What health problem might cause these things?

Our 12 year old male cat does something odd. When he's alone (the other cat isn't anywhere near him or bothering him), he'll hiss and growl and whip around like something is attacking him from behind. This has been going on for 7 years so I assume it's not something serious but I'd still like to know what's causing it. Our vet at first thought it might be a type of seizure, but since he stops when we go to him and pet him, a seizure is ruled out. Another vet (an internal medicine specialist) thought it might be a nerve thing at the base of his tail. A third vet just expressed his anal glands a week ago (she said that can cause growling) but it hasn't stopped it. For some strange reason it seems to be more frequent in fall and winter. This time of year we hear it daily, sometimes several times a day. If anyone has any answers I'd love to hear them.

He has also started started (in the last year) what I call moaning. We'll hear him in another part of the house. There doesn't seem to be a pattern. It doesn't happen daily or even weekly. Does anyone else have experience with this? Another cat we had used to do this the last 2 or 3 years of her life. She died at 18 of kidney disease. Hers seemed to happen after eating so I thought maybe she had stomach problems. One vet told me thyroid problems can cause vocalizing and this cat WAS hyperthyroid, but on medication for it. Our male doesn't have thyroid problems. Thanks!

Sue

There are a number of possibilities that you may want to discuss with your vet. He could be losing his sense of hearing or his sense of sight. He might think he's hearing or seeing something, which results in the growling. Is the moaning sound like a calling noise? He could be getting confused and trying to locate people.

You may want to look up Feline Hyperesthesia--it is often thought to be a type of seizure disorder that can result in a cat attacking themselves.

Is your cat siamese or one of the oriental breeds? Odo does a lot of moaning/calling. Medical causes have been pretty much ruled out, so we chalk it up to his breed. He does also seem to have some minor vision loss, so I added nightlights to help him find his way around.

When was the last time you had bloodwork done on your kitty to rule out thyroid and kidney issues?

My cat, that had kidney disease starting at age 16 and died at age 20, used to have this deep moaning meow. She didn't start it until she was older and I figured it was because she was deaf and couldn't find us. Her meow was a totally different meow than when she was younger...my kids would laugh at her she sounded so horrid when she was older. It was almost eerie.

He had bloodwork a year ago and this month. I hadn't thought of a seeing or hearing problem. I think hyperesthesia is what the internal medicine vet thought it was.
Sue

No, he's not an oriental breed.

Sue

After posting this question on some other sites as well, I'm pretty sure it's feline hyperesthesia, a type of seizure disorder that doesn't always need to be treated.

Sue