Kitten back injury; advice please...

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jsully8

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Our little guy, Nomar, had an accident today and I was just wondering if anyone had any advice or has been through a similar experience.

This morning I was letting our puppy in and before I could stop I closed the door on Nomar. Not actually closed it, but he got stuck in between for a moment. It was horrible! I feel so horrible. We got him to the vets because he wasn't able to use his back legs. Our vet examined him and came to the conclusion that his legs are fine, they're receptive to touch and are moving. But somewhere between his rib cage and back legs on his spine his nerves and muscles are damaged. And so he's not able to support his back legs. He said that because he's young he has a big chance of healing, where as an older cat wouldn't be able to recover. He told us to give him a chance to try and heal. But if he stops eating or can't use the washroom to bring him in. So far he's been eating and using the washroom as normal. He has even been able to balance a little bit on his back legs.

We're keeping him in his cat carrier with his blanket, and we're letting him out when he eats and for a stretch. Is there anything else we can do for him to help him? Or are there any major 'no-no's that I'm not aware of?? I'm in shock still, I can't believe I let it happen but I am trying to be as positive as I can be, and making sure Nomar gets that good energy off of us. The vet never mentioned anything about pain killers, just told us to have him rest a lot of keep an eye on him. How would I know if he's in pain? He hasn't been meowing more than usual, and when I touch his legs he's fine. In fact he moves them frequently. Any advice would be appreciated, I want to do my best to make sure he is comfortable and able to heal.

Thank you.
 
carolina

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Originally Posted by jsully8

Our little guy, Nomar, had an accident today and I was just wondering if anyone had any advice or has been through a similar experience.

This morning I was letting our puppy in and before I could stop I closed the door on Nomar. Not actually closed it, but he got stuck in between for a moment. It was horrible! I feel so horrible. We got him to the vets because he wasn't able to use his back legs. Our vet examined him and came to the conclusion that his legs are fine, they're receptive to touch and are moving. But somewhere between his rib cage and back legs on his spine his nerves and muscles are damaged. And so he's not able to support his back legs. He said that because he's young he has a big chance of healing, where as an older cat wouldn't be able to recover. He told us to give him a chance to try and heal. But if he stops eating or can't use the washroom to bring him in. So far he's been eating and using the washroom as normal. He has even been able to balance a little bit on his back legs.

We're keeping him in his cat carrier with his blanket, and we're letting him out when he eats and for a stretch. Is there anything else we can do for him to help him? Or are there any major 'no-no's that I'm not aware of?? I'm in shock still, I can't believe I let it happen but I am trying to be as positive as I can be, and making sure Nomar gets that good energy off of us. The vet never mentioned anything about pain killers, just told us to have him rest a lot of keep an eye on him. How would I know if he's in pain? He hasn't been meowing more than usual, and when I touch his legs he's fine. In fact he moves them frequently. Any advice would be appreciated, I want to do my best to make sure he is comfortable and able to heal.

Thank you.
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Did the vet take x-rays? If not, I would advise you going to another vet for a complete assessment. IMO only with an X-ray you will know what to do and what not; he might have some internal injuries, and even moving might be dangerous... Please go back to the vet or to another one...
 
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I agree with carolinalima. If you didn't get an xray than that's a must.

Some spinal injuries that are just associated with the nerves can heal, even in older cats. If he has feeling in his back legs, that's a good sign. Also, steriod injections can help with the healing process. Also, if you have a vet in the area that does massage therapy (or has somebody they can have come in to do it), I've seen it do absolute wonders. Really just time and cage rest (at least for the majority of the day) are what he needs. Sounds like you're on the right track there.

As far as pain meds, that can be tricky with kittens. How old is he? Does he seem like he's in pain? Does he cry when he tries to stand, lay down, or shifts his weight? Especially with kittens, if it isn't totally necessary, I would try to go it without pain meds.
 
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jsully8

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He's only 5 weeks old, and the vet said that because of his age if he did an x-ray nothing would show up. So, he said he couldn't do them. My poor husband, he's being all strong but I know if we have to bring him in 'to do the right thing' he'll be devasted. He even mentioned if we have to getting him one of those harness with wheels. But thanks for the massage therapy idea, I'm going to call around and see.
 
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At 5 weeks old you can see a bit on an xray, specially broken or fractured ribs-- which I suspect could be a problem here. I would consult another veterinarian.
 
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I know it's easy for me to say this, but don't worry too much. When our little tabby, Joey, jumped off my kids bed the 2nd day we had him he immediately started limping badly.

I freaked and called the cat rescue place where we adopted him the day before. They said this is normal & that kittens have weak/flexible joints. If the limp persisted for several days then I should have him examined.

It took a solid 24 hours for him to recover & then he was okay.

If your little one has already started to regain some balance then it sounds like everything will be okay. I would wait at least 24-36 hours before doing anything. In the meantime do anything you can to make eating, etc. easier for him.
 
darlili

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First, best wishes for your baby....do you know how to use the search function on this board - a member here named LawGuy had a very scary incident with his kitten, Ally, who had a very bad fall - if you read through his whole thread, it might give you some ideas, and some hope as well - Ally seems to be thriving.
 
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I've never had a kitten with this problem but I've had family members (including myself) with spinal injuries, and although I'm not current I've taken first aid, so, take this for whatever you think it's worth.

If the little guy can move his back legs, then it should be possible for him to recover. The important thing is to keep him from being reinjured while his body heals. Don't try to stop him from moving, because that would make him freak out and probably thrash around and hurt himself worse, but, keep everything he needs very close to him so that he doesn't need to move very much.

If you need to move him, don't just pick him up--slide a thin, stiff, flat object under him while he's still laying down, and lift the object with him on it. This will avoid any bending or twisting that might do bad things.

High quality food with lots of minerals, or even mineral supplements, can be helpful with this kind of injury, to make sure the body has the resources it needs to heal itself.

As he heals up (after any swelling goes down--until then, heat can make it worse), he may appreciate a heatpad that he can cuddle up against, if he's sore. I don't know if a cat or kitten would think to use it that way, but I can't imagine any harm in offering it.

I'd suggest a chiropractor but I don't know if there is such a thing for cats.
 
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