Help! I'm freaking out and it's too late to go to the vet!!!

My cat Gayden has been having spasms today. He's been sort of unwell the last few days. I took him to the vet yesterday for blood tests and an exam. She said that everything looked fine, except that his creatine (not sure on the word) levels were borderline and that she thought he might be in the early stages of kidney problems.

Today I have noticed that he is licking himself frantically and that when he does it his back leg goes into spasms!!! Then he freaks out and runs for a bit. Stops, licks himself again, a lot of the time on his tail. Then more spasms, etc. etc.

He did a large pee yesterday, and I checked his PH levels yesterday, and they were fine. So I don't think he's blocked, but I'm freaking out because it's too late to bring him in tonight. I'll have to wait until the morning.

He's eaten today, and we even played a bit. Then he was sleeping beside me, and then he woke up doing the licking, scratching, spasms, running etc.

Could this be kidney failure?

I don't know what is going on with your kitty but these aren't the normal symptoms of kidney failure.  Kidney failure kitties whether it be chronic or acute become anorexic and lethargic.  The acute ones go downhill fast the chronic kitties go downhill much slower.

This is what it sounds like to me:

http://www.cathealth.com/skin-and-fur/feline-hyperesthesia

He has ALL of the symptoms. Yesterday I noticed that the skin on his back was rippling.

But it may be aggravated by him not feeling well. I will take him to the vet for a urine analysis tomorrow.

Denice said:

 
I don't know what is going on with your kitty but these aren't the normal symptoms of kidney failure.  Kidney failure kitties whether it be chronic or acute become anorexic and lethargic.  The acute ones go downhill fast the chronic kitties go downhill much slower.

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I guess I should be slightly relieved then...but my anxiety levels are going through the roof. I've never seen him have spasms like this. So incredibly scary!

Talk to your vet, go over everything again, and try not to panic.  

Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome (FHS) is generally not life-threatening in of itself. The stress of your going away for three weeks, the unintentional change in diet, the stress of the vet visit, etc. could have set it off, but it could only be temporary until things settle down. I know in your other thread you said the Feliway diffuser ran out. If you buy it online, see if you can pick up just one refill at a local store to get it going again.

Did Gayden get any injections, shots, or fluids at the vet? If so, any of those things could have sensitized him.

Actually, my Boo has FHS and there are other TCS members who have cats with this. Causes of FHS are unknown, but on much of the research I have done, there are three broad explanations: 1) obsessive compulsive (can be associated with stress), 2) allergies, and 3) neurological. I still don't really know what has caused it in my Boo, but I have theories. He's 14 years old and it just started in the fall of 2012.

Here is an article about FHS on TCS: http://www.thecatsite.com/a/feline-hyperesthesia

Also some potential good news, it looks like you have caught possible CRF (kidney disease) early, and you can start doing proactive things to keep that at bay.  Discuss this with your vet, give your cat plenty of sources of water and lots of wet food and keep a close eye on this.

See http://www.felinecrf.com/

GoHolistic said:

 
Talk to your vet, go over everything again, and try not to panic.  

Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome (FHS) is generally not life-threatening in of itself. The stress of your going away for three weeks, the unintentional change in diet, the stress of the vet visit, etc. could have set it off, but it could only be temporary until things settle down. I know in your other thread you said the Feliway diffuser ran out. If you buy it online, see if you can pick up just one refill at a local store to get it going again.

Did Gayden get any injections, shots, or fluids at the vet? If so, any of those things could have sensitized him.

Actually, my Boo has FHS and there are other TCS members who have cats with this. Causes of FHS are unknown, but on much of the research I have done, there are three broad explanations: 1) obsessive compulsive (can be associated with stress), 2) allergies, and 3) neurological. I still don't really know what has caused it in my Boo, but I have theories. He's 14 years old and it just started in the fall of 2012.

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I'm feeling bit more calm about it now that I've read a bit about it. I also watched an episode of "My cat from Hell" that features a cat with the disease. In the end they were able to manage it quite well.

I bought a refill of Feliway at the vet. It was more expensive, but it would take too long to order one.

Gayden didn't get any injections, other than the blood test.

Does Boo have many episodes a day, or is it more of an occasional thing? I read a few forums here about it, I hope yours wasn't one of the unlucky ones who lost a tail

StephenQ said:

 
Here is an article about FHS on TCS: http://www.thecatsite.com/a/feline-hyperesthesia

Also some potential good news, it looks like you have caught possible CRF (kidney disease) early, and you can start doing proactive things to keep that at bay.  Discuss this with your vet, give your cat plenty of sources of water and lots of wet food and keep a close eye on this.

See http://www.felinecrf.com/

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I don't suppose it's possible that all the extra dry food over 3 weeks could have affected his kidneys temporarily? I really hope it isn't CRF

This may have been just an anomaly in that one test.   I really don't think that 3 weeks with extra dry food would cause CRF.  Having your kitty on all wet food is the healthiest for any kitty.  A low phosphorus food helps with CRF if that is what it is which it very well may not be.  http://www.catinfo.org/docs/FoodChartPhosphorus9-22-12.pdf  is a list of most of the foods in the U.S. with their phosphorus content.  I don't know which foods are also available in Canada and I am sure there are good foods available there that we don't have here in the U.S.

He should get re-tested after an appropriate interval in consultation with your vet to see if this is a trend or as @Denice said, an anomaly.

Have you checked Gayden for fleas? The sudden-onset spasms could be because he picked up a few that are biting him.

Sara457 said:

 
Does Boo have many episodes a day, or is it more of an occasional thing? I read a few forums here about it, I hope yours wasn't one of the unlucky ones who lost a tail

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He usually gets them around the times when he's most active - morning and night around mealtimes. They don't last too long...maybe a few minutes. His back ripples, he frantically licks at his sides and flank, and he runs around trying to get away from "it." He's been put on a medication that helps with his FHS and a few of his other issues. Now I only really notice episodes when the medication starts to wear off. Boo does not self-mutilate, thank goodness.

GoHolistic said:

 
He usually gets them around the times when he's most active - morning and night around mealtimes. They don't last too long...maybe a few minutes. His back ripples, he frantically licks at his sides and flank, and he runs around trying to get away from "it." He's been put on a medication that helps with his FHS and a few of his other issues. Now I only really notice episodes when the medication starts to wear off. Boo does not self-mutilate, thank goodness.

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What kind of medication does he take? I've been seriously considering putting Gayden on meds. I am all for trying every other route possible, but it does come down to an issue of quality of life, and honestly, he's been a mess for two years now since he came back from his two week stay at the vet.

We have tried so many things to make his life as peaceful and stress free as possible...I won't give the exhaustive list unless someone is interested, but let's just say I'm home with the cats a lot, there are no kids - just the two cats that get along well, good quality diet - mainly wet (dry mostly for treats/games), plenty of toys, perching places, scratch posts, windows, walks outside, attention....and the list goes on. Plus we have Feliway plugged in, for almost two months, and a calming pill in the evenings.

About the FHS - for those of you who like puzzles. Last night when he had his "episode" it was two hours after eating, and while I was watching t.v in the bedroom. The 3 weeks we were away, there was no t.v or radio on the whole time. I think the house would have been very quiet. Well, he just had an "episode" once again, two hours after eating and on the bed with the t.v on. I'm guessing the sound of the t.v must stress him out. So I turned it off.

Thank you so much for all the info you have all provided. I'm very appreciative

Sara457 said:

 
What kind of medication does he take?

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Boo is on Gabapentin. It goes by the brand name of Neurotin for humans, and prescribed for things like fibromyalgia, etc. It addresses a possible neurological cause of Boo's FHS, but at the same time also helps with his generalized [nerve] pain, arthritis, and IVDD.

Mind you, I did try some other things before jumping into prescription meds, but they were not helping. And like you said, there came a point in which I just wanted my old boy (14 years old) to be happy and comfortable for the remainder of his years. My next step with Boo may be a consult with a TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) vet. The problem is, for a few of his symptoms, we don't know the cause and there is no official diagnosis, so that makes things more difficult.

Poor Boo, sounds like he's had quite a rough time. He's very lucky to have someone who loves him and helps him in so many ways to feel better. It's also good to know that there are alternative health treatments for cats.