Hairball induced seizures!?

I cannot find anything similar about this anywhere on the web. My cat is just under 3 years old, he has been in pretty great health since I got him at around 7 weeks. Withing the past 5 months however he has had 3 seizures. I have noticed that he literally has NEVER puked. He never eats too fast and vomits and has never coughed up a hairball. That was until about late August.

He had his first seizure then, and it was immediately after he coughed up his first hairball. He really struggled with getting it out, I heard him trying to cough it up from the next room over and went in to see if I could help. As soon as he coughed it up he got extremely wide eyed and started full force just running around the room, knocking into stuff and just generally freaking out. After about 30 seconds of that he went into full body convulsion seizures, he was drooling and and convulsing. I had a dog that used to have seizures so I knew that all I could do was comfort him and protect him so I just pet him and such until he came to. The seizures that time lasted about 2 minutes max, when he came back he was super freaked out. Still super wide eyed and just looked around until he started meowing rather loudly. He does that if he is spooked and such so I expected that. I just kept calming him and he went on for about 10 minutes like that until I offered him some wet food and water which he ate pretty ferociously and calmed down after. I immediately called my vet and they told me that as long as it did not happen again anytime soon that I really should not be concerned about it and I really didn't have to take him in.

His second seizure was early December, this was extremely similar to the fist seizure but once he came to he didn't meow loudly at all but his back legs were extremely lethargic and limp. He had trouble walking around on them for a bit, again I fed him some wet food and he was fine about 10 minutes after that. I found his hairball and it was the same as before. Again I called my vet and made an appointment but I had to reschedule because of work and with the holidays coming up I have been waiting until after to get him in. 

Now his third seizure was last night , actually early morning (January 4th). I woke up at 4am because I heard him running around and crashing into the bed post I knew immediately what was happening. He started convulsing right in front of me so I tried to comfort him the best I could, the difference this time is that the seizure lasted longer it seems. I would say about 3-4 minutes. Then again I could of just been tired but it seemed super long. The other difference is when he came to, he just bounced right back. He saw me, nuzzled me. Kind of wandered into the closet and right back out. Happily jumped over some clothes I had left on the floor and came right back up to me rubbing up on my legs. I found the hairball right away, I fed him and he ate super ferociously this time. Right after he finished his wet food he went straight to his dry food, which he normally does not care much for. Especially after eating his wet food. After all that he was fine again.

Now me and my boyfriend both noticed that the past few days he has seemed down, I knew he wasn't feeling well but I thought he had an ear infection because he kept his ears tilted and would wiggle his head. I have another cat that is 16 and she has persistent ear infections so I treat her for them often, I was going to pick up some more ear meds when I went into the vet for him. I have not been home much but my boyfriend mentioned that he thought that my cat did not like the food I was feeding him because he would never eat it when he fed them. Now he has always been a picky-ish cat and would sometimes just not eat, but would come back later. I figured that was what he was doing. But now since he ate so ferociously after his seizure I am thinking that possibly these hairballs are blocking him up and he cannot eat because of them. Could that be possible? Has anyone had any experience with anything similar to this? I want to get as much information as I can before I bring him in so I can have the vet check up on EVERYTHING. 

Thank you in advance for any information!

Interesting question.  I've never heard of hairballs causing seizures, but it certainly sounds like it's happening here.  Seems like it's too "spot on" to be coincidence. 

Yes, a hairball can cause a blockage so they don't want to eat, but normally you will hear signs of them trying to hack it up for a long time before it comes to that.  Odd....just plan odd.

I can't really give you any information to pass on to your Vet.  Maybe someone else will happen along to offer you something. 

We do have lots of threads on how to help with hairballs in general, if that's helpful, although that's not what your looking for at this point.  when you're ready, though, we can help you there.

Please update us on what the Vet says

I'm wondering if the hairballs, if they are so hard to get out, are hitting a nerve (possibly the vagus nerve). Was just reading about a study they did with cats and prolonged VNS, and they mentioned compulsive eating as well. There is so much scientific speak that I don't understand so not sure what half of it is actually saying. 

Vagus nerve stimulation in humans can cause fainting, that I know. Seizures also can have very different pre- and post-ictal symptoms.

Thank you for the input, it definitely is too coincidental for it to not be related to the hairballs. Since he has never had a hairball besides these 3 incidences I never really had the forward drive for preventing them. I already started daily brushing and I will be doing about a weekly bath during the furrier months. He has been a little extra fluffy with the way the weather has been, super warm 60's one day and low 20's the next. I will be looking into other preventative measures as well Thank you again! His appointment is on the 14th, I will update when I get more information

Donutte said:

 
I'm wondering if the hairballs, if they are so hard to get out, are hitting a nerve (possibly the vagus nerve). Was just reading about a study they did with cats and prolonged VNS, and they mentioned compulsive eating as well. There is so much scientific speak that I don't understand so not sure what half of it is actually saying. 

Vagus nerve stimulation in humans can cause fainting, that I know. Seizures also can have very different pre- and post-ictal symptoms.

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I never thought of that! I have heard of the vagus nerve making people faint, I imagine it would cut off blood flow or such to the brain which could also cause a seizure. Thank you for that! I will definitely bring it up to the vet

I give all my furries Egg Yolk Lecithin every day, just as a precautionary measure against hairballs.  It seems to work very well, as this past year was a very bad year for hairballs according to many posters here on TCS, yet we didn't have any issues at our house. 

Callie eats Natures Plus EYL (about 1/2 capsule daily), plain.  I just squeeze it out of the capsule into her bowl before breakfast and she gobbles it up.  It's kind of like cooked egg yolk texture. 

The Boys get Swanson's EYL, which is very powdery.  I dissolve theirs in a tiny bit of water, along with their probiotic and mix it right into their food.  Again, 1/2 capsule daily. 

The brushing daily is always a good idea.  Depending on her hair length, Zoom Grooms work great on short haired cats.  Callie and Tinky have medium length fur, so we find that a comb actually works better than a brush, because it allows us to penetrate all the layers and get down to the skin. 

The food you feed can also have an effect on hairballs.  What are you feeding her?

ppaigeelaine said:

 
I never thought of that! I have heard of the vagus nerve making people faint, I imagine it would cut off blood flow or such to the brain which could also cause a seizure. Thank you for that! I will definitely bring it up to the vet

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You know, not really sure what the actual thing is that causes the fainting. I had vasovagal syncope due to an electrolyte imbalance once. Even the sight of blood can do it for some folks. It's not so much cutting off the blood flow, but it is reduced due to low blood pressure. I've never personally heard of it causing seizures, but never really looked up the feline response to VNS. The eating part I found rather interesting.

I know this is an old thread, but the same thing happened to my cat today. Did you ever find out more information about this? Is your cat on medication now; is the issue improved, resolved, or worsened?

I realize this thread is very old, but my 12 yo cat started having seizures in Jan. 2018 and it is always after about a week or two of struggling to cough up a hairball. However, it never happens while he is actively trying to cough something up. Has anyone had any luck figuring out a reason for their cats to be having this issue???? My vet is running blood work but no results yet. Next step will be an MRI if blood work isn't helpful.

Odo said:

I realize this thread is very old, but my 12 yo cat started having seizures in Jan. 2018 and it is always after about a week or two of struggling to cough up a hairball. However, it never happens while he is actively trying to cough something up. Has anyone had any luck figuring out a reason for their cats to be having this issue???? My vet is running blood work but no results yet. Next step will be an MRI if blood work isn't helpful.

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No experiences here but if you find out the cause, please update us as this is really kind of a different problem that I've never heard of.
When the thread was originally posted someone mentioned the vagus nerve which could probably trigger stuff. At 12, it sounds like you're doing the right stuff to find out what the actual cause is.
Please let us know what you find out.

I read that about the vagus nerve but I'm not sure if that applies if he wasn't trying to cough anything up at the time...?

When I get results I will post them anx my next move. Currently I was given a liquid hairball med to give him 2x daily until gone.

A little extra fyi: my cat did actually throw up after seizing today. But the seizures started when he was sleeping. The vet agrees it doesn't sound like a typical seizure bc he didn't lose focus on his surroundings or me.

When this happened in Jan. the seizures were not classified as "seizures" by my vet, just "episodes" due to lack of O2 to the brain from so much unproductive dry heaving. The vet gave an injection for hairballs that should have helped for 3-4 months. And everything was fine until now (the end of the 4th month) so I am hoping it is a hairball issue.

Odo said:

I read that about the vagus nerve but I'm not sure if that applies if he wasn't trying to cough anything up at the time...?

When I get results I will post them anx my next move. Currently I was given a liquid hairball med to give him 2x daily until gone.

A little extra fyi: my cat did actually throw up after seizing today. But the seizures started when he was sleeping. The vet agrees it doesn't sound like a typical seizure bc he didn't lose focus on his surroundings or me.

When this happened in Jan. the seizures were not classified as "seizures" by my vet, just "episodes" due to lack of O2 to the brain from so much unproductive dry heaving. The vet gave an injection for hairballs that should have helped for 3-4 months. And everything was fine until now (the end of the 4th month) so I am hoping it is a hairball issue.

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I am hoping it's a hairball issue, too.
If the current protocol does not help (which I'm hoping it does), an MRI might be a good thing.
If the cat didn't lose focus or didn't lose sight of surroundings, I wouldn't be opposed to this being classified as "a seizure" but the typical seizure seasoned pet owners have seen doesn't sound like this, for the most part. Mostly this is flailing, foaming, glassy-eyed stuff that freaks us out and the pet is not aware of what is going on until the seizure is over, they come out of it, and are "fine" again.
Seizures suck. The biggest thing to remember for any seizure victim is to resist that urge to grab them up, clamp them in our arms, and restrict movement. Don't keep your hands, arms, or face anywhere near their mouth. If their jaws are snapping, they may bite you without even realizing it. This isn't aggression of course, it's just jaws moving without knowledge. Keep yourself safe. Speak to them kindly, sooth them (and yourself) with an easy, kind voice. Clear the area of any objects that could possibly be knocked over by their movement (stuff on coffee or end tables, decorative statues they're near, potted plants, etc...basically if they're near it, move it out of the way) and allow their limbs free movement even thought it's upsetting to see. They'll come out of it.
One of our dogs had seizures terribly, grand mal, and one day this dog came out of a seizure slowly. The look this formerly easy going and loving girlie gave me was bone chilling; this dog was not a biter, not an aggressive animal at all, but between that experience of "not being here" vs. "being here" must have been odd. She gave me a cold eyed stare as she came out, and I wouldn't have put my hands on this dog for the world. After a moment, she "snapped out of it", her normal expression returned and she approached for a pat, a kiss and a "Good girl"...
As you've done and seen, seizures in a previously non-seizing animal require a vet visit ASAP. For those who are reading, perhaps I can help in saying.....seizures in a previously non-seizing animal require a vet visit ASAP.
Seizures are scary, and they suck.
Keep in touch Odo .
ETA We had a very old, very sick dog one day fall into seizures. His age, and health status brought us to the vet and he was indeed dying. This was not a fun experience, this pup was OLD and sick and nothing could help him but the seizure could only be dealt with by moving things away to avoid anything being kicked/knocked onto him, speaking soothingly, and stroking him from the shoulders down gently.
(Also, this isn't to say a random seizure = death, but when a random seizure strikes I cannot express how important it is to stay calm, stay smooth, and call your vet!)

Blood work came back normal except low platelets. Their plan is to do more blood work in 7-10 days to see if it corrects itself. Idk how it would correct itself. I just found out and I am just about to google everything I can about this issue.

The message from the vet said it could cause clotting issues, which I already knew about, but it is unclear to me if it could cause seizures and if it would correct itself.

Any info on low platelets in cats would be appreciated. I will be searching archives on this site too.

Very strange. I wonder if the platelet count = clotting issues = a seizure?

My guy had low platelets when he went in for his dental. Of course, I was in a panic, and our Vet said it's very common when cats are stressed, and so I stopped worrying about it. Of course, I don't know HOW low your little ones platelets are compared to the norm, and I can't remember how low my guys were compared to the norm, so probably not much help.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I haven't seen the results, they vet left me a voicemail. Hopefully, this is an easy fix.

This is my little guy pleading for his second helping of dinner. He seems to be feeling much better

What a cutie

New blood work shows an increased platelet count. Went from 50,000 to 100,000. However, normal range begins at 155,000 so they said give it 4 more weeks to see if it corrects itself.
No more seizures and the hairball med seemed to help him pass hairballs according to what I find in his litter box. But he is getting little bumps on his nose after being out in the sun. So there's that . It's always something with him lately.
I will post results from next round of blood work. So far they are holding off on the MRI which is good news bc I can't afford it anyway.
Once he's count is higher I will advocate for more blood work to check for other things that could cause seizures that can't be found on an MRI. Like a virus. With blood clotting being an issue they don't want to take blood if they don't have to.
I hope these posts eventually help someone else in my position.