Wobbly Cat

Crumbs (the cat in my icon) has been somewhat unsteady on her feet since yesterday, and I'm not sure why. She keeps almost losing her footing, sometimes actually falling over, although  she gets right back up and continues on her way. She seems normal in every other way. Does anyone know what could cause this, and whether it warrants a vet visit?

Background: she is 17 and has kidney disease, but at the moment she isn't showing any of the usual kidney related symptoms. She's eating well, not vomiting, is fairly well hydrated because I give her sub-q fluids every day or two. She has no other health problems. I prefer to avoid taking her to the vet unless it's absolutely necessary because it stresses her out so much it takes her days to recover, and she's already weak.

I would recommend a vet visit especially if she has CKD. There are a number of complications that come with CKD that can cause hind leg weakness and most are pretty easily manageable. The biggest thing that comes to mind is low potassium which my kidney cat had and we corrected it with supplements. Warning though, don't just assume it's that and treat with potassium supplements because some CKD cats have the opposite problem of high potassium which is much more dangerous. Also high phosphorus can cause weakness which almost all CKD cats eventually develop even on the prescription diet. This you would treat with phosphorus binders mixed in the food. Also anemia can cause weakness but if she's eating well I would think anemias unlikely. I think high calcium also causes weakness which can also be treated. The key to keeping our CKD cats around as long as possible is to treat each new complication that occurs quickly to prevent further progression of the disease.

Are you familiar with how your vet handles phone calls?  I know when I was caring for my CKD cat I could call in and the vet would call me back a few hours later.  Although I'm sure some practices differ in this, my particular vet considered the phone calls a part of handling the various cat illnesses (he only sees cats) and it wasn't any additional charge over and above the various office visits and other things I bought from him during the CKD time. I can understand trying to limit the vet visits because of stress, but I do think you want to have the vet input as far as what sorts of complications there could be and what actions to take.  Some vets may be quick with an answer and suggestion upon hearing the symptoms, so definitely at least call them.

I have to think that eating well is usually a good sign.  CKD for me was so full of times of my cat not eating well that if the cat feels well enough to eat then it leads me to believe the problem is not a severe one.  But it is important to catch all the things given that so many things can be complications of the CKD.  Try to get your vet's input by phone; if they insist upon a visit, it may be for good reason in this specific case.