Urgent! please help us find out what's wrong with our cats!

Please help us save our cats Anthi and Luther.

On Friday 19/02  they both began losing control of their legs. They wobbled at first and then staggered and now they can barely move them.

Anthi is a bit better and she can use the litter box on her own. Luther needs help to do anything.

They are on a cortisone based treatment but their doctor is not certain about what caused this or what is wrong exactly.

She has given us a time limit of around 10 days to start seeing improvement otherwise given their poor living conditions we’ll have to euthanize them. But we are not going to make any hasty decisions.

We are in the process of asking for 2nd  and 3rd  opinions from other doctors but no one seems to know what’s going on.

We are devastated but we’re still holding onto hope.

I'm going to write below their symptoms and perhaps you can help us.

Please take some time to read and see if you can help .

So here it is: 

- Both cats started losing control of their legs especially their hind legs at the same day with only a few minutes difference.

- They are not related.

- We have two more cats which are perfectly fine.

For that reason our doctor suspects the source of the problem is sth they ate together or sth that bit them both. She said it could be they ate pesticide while playing with leaves or maybe a reaction to chocolate/nuts or they were bit by a spider. So really we have no idea what caused this.

- There is pulse in their legs and we know they can feel them.

They also somewhat move them. Anthi pulls them away if I gently stretch them and they can both open their paws in a sort of half kneading manner. But they can’t walk.

- They have taken cortisone shots for 3-4 days. and now are taking cortisone based pills and vitamin B.

This is the medication they are currently taking. Medrol 4mg and neurobion every 12 hours and a multi vitamin paste whenever they want to.


-We live in Greece in an island near athens.

-Our grandparents have a dog in the yard we share bt the cats have no contact with it. Although windows get opened sth could have slipped in like a tick or sth. They also have another cat which eaves outside but it comes in the house sometimes.

-The cats don't go outside unless they run out a window but that hasn't happened for more than a month.

We appreciate any information you may have.

Thank you in advance!

-Stavroula Koilakou

@anthi-luther One of the things that would make sense for two cats is ingesting rat poison.  . Has the vet checked for that?

anthi-luther said:

Please help us save our cats Anthi and Luther....

For that reason our doctor suspects the source of the problem is sth they ate together or sth that bit them both. She said it could be they ate pesticide while playing with leaves or maybe a reaction to chocolate/nuts or they were bit by a spider. So really we have no idea what caused this....

Click to expand...

Is there any way to test for pesticide toxicity? Or even a spider bite? It kind of sounds like a poison of some kind but the only way to know is if there's a test for it.  I sure hope that whatever it is, they will come through this acute stage without any lasting damage!  

Thank you for your reply!

she hasn't actually checked for anything. She has judged from the symptoms that cortisone based medication is the way to go.

Perhaps there isn't a test or perhaps if there is  she doesn't know it.

I will tell her and also inform the other doctors we plan to visit this week.

as i said @mani i dont' know but i shall ask. the thing is that whatever it is we don't know if it treatable....

This is a link to information on rat poisoning.  It does sound similar, but you really need to talk to the vet about it.  Whatever it is could be treatable.

This happened to my friends dog last year. He had some kind of infection of the spine, not sure how he got it. He took a round of antibiotics to clear it up, but it is scary nonetheless.

How are the kitties? I hope all is ok 

Years ago, when I was a kid, one of my dogs got suddenly sick and the vet couldn't figure out what was causing it.  We almost lost him.

Turned out that a neighboring farmer put poison in his field to get rid of varmints that were eating his crops.  One of the rats that ate the poison in the farmer's field then wandered into our yard where the dog got hold of it, chewed on it and got poisoned.

Thankfully, we found out what the poison was and we saved the dog. 

It seems like too much of a coincidence for two cats to come down sick at exactly the same time.  They must have picked up some agent from the same source.  Due to the sudden onset of symptoms it seems unlikely that this is bacterial or viral in nature.  I'm guessing that the agent in question is likely to be a toxin rather than a biological agent.

I wonder whether the two cats got into the same source of poison at the same time.

Something I know about cats...  I have seen cats that hunt as a team.  They'll work together to corner a mouse or a rat or something then take turns pouncing on it until they kill it.

Since I almost lost a pet to a "vicarious poisoning" my mind goes back to that time.

Could it be possible that your cats cornered a mouse or a rat that had been dosed with poison?

Definitely check for any toxins. That would include plants in the house--some cats nibble on plants, some don't. 

I do hope your kitties feel better soon! Could they do a blood pannel to see if they got into something toxic? My best to you!!

A anthi-luther

I hope your kitties are on the mend! An update would be appreciated!

Here is some info I found on toxic plants they might have ingested.

Do you have any plants that are poisonous to cats around the house? Certain toxic plants can effect a cats's nervous system and cause "lack of coordination" (namely Crysanthemums).


Azaleas and Rhododendrons can cause severe neurological problems such as leg paralysis. Ingestion of these plants can also interfere with the functions of skeletal muscle, cardiac muscle and nerve function.

More info on the toxicity of Azelas and Rhododendrons:

http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control/toxic-and-non-toxic-plants/azalea


And here is a link to a site with a list of plants that are toxic to cats :

http://m.petmd.com/cat/emergency/poisoning-toxicity/e_ct_poisonous_plants

Hi anthi-luther,

I'm new here, I came to this forum for help. And I'd like to help others too.

I don't know what cause this for your cats, I just leave my opinion, I hope it may help you.

It sounds Guillan-Barre to me, human disease. And it's a sudden paralysis. Before that, you may have other problem like vomiting or stomach issue.

I don't know if it exist for cats. 

I hope your cats will be fine.

Yes please update!! We are VERY passionate about cats here and when we see a post such as yours and then nothing for some time, it's torture!! I pray these babies are better by now!! Sending healing energy their way

This time of year Lillie's are a big issue and they are so toxic that even the pollen falling off the stamen floating in the air can poison! I nearly found this out the hard way when my hubbs brought them home for Mothers Day. hno: