Vagus Nerve / Twitching / FHS

Does anyone have any experience with the effect/affect vagus nerve problems have on a cat?

Ritz continues to twitch, mostly often after she's eaten.  Her twitching is more noticable in the evening, which is when she eats the most food (due to my schedule).  She's been diagnosed with FHS (went away for a while after being on Prozac for three months),  but I wonder if the vagus nerve isn't being aggravated for some reason.

The vagus nerve is the longest nerve in the cat's body, going near a lot of organs, including digestive.

I know vagus nerve problems can cause fainting spells in cats, that's not Ritz' problem, thank goodness.

Thanks.

I thought you meant in humans, and was about to give you a yoga technique, but I think Ritz would find it a tad difficult.

Since the vagus nerve passes through the diaphragm, eating could cause a kind of compression there when the stomach expands.  But I'm really just guessing here.  I'd be interested to hear what others say.

I have visions of Ritz (the cat) doing yoga...lol!

Would an antiviral be worth a try? Well, are there any antivirals to try? I'm thinking of how we treat HSV in humans. Just throwing it out there, never know when it may trigger a good solution!

I'll try anything!  But why an anti-viral--hypothesis that a virus is causing the nerve to spasm?

I'm also considering accupuncture; my friend who rescued Ritz is an accpuncturist but given Ritz' nature is somewhat leary of the pros outweighing the cons (stress).

PS:  I just bought a 2014 calendar with pictures of cats doing yoga.  I (human) take yoga.  I can only dream of doing those poses!  Although we all can do the happy baby pose!

Same concept as chicken pox and Shingles. If her nerves are infected with the virus, then an antiviral might help stop/slow the reproduction of it.

I was assuming that you meant that the vagus nerve might be infected. Where is she twitching that you think it might be due to the vagus nerve?

ETA: I also saw info on Veterinary Practice News about the cause being possibly related to schizophrenia and the limbic system. Maybe the prozac wasn't enough? Maybe she needs a combination of drugs?

She is twitching mainly along her flank/side. I don't see her belly twitching, but that's usually hidden. At its worst, she kind of runs away, like she's trying to escape the twitches. She does some licking but no self mutiliation.
The co-relation between eating and twitching is what made me think of the vagus nerves, since it is a long nerve that (i guess) goes close to a lot of organs.

Oh...geez I hope not! My cats get the zoomies something terrible after eating, I wonder if that's how she's being stimulated? Overstimulated?

It sure would be helpful to know the cause of this.

Boo is the exact same way. He has FHS and gets the twitching, running around, licking thing, too. It seems to be mostly at night, as well, either before or right after eating. I wonder if my observation is skewed, however, since I notice him doing this at a time when he's also the most active. He basically sleeps all day while I'm at work, and then wakes up and becomes active at night when I come home. But as it becomes later at night, he doesn't seem to have these episodes as much. He sometimes has them in the morning, but it's definiately more at night right before or after eating dinner.

Did Ritz ever have x-rays of her spine? I'm asking because Boo had his spine x-rayed when I took him to the vet for FHS. He was diagnosed with lumbosacral disc degeneration. I wonder if the degradation is causing some kind of pinching of his nerves.

I came across this bit of information that I found very interesting. Go to http://www.vomtech.com/CHIRO-CAT.htm and scroll down a little until you see the section titled, "The skin-spinal reflex phenomenon." I had considered taking Boo to a kitty chiropractic. 

Thanks for the attachment.
I have no reason to believe Ritz has a spinal problem—she doesn’t flinch when I pet her--but anything is possible. Her twitching is most noticeable/frequent after she eats dinner, by far her biggest meal of the day. When I’m home during the afternoons on the weekends, I feed her more frequently, smaller meals. Sometimes she will start to twitch afterwards, episodes don't last long.
I’ve thought of getting a timed feeder, but the reviews aren’t fabulous. I feed Raw, which presents another problem. (I’ve left out a frozen piece of food hoping she'll save it till later but she eats it right away.)
SO…. If not FHS, may be some nerve near her gastro track is getting irritated. FWIW: she has been unusually hungry, and I think she's gained some weight she didn't need to. She is somewhat food obsessed, but she had a hard start in life (abandoned when she was around four months old right before a 20” snow storm) so has her reasons.
I'm researching, thinking about my next step. The holistic vet is 40 minutes from where I live; she does chiropractractic care, as well as acupuncture/holistic medicine. And is supportive of Raw feeding. I have to weigh the advantages versus the disadvantage: Ritz doesn’t travel well and will no doubt need follow up sessions.
PS: homeopathic remedies for other ailments wasn't real successful.

I just thought it could be another thing you could look into. Boo doesn't flinch or act like he's in any pain when I pet him along his back and flank, but it can sometimes set him off into a FHS episode. There are times I can pet him there, and it does not set him off. It's so inconsistent!    I've read about spinal "lesions" that I don't quite understand. They can be harder to find. What's weird is that there are a lot of cats that have FHS, and I'm sure they don't all have spinal issues. So what's the common denominator here? 

At some point, I read on another forum that dental disease can could cause other issues, including FHS. Boo had FORLs, so I took him in for a dental and extractions and hoped it would fix the FHS. It didn't. Another cause ruled out, but at least his mouth feels better now. 

When Boo was having his twitching after dinner, I actually did think about what could be doing this. Is it because his back is arched when he is eating and causing some kind of vertebral subluxation? Is it the temperature of the food? Is it something in the food? (Although, if this was the case, I find it hard to believe that the reaction would be that immediate.) I can see what led you to question the vagus nerve.

ETA: I know exactly what you mean when it comes to deciding whether or not to use the holistic vet. It's possible that something like chiropractic or acupuncture treatment would work better than homeopathic remedies.

Trysh, my friend who rescued and socialized Ritz and her litter mates four years ago, is also an accupuncturist. She has agreed to treat Ritz, she thinks needles in her spine would be helpful. She's been reluctant to do so because of Ritz' skittishness, but since the symptoms have returned, thinks accupuncture is worth a try.
She wants me to take Ritz to her (versus her coming to my home), she thinks it would be helpful for Ritz to be out of her normal environment. She lives around 30 minutes from me.
Ritz doesn't like the cat carrier, but is okay once she gets to the vets. (Maybe she is scared silent.) I'll have to hold her, scruff if necessary, while Trysh treats her.
Trysh teated Ritz once about two years ago in my home, and Ritz calmed down considerably during the appointment.
The appointment is in ten days. I'll let you know how it goes.

Yes, definitely let us know how it goes!

Your post is timely. I was going to update and say that Boo's FHS has been horrible these past couple of days. He was totally freaking out last night and running around all over the place. I tried to think, "What the heck changed?" The things that came to mind were 1) I gave him Wellness canned chicken recipe, which he hasn't had in awhile, 2) I started him back up on his Nu-Cat multivitamin; we had taken a break because he was getting sick of them, and then I realized after starting them back up that they have dehydrated beef liver in them (I've been trying to eliminate beef), 3) it got colder out, and/or 4) a full moon is coming. Odd as it sounds, his FHS does seem worse around a full moon. 

Interesting about the full moon.
Last night her FHS symptoms were'nt horrible, they were the previous night....
Are there any additives in Nu-Cat?

Ritz said:

Are there any additives in Nu-Cat?

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I give him the chewable tablets. There's the dehydrated beef liver (for flavor) and a few ingredients to give the tablets their shape, but mostly just vitamins and minerals. Since I'm trying to eliminate beef, I guess I'll stop the vitamin. 

Ritz had Acupuncture this morning with Trysh, my friend who also rescued Ritz four years ago.  Ritz was so scared she peed in the carrier and was shaking for the first 20 minutes of the appointment--the new environment, smells, person.  She had no reaction when the needles were inserted.  (She had more of a reaction when we clipped her nails.)  She calmed down considerably after 15 or 20 minutes; the appointment lasted only 30 minutes.  And Ritz was quiet during the remaining 10 minutes when was placed back in her cat carrier and Trysh worked on MY neck.

She was quiet as a, well, mouse on the way home too.  Calmly walked out of the cat carrier, and was on my lap snoozing 30 minutes later.

Trysh my friend said to expect Ritz to be quieter than normal.  She also said she had no idea whether the treatment would help with her nerves, FHS.  

It's a waiting game, I guess.  If Ritz could associate the ride in the car/cat carrier with the calmness she feels afterwards, I'd consider getting her regular treatments.  But she really hates being in the cat carrier.

That's really interesting she's so calm afterwards! :rub:

I do hope there's a noticeable difference, so it's an easy decision whether or not to take her again.

Wow....I hope it really helps with the FHS!     Do let us know how she does over the next couple of days.

I've been trying something for Boo, as well, but not acupuncture. It's an herbal/homeopathic blend for brain and nerve health. My vet knows, and is okay with it, but since they are traditional vets, they kind of roll their eyes at this stuff. But she's willing to open her mind and curious to know if it works. He's been on it for about four days, and I have noticed that the episodes are less frequent and when he does have one, the duration is much shorter. It might take a few weeks for it to reach its full potential.

The vet and I talked about options, and she suggested a couple prescription meds (pred, Onsior, etc.) and to put him on the same diet as Sebastian. I said I wanted to try this first and see if it helps. She agreed that doing a neuro consult would probably just result in them prescribing phenobarbital. 

Well, it didn't seem to help that much:  she had some minor FHS (twitching) both Friday and Saturday.

I think acupuncture is the type of therapy that may have to be repeated several times over a few weeks to see any improvement.  I'll talk with Trysh about it.  We always have to weigh the pros/cons/advantages/disadvantages for everything we do.  There is a holistic vet about 40 minutes from where I live, which remains an option.  (Though this time I'll make sure Ritz had peed before I put her in the cat carrier!)

I have resumed giving Ritz L-Theanine (100 mg once a day).  I had stopped giving it to her once her FHS symptoms had subsided in late summer.  I'll let you know if I see any improvement but (perhaps like acupuncture), this does not provide a quick fix.

On a sporadic basis I give her Rescue Remedy, but the later contains a fair amount of alcohol, so not sure which calms her down--the herbs or the alcohol.

GoHolistic:  what supplements are you giving Boo?  (My human nutritionist is well versed in supplements for humans, and I can --and have -- asked her about supplements for cats.  She has two cats herself.)

Bummer...I was really hopeful.    It really is a tough call on whether or not to pursue the acupuncture for a longer period of time. It's never easy when there is a distance to the vet, and I know for my cats 40 minutes would seem like an eternity.

I've used l-theanine for Caesar's anxiety, but never tried it for Boo's FHS. Rescue Remedy does have a pet version that does not contain alcohol. This is the one I have.

I've recently started Boo on a product called EaseSure by PetAlive. It's not cheap, but should last awhile since only a few drops are needed per dose. Because I am very careful about herbs and stuff (especially since Boo seems to have various things going on), I made sure to get a product specifically made for cats and dogs. It's got good reviews. Many of the reviewers comment on it's effectiveness for seizures, but it's meant for brain/nerve health in general. I give Boo 4 drops in the morning and 4 drops in the evening. It does seem to help. This morning I woke up late, so he didn't get the EaseSure until late morning and he did have twitching before giving it to him. But after he had the dose, I didn't see anymore, even after eating. 

Ritz said:

On a sporadic basis I give her Rescue Remedy, but the latter contains a fair amount of alcohol, so not sure which calms her down--the herbs or the alcohol.

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Isn't Rescue Remedy (or any of the Bach's Flower Essences) available there without alcohol? There are versions here in Europe for pets that don't contain it, usually sold in pharmacies or pet stores.

ETA: It's available there online: Bach Original Flower Essences, Rescue Remedy Pet, Alcohol-Free Formula
There's a store locater at this site: Bach Rescue Remedy Pet