He walks funny

I've noticed that when Smokey Bear walks, he walks funny. It kinda reminds me of if a cat gets a piece of tape or something stuck to the bottom of it's foot. He lifts his right foot up strangely as he's walking. If you look at the leg and feel it, it almost seems to have a dent halfway between the hip and the knee... like that muscle is pushed in or something. We can touch it and mess with it with no problems but if we touch his LEFT leg he yells. He's going in for a check up soon but I'm waiting on my uncle to mail his medical records to me so I can see if he's due for anything.

I took a short video, it's a little hard to tell but you can kind of see the way he walks. Then he bunny hops once he's on the bed. He is an older cat, I'm not positive of his age until I get his records but I think he's around 10 years old. Could it just be arthritis?

Here's the video: http://s105.photobucket.com/albums/m...current=SB.flv

I can clearly see in the video what you describe and your description of it is perfect. Unfortunately, I don't have any light to shed on it. But it's hard to think it would be arthritis because if anything, he's got MORE mobility in that leg, not less, which is what you'd expect from arthritis, no?

I don't know that much about cat arthritis, but in humans, the reason a person's fingers become misshapen where their fingers are all pulled outward toward the outside of their wrists is because of a laxity of the tendons. Not a tightening. If that makes any sense at all...

Hmmm.....only thing I can think of is something stuck in the paw you cannot see. Had one of the dogs to the vet once for a similar thing, kicking out of the paw. After 15 minutes of manipulating a tiny sliver of wood came out.

Damita walked like that, doing a lot of paw shaking, since the end of January when her paws bothered her until she passed away. The vet always suspected nerve damage, so that's another possiblity.

Fred walked a little funny as he got older. you never can tell what may have accidentally bumping around he got during his journey. trucks can be bumpy. The vet will be able to tell you better when he goes. He is a handsome fellow.

Bless him!
I`m thinking if some moron castrated him themself, you never know what other abuse he suffered

It is clear in the video and the only thing like it I have seen was in a horse. Yeah, totally different animal, I know, but I don`t know if there is a similar thing in all animals like all animals can get arthritis?

Anyhoo, it`s a condition called Stringhalt
http://merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index....m/bc/90777.htm
Probably way off but just an idea

Maisie is an 'older' cat and she does seem quite wobbley on her pins which I think is an age thing but she doesn`t snatch her leg/s up like that and they don`t feel different, just boney

Hope he`s gonna be ok

I'll have the detailed vet records tomorrow or Monday and then we'll set up our vet appointment from there. Hopefully we'll be able to figure out what's going on!

Have you checked that there is nothing stuck to the paw?

My older cat Sasha was walking like that one day, I was worried so I checked the bottom of her paw, she had walked in something stick then went to the litter, so she had a big ball of litter stuck to her paw she couldnt get off, poor thing.

Thankfully shes pretty trusting of us so we could clip it off with the nail clippers, and she was fine after....Could he have the same thing?

(shrugs)

I've checked all of his feet and there is nothing stuck. The leg very clearly bends in between the knee and hip so I know it's something going on in there, just not really sure what. Could be an old injury, which hopefully will be on the vet report.

Ok, I don't have the records yet but had them faxed up here to my mother's work and she read a few of them off to me. She's going to bring me all of them either tomorrow or Monday.

What I know so far:

1. My Grandma adopted him from a shelter in 2004. When the shelter picked him up, he had been hit by a car which shattered his hip and one of his legs. Which probably explains the way he walks. I'm going to contact the shelter and see if they still have any records on him. He had also been mutilated, had his male organs cut completely out of him... not just his testicles.

2. As soon as my Grandma had him home, she took him to a specialist who did some sort of procedure that made it possible for him to urinate again. I'll have more details describing the procedure when I get the records.

3. Last year, he disappeared and my Grandma could not find him. He was gone for several days when she finally found him in her shed hiding. He had been bitten by a snake and was near death. She called her vet to make an appointment and was told that he would not survive. Believing this, she didn't take him in and just tried to make him comfortable. She took care of him and nursed him back to health herself and somehow he survived.

So this little guy has been through a LOT so far, and I'm sure I'll find out even more once I read through his records. Poor little guy.

Poor sweetheart!! Well, he's landed in the right place. that getting him sorted out and settled is not a difficult process.

I agree there is something wrong, but not sure what. Hope its not serious. Doesn't seem to be arthritis tho.

Lets hope it is just the old injury. I am so glad you are helping him and taking care of him. Poor puss! I wish I could wrap him up in a big cozy warm blanket and make sure he never hurts again!

the poor little sweetheart!!! awww people can be SOOOOO sick sometimes i'm very glad that he is now yours and you treat him with love and care since the poor little guy hasn't had much of it himself

totally something going on with the leg and I hope the poor sweetie is alright

I have most of the medical records. I'm waiting for the one that tells exactly what his procedure was that made him able to urinate.

So far I see that he's been prescribed an arthritis medication as well as an anxiety medication in the past.

Also, I was told originally that Smokey Bear is at least 10 years old, but according to his records he's only 4 years old (will be 5 in July).

That sounds like a pretty eventful four years! Thank goodness he's with you now, where he'll have his needs properly and lovingly tended.