Cat Suddenly Acting Scared

Hey everyone I'm a new member, signed up because I had a few questions about our cat. We are very worried so I'll just go ahead and ask. We have a cat named Mow he is about 4 years old and up until about a week ago he is very very laid back. His attitude usually goes beyond a cats, He sleeps on his back, loves being picked up,this is how lazy he normally is you can pick him up lay him on top of your head and he wont move for a couple hours, very very easy going. He's been that way for a long time. When he was young he accidentally got out and took on a rottie he won but had a leg injury and has to have his knee pinned and rodded for a few months but now walks with a limb and has gained a little weight over the years due to his knee injury, its hard for him to move around a whole lot. But he has been perfectly fine up until a couple days ago, there has been some rather disturbing incidents ex. My boyfriend was laying on the bed with a heating pad on his back and Mow (cat) hair stood on end and he was staring hardcore at the cord,popped it as hard as he could and took off, happened the other day with the remote, and then I was sitting on the bed while he was laying on me like he always does, and my dog laying on the opposite end of the bed just stretch and Mow once again jumped up and ran of scared, This is the extreme opposite of how you usually acts, Normally you can fire a roman candle next to him and he will barely raise his eyes open and return to sleep, we think maybe its his visions,like he can't see what objects are that easily, thats why he gets scared, but why would he all of a sudden lose his vision in a mere 3-4 days? Money is very tight right now so I'm waiting to get a few opinions before a trip to the vet, We are so scared, he is our best friend you know, we don't know if its his leg bothering him,hes going blind, or having some kind of all of a sudden anxiety disorder. I was reading up on different cat diseases and a few and perhaps he may have high blood pressure would be possible due to his extra weight and low exercise levels due to his knee. Also some suggest that it could be hypertension which is fancy for saying high blood pressure but can also cause blindness in a as little as 2 days. He hasn't changed his eating habits at all, or sleep more or less, he's just all of a sudden very jumpy over the strangest things, Please of anyone knows anything or has any opinions please everyone is more than welcome to post, AS we are very worried, please help!?

Wow, this is concerning, and so sad what he has been through already! I know where you are coming from with the money being tight issue, I have the same issue for the past few years, but you want the best for them so you end up freaked out yourself!
Any way, what about trying a vision test with him. I would also consider his hearing. Another concern would be illness, infection......

Hey everybody thank you so much for the advice. We took him to the vet 1st thing this morning and had blood work,cardio scan and neurological scan. The good news is that he doesn't have diabetes, thank goodness, but the bad news is that yes he does have heart disease. It was very hard to tell as he always tends to walk on his back hocks due to his knee injury and he's never been the tidy cat so his fur is usually always dull and he has always had chronic dandruff. Good news is that he will not go blind because we caught it quickly. The wheezing and shortness of breath wasn't due to just being over weight, he has a very small blood clot in his upper abdominal region and the vet said he could be easily cured with a minor surgery and some blood pressure meds ,which he is scheduled on Tuesday. We have his new diet cat food, and a minor calming agent to help him relax and not get to worked up until then. I feel so bad, here I am a groomer,vet tech student and he's been showing signs for awhile and it wasn't until he started freaking out that I noticed. He is definitely going to be under a lot closer observation from now on. After his surgery is healed I stopped by and got him a kitty harness and we're going to start going on walks to slowly bring his weight down to a healthier note. Doc said since it was very early he still has many,many happy,healthy years ahead of him. I can finally go to bed as now I am not so scared he'll die on me over night. I have Mow and my other 2 cats on the bed along with my dog and husband, lol, its a full crowd but it feels great to know were all still going to be a family.

Sorry to hear the bad news , but happy to hear the good news . Don't feel to bad, cats are very strong willed, they don't like to show pain. Truth be known you did catch it in time! Hope you stay in touch with us here, we can always use another helping voice and more pictures to see!