I don't know if anyone can help but here goes. Last week we took our two 7 year old cats for their yearly shots/exams. Our girl-cat Yoda needed her teeth cleaned so I arranged to drop her off the next day. They said she was doing OK and I picked her up late that afternoon. Well she never really recovered from the anasthetic. We couldn't get her to eat or drink for a week and she still refuses the food we used to give her. She never used to be finicky at all. She had some sub-q fluids the next day at the vets because she did seem dehydrated and I gave her some at home also. Our regular vet had gone out of town two days after the cleaning, so we took her to the emergency vet. Whilst we were at the vets office I pointed out her 3rd eyelid was still over on one eye and also that pupil was "alligator" whilst the other one was dilated. We have also discovered that she must be deaf since she doesn't respond at all to loud noises as she used to. The emergency vet said that she had probably had "a neurological event" whilst under the anasthetic. He suggested a mini-stroke This, to me, could also have been a bad reaction to the anasthetic, an overdose of the anasthetic and/or not enough oxygen to her little brain whilst she was under. Either way, she isn't the same happy bouncy kitty we dropped off at the vet that day. Has anyone had a cat that has been through this kind of thing? Can anyone give me advice on how we can help her adjust to her strange, new life? Any answers or suggestions would be very gratefully accepted. We are very sad and want to help her and love her all we can.
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Cat with brain damage
- Thread starter gumbiecat
- Start Date
While the causes are different, two of my youngest have brain damage (they were both "typical" baby kittens.)
Both Tyson and Sassy suffered some brain damage associated with a viral infection...Tyson at 7 wks, Sassy at 6 wks...Sassy is 2 wks younger than Tyson. Sassy was more affected than Tyson from this infection. She is now 2.5 yrs old; but, acts like an 8/9 wk old kitten. Very needy, clingy and has separation anxiety.
Tyson was set back about a month behind his litter mates. Then, at about 9 months old, Tyson got a horrible strain of Calicivirus and suffered a stroke (and additional brain damage from a fever of 106.) It took 14 weeks for Tyson to medically recover from the Calicivirus. It was a good 5+ months before he came out of his "fog." He was awake and functioning on a basic level (eating, drinking, using litter box) but looking in his eyes, he wasn't there (does that make sense?)
His temperament is nothing like it was when he was a kitten (he got the name "Tyson" for a reason!) Now, he is more docile and went through a phase where he would get very disoriented...he does still do this, though it is MUCH less often now.
I was lucky in that the other cats in the house (several of them being Tyson's litter mates) knew that he was different and they accommodate him. My oldest female also took Tyson under her wing and he sees her as momma cat.
I found that routine and reassurance were what Tyson needed most. Even now, if Tyson is asleep, everyone knows not to touch him or wake him up, it causes him to be very disoriented and it can take 30 mins to get him calmed down.
I have heard that hearing loss can be associated with anesthesia and dental cleanings. Not sure how frequent it occurs. I also think that the hearing may come back after 2-3 weeks.
I'm so sorry this has happened to Yoda. I definitely think you will see some improvement over the next few months (much like a person who has suffered a stroke/brain damage.)
Both Tyson and Sassy suffered some brain damage associated with a viral infection...Tyson at 7 wks, Sassy at 6 wks...Sassy is 2 wks younger than Tyson. Sassy was more affected than Tyson from this infection. She is now 2.5 yrs old; but, acts like an 8/9 wk old kitten. Very needy, clingy and has separation anxiety.
Tyson was set back about a month behind his litter mates. Then, at about 9 months old, Tyson got a horrible strain of Calicivirus and suffered a stroke (and additional brain damage from a fever of 106.) It took 14 weeks for Tyson to medically recover from the Calicivirus. It was a good 5+ months before he came out of his "fog." He was awake and functioning on a basic level (eating, drinking, using litter box) but looking in his eyes, he wasn't there (does that make sense?)
His temperament is nothing like it was when he was a kitten (he got the name "Tyson" for a reason!) Now, he is more docile and went through a phase where he would get very disoriented...he does still do this, though it is MUCH less often now.
I was lucky in that the other cats in the house (several of them being Tyson's litter mates) knew that he was different and they accommodate him. My oldest female also took Tyson under her wing and he sees her as momma cat.
I found that routine and reassurance were what Tyson needed most. Even now, if Tyson is asleep, everyone knows not to touch him or wake him up, it causes him to be very disoriented and it can take 30 mins to get him calmed down.
I have heard that hearing loss can be associated with anesthesia and dental cleanings. Not sure how frequent it occurs. I also think that the hearing may come back after 2-3 weeks.
I'm so sorry this has happened to Yoda. I definitely think you will see some improvement over the next few months (much like a person who has suffered a stroke/brain damage.)
So sorry about this happening to your girl. You obviously are a very caring momma. I can only imagine how you feel right now.
My heart goes out to you
PLEASE keep us posted on how she is doing.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #4
Thank you CatPack. I am sorry about your two babies too. :-( We try to do the best we can for them but sometimes it doesn't work or things go wrong. I didn't know that hearing loss could happen with teeth cleaning and anasthesia, so thank you for that. I would love for her hearing to come back. She seems depressed at the moment. I am sure she is wondering what has happened to her. The good thing is that we do live very routine lives, we rarely go out at night, if ever, and we always leave the house and come home at the same time. Yoda used to follow me around and wait for me at the door and she hasn't done that since this happened. Like you said, it will probably take lots of time. As I said, we will just love her all we can and do whatever we can to make her feel comfortable.
I don't know what to say, other than I'm so sorry this happened! I can't imagine how I would feel if this happened to mine.
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- #6
Thank you cccdlx. I will be sure to keep you all up to date. We are both very worried about her. She was such a playful little cat before all this happened and now she seems depressed and sad. Luckily I am on a long break from work over Thanksgiving so I will be able to spend lots of time with both of them. She is a real lap cat so she will get plently of love and cuddles!
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- #7
I am so sorry this happened. I have heard stories of cats coming out of anesthesia either blind or deaf or both, but not with brain damage. Hopefully as time goes on some of these ill effects will wear off, but if not, you will still love her, and she will adapt, just as all creature do when something happens to them. Right now everything is just different for her
. At least she doesn't appear to be frightened, at least that you have written about. Are you having to assist feed her, or is she eating on her own? I'm wondering if the deafness if what is causing her possible depression? How is her brother acting towards her? He's not attacking her, is he?
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- #9
Hello mrsgreenjeens,
Thank you for your kindness. The emergency vet told us that she had possibly had "a neurological event" under the anasthesia. So that makes me think of brain damage. However, she also had her ears flushed by our regular vet and when we took her to the emergency vet he noticed that the wax left in her ear looked brown. He took a little sample and tested it and found fungus and bacteria. He gave her some ear goop to put in. Now I have just been reading online about her eye and it looks like she has Horner's Syndrome. This can be caused by ear problems. However, she showed absolutely no symptoms of any of this before we took her in to get her teeth cleaned. She had her ears flushed too, so it is odd that all this has shown up at once. She was a bouncy, fun and happy little 7 year old before her procedure. She isn't frightened and I think you are right about the deafness causing her depression. Boji has actually been behaving himself very well. He would sometimes chase her but he hasn't done so since she came back from the vet. He seems to understand she isn't feeling like herself.
Thank you for your kindness. The emergency vet told us that she had possibly had "a neurological event" under the anasthesia. So that makes me think of brain damage. However, she also had her ears flushed by our regular vet and when we took her to the emergency vet he noticed that the wax left in her ear looked brown. He took a little sample and tested it and found fungus and bacteria. He gave her some ear goop to put in. Now I have just been reading online about her eye and it looks like she has Horner's Syndrome. This can be caused by ear problems. However, she showed absolutely no symptoms of any of this before we took her in to get her teeth cleaned. She had her ears flushed too, so it is odd that all this has shown up at once. She was a bouncy, fun and happy little 7 year old before her procedure. She isn't frightened and I think you are right about the deafness causing her depression. Boji has actually been behaving himself very well. He would sometimes chase her but he hasn't done so since she came back from the vet. He seems to understand she isn't feeling like herself.
i am so sorry this has happened to your furry little friend.i wont pretend to be knowledgeable on this subject but do have an experience to share.a few yrs ago i had the pleasure to meet and get to know a calico female that had been tortured and rescued by a wonderful lady.she was blind and deaf.(the cat) as a result of the trauma.at first cali was disoriented but after a bit of time and a lot of love cali adjusted and lived a good life.of course there were obstacles to overcome and challenges to be met but cali learned her way around and seemed to be a very happy girl despite her set backs.dont give up hope.i will swear by the advice from these folks.they sure saved our "mo kitty" with their helpful advice and reassurancr.bless you and your kitty
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- #11
OK everyone. I really don't think she is brain damaged. I got on the internet yesterday and found that her eye problem is called Horner's Syndrome and is not uncommon in dogs or cats when they have had their ears flushed - which Yoda did. However, she is deaf and that could have been caused by the anasthetic. It isn't that common but it does happen. She isn't as playful as she used to be at all. She is uninterested in a lot of toys. However, that being said, she is trying to cope with being suddenly deaf, which is a challenge for any animal. She used to like to play with ping pong balls and I think a lot of that was the sound they made when they hit the baseboards. Now she can't hear that sound the ping pong balls aren't fun any more. I think I will have to use more visual toys like laser lights and such. Again, she is probably feeling depressed because she can't hear. She was a lot brighter when I got home last night. She didn't hear the garage door open so she only came up to me when she actually saw me. However, she was pleased I was home. All in all I think it is just going to take her time to get used to her new condition and it is going to take us time to learn how to help her. I will keep you all posted on our progress in the coming weeks. Thank you to all for all your kindness and we will talk again soon!
And with any luck, her hearing will come back in time, like like sometimes the blindness from anesthesia does
At least she seems to be coming around, thank goodness. I've found that if I use the laser pointer thing, I need to have something at the end of it, like a treat. You know, it's frustrating if they can never catch it, so I put a treat somewhere in the house, then eventually point the laser pointer there
At least she seems to be coming around, thank goodness. I've found that if I use the laser pointer thing, I need to have something at the end of it, like a treat. You know, it's frustrating if they can never catch it, so I put a treat somewhere in the house, then eventually point the laser pointer there
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- #13
I am hoping so mrsgreenjeens! What a great idea you had with the treat and laser pointer! I had a talk with our vet this morning. He had never had a patient react like this but as I mentioned to him, whilst it is not very common, it isn't unheard of and there's always a first time. He did suggest taking her in to look at her ears but I declined. She was at the vet every day last week except for Friday and Saturday. She is stressed out from being shoved into a box every day and being poked and prodded and then having to deal with her new hearing disability is stressful for her too. She needs a break. I will see how things go and as long as nothing drastic happens or she isn't in pain or anything, I would like to leave her alone for a while. She has been through enough. Besides, he can't wave a magic wand and bring her hearing back. I did wonder about the ear flush and I asked him about that. He assured me that they use an oily substance and then flush it with a liquid. They don't dig around deep into their ears or anything. I also read on the Internet that ear flushing can cause temporary deafness if the liquid gets into the middle ear. However, that is usually absorbed within 7 to 10 days and were that the case with Yoda then I would think she would have at least partial hearing back by now if not all of it. Anyway, as you said, fingers crossed!
