make the same decision again, but you can't act on information you didn't have then. When Spot passed, I made the decision to try one more thing to find out what was wrong with him. He died en route. He probably would have been more comfortable if we hadn't tried to transport him across town or if I had let him go earlier that day (he too got sick very suddenly, and the vets couldn't figure out what his combination of symptoms pointed to). In Spot's case, the vet offered to do a necropsy, so I was able to find closure in that. Then I sought out information on what I could have done better so I would know for next time. In your case, you'll need to accept that you made the best decision you could with the information you had at the time. Then you learn from that painful decision by seeking information. You may want to call other vets to see what their opinions are. I wish you the best.

I no longer allow my vet to use Ace or Ketamine on any of my animals. This is a personal decision based on an experience I had years ago with a sweet cat who got Ace and then began to have strange behavior and seizures. Like you, we decided to let her go as she couldn't walk a straight line and no vet was giving me straight answers.

i am so sorry. i'm thinking of you and sending you my very best. i am so incredibly sorry for your loss.

I'm really sorry about your cat. What a terrible thing to go through. The site below has information on the veterinary use of Acepromazine. It describes seizures as a result of overdose. It also describes medications that can be used to treat the seizures in the case of an overdose, which tragically your vet didn't seem aware of.

http://www.wedgewoodpharmacy.com/mon...ineMaleate.asp

Thank you all for your replies. I am trying to mend my broken heart and the holidays are making it quite difficult. I'm sure I will come to terms with this at some point. Then I might be able to think clearly and help the people here as all of you are helping me. This is a great forum.

I plan to have a couple of other vets give me an opinion. I have copies of Tino's whole medical history and I'm really angry because the last couple of entries are incorrect. The vet wrote what he wanted but NOT what I told him was happening. So I will let him know what I think about that. I have Tino's sister at home and I have to protect her from quacks like this guy. There are two other vets in the same practice who are very good so I will have to make sure that I ONLY let them treat Misty for anything. This other guy needs to retire. I am hearing a lot of stories about him now since I have been telling my story. If only these people would have spoken up sooner. Well, I intend to tell anyone who will listen. Then they can make their own decisions but they will at least be leary if something doesn't make sense. We have to be our own doctors for ourselves most of the time so I guess now we have to be our pets doctor too.

Thank you all again. I am going to research that Feline Hyperesthesia.

Karen

Karen, I am so sorry . I let my boy go last month and I felt like a murderer, that I gave up on my boy. Everyone told me that I did the most unselfish and loving act, I let and you let your boy go gently. You saw that he was suffering and you made the right decision. Sometimes we get no closure but you did the right thing. You took your baby to the vet when he needed help. I do hope that you look into another vet. When my Sebastian got sick, they did not know what was wrong but they tried to find out and to inform me of all of the tests and decisions. It is very hard to let our babies go without knowing why we have to let them go at all.

Best wishes and good vibes.