Chewing after Seizures? :(

rogueangel

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Hi Ladies!

My oldest kitty, Rogue who is 3, I've noticed has been chewing on everything, metal, statues, cords, as if she was teething. I've only raelly noticed this since last week, she had a seizure for the first time and we took her to the vet (great thing that they can do NOTHING) and he checked her teeth as part of his checkup and said they're excellent. But I don't really recall the chewing before this. Any ideas as to what's causing it? Or what I can do for her?

Thanks
 
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rogueangel

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Well, it seems I was wrong. I came to this board for help because I was told it was full of people who are knowledgeable about cats, and I'd like to get proper help and guidance to take care of my important kittens, and yet it seems noone ever comments on my posts, possibly because I don't have 21308958 of them under my belt. That's very frustrating, and it seems a shame for people to comment on really nonsense topics around here but not topics when someone is asking for help/advice or something they need help with. Thanks everyone.
 

noni

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Originally Posted by RogueAngel

Well, it seems I was wrong. I came to this board for help because I was told it was full of people who are knowledgeable about cats, and I'd like to get proper help and guidance to take care of my important kittens, and yet it seems noone ever comments on my posts, possibly because I don't have 21308958 of them under my belt. That's very frustrating, and it seems a shame for people to comment on really nonsense topics around here but not topics when someone is asking for help/advice or something they need help with. Thanks everyone.
Hi, Angel.

I think sometimes we are as stumped as anyone about the symptoms, and don't have any answers. I know I don't have even a foggy clue about what's up with your furball. I don't think it's got much to do with your post numbers, just that people don't know how to help, or what to say. All I can do is let you know I hear you, loud and clear, and that I'm sending "vibes" out your direction. And I hope someone's seen this before.

I did have a random thought...perhaps, if she's chewing on metal, she has some sort of craving for that? I dunno...it's random, but have there been blood workups to see what the levels of everything is?

Other than that, vibing away for you, and hang in there.

Best-
Michele
 

darkeyedgirl

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Hi Angel,

Don't know if this will help but here goes:

I don't know about cats having seizures, but I do know about humans, because I am an Epileptic. I haven't had a seizure since 2000 (knock on wood) but after a seizure --- there is a very severe headache. Since seizures are generated in the brain, let me tell you, it is so dang painful after a seizure. The headache is phenomonal. Maybe the only way your cat can 'deal' with the pain is to try to chew on something???

You know, like when you yourself have a headache, it helps to push in your temples and sort of makes it feel better... counterpressure... like when you slam your thumb in the door, your first reaction is to put pressure on it.

If your cat has a headache after the seizures, maybe the only way she can relieve the headache pressure is to move her head around alot (i.e., chewing on hard things such as metal).

Just an idea. Sorry I can't be of more feline help in regard to seizures, but I know firsthand they are painful for days afterward. Ask the vet if maybe that is what's going on and if cats can be given pain meds for the after-effects of seizures.

Good Luck!

Stephanie
 

hissy

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Angel,

Your tone is not appreciated. I did not comment on your post because I have no experience with what you are describing. No one is ignoring you by any means. Would you rather someone posted a wrong diagnosis or a way to help you cope with this that caused harm to your cat? I have seen forums with so much misinformation on them it isn't funny.

It has nothing to do with how many posts someone has, and certainly the mindless posts are a lot more fun to answer than a more serious tone like your situation. I applaud our members who do not think they are know-it-alls. None of us are vets, we have a few vet techs on board, but they have busy busy lives and often don't come online till late at night. It is better you seek a professional feline specialist for your kitty. It could be possible that something that she has chewed in the past has led her to this seizure and type of reaction. But no one here should be where you should look first for something of this nature. If you go to www.meowhoo.com and look under health you will find feline specialists there and perhaps someone close enough you can seek their help?

In the meantime, you are welcome here as long as you understand that we are not vets, and if our members don't know, thankfully, they don't offer advice.
 

cirque

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Your first post says "Hi Ladies".. I am a man btw, plus I know nothing about the subject your posting about so I refrained from posting sooner but it has nothing to do with your post count. Welcome to TCS however and I wish you all the best in solving this issue.
 

turtlecat

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We all started out with a count of 0 here, and we all get help. Often it is a day or 2 before peole post, simply because they aren't aware of anything pertinent to add. I read this post yesterday, about a half an hour after you put it up, but as I had nothing to add, I thought I'd leave it to the professionals, or come home and see if maybe there was smoething that my healthy kitties did that was similar.

The only thing I can think of is the tin foil effect, where if you bite on a piece of foil, your mouth feels electrified (to me this feels bad) I don't know if maybe she's discharging?

See, I have nothing helpful to add here, or medically sound. I'm sorry if it seems like we're ignoring you, and it's not that, it's just that often we don't like to speak ignorantly about something so serious!
 

hissy

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A good point was just brought up aluminum foil is very toxic to cats. If you know she has chewed that, you should mention this to the feline specialist when you see one.
 
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rogueangel

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I am not trying to be mean to all of you, it's just very frustrating when you have problems with your cat who you care about very much, and aside from running to the vet every 2 minutes when something is wrong, you tend to reply on other people with cats and experience to help you out or give you advice, especially when it's hard to find info online on something that's kind of this non-specific. I was very worried about my cat, the vet said there's nothing they can do about the seizures, and then she starts the chewing and I was worried because I wasn't sure they could do anything for that either since the few I've seen seem to want to run really expensive tests and come back with no results. I come here because I have friends that would come here also for help and I was told this was a site full of people who care about cats as much as I do and are always willing to help, so I was frustrated when I post and noone responded in the least.
Its just very frustrating when I saw everyone else getting answers or suggestions on other things and my post had a lot of people reading and no reponses, and I couldn't find info online and I have limited people to turn to who have experience with cats.

So please don't take my post to be rude, I'm just really frustrated after seeing my cat having her seizure then wondering what's going on with her with pain and not being able to get help and then other weird things start happening and I just wanted some help from other cat owners.
 
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rogueangel

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And thank you for your posts, I guess I'm just grabbing at straws here and anything helps, even suggestions if they're incorrect, they're giving me something to search on online to see if it's related to her seizure, not that I would just try random things on her... you know what I mean. I'm just worried , it was so horrible seeing her when it happened, and so I'm overcompensating trying to make sure she's ok 24/7 and the biting worried me also because I don't want her teeth to crack or anything, that would open up a whole new set up problems for her I'd think...

Thanks everyone!!
(oh, and I didn't mean to assume it was all women on here - sorry!)
 
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Was your vet able to narrow down what caused the seizure? It concerns me that you say that he can't do anything. Seizures aren't a normal thing for any animal. It could have been poison, eating something that was toxic, a disease, or something biological. I've never known anyone personally who had a cat who have had seizures, but I was very good friends with a family who had an epileptic dog. With the dog, it was biological and was because of inbreeding. They were able to control her seizures with medication for years.

If it were me, I'd ask the vet about her having a lack of "something" that may have triggered the seizure, and is causing her to chew on other things. I've heard that when animals chew or lick or eat things they shouldn't - like paint, wood, or plastic - it's because they're lacking certian nutriants in their diets.

Here's two brief articles I found on Google:
http://www-2.cs.cmu.edu/People/lowek..._epilepsy.html
http://www.dagfinnur.is/efaqcat11.html

If the vet is still clueless and you don't feel comfortable with the way he's handling your cat's condition, you may want to consider getting a second opinion.
 

dr. doolittle

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Hi there! Welcome to TCS!

I am one of the techs Hissy mentioned and lately I have been working 12+ hours per day and volunteering for the SPCA and Humane Society on my days off. I haven't had much time for TCS lately and I am sorry for your frustration.

Pica- is the act of eating inappropriate things. Feces, metal, rocks..... all fall under this category. Chronic anemia can lead to this disorder and I have seen Auto Immune Hemolytic Anemia cats do this before (the cat I am reminded of used to lick the grout in the bathroom).

I am a little concerned that your vet says nothing can be done. I am not sure if he has run any bloodwork yet but this would be the first step. Once the problem is determined, there are many medications out there to control seizures. I hope you find a solution soon. Take care!
-Meghan
 

hissy

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Sent your post to an ER Vet Tech here is her response:

If the seizure was not severe, if it lasted less than 30 seconds to one minute, usually the attending vet will request the owner watch kitty for further signs of illness or another seizure....if another seizure occurs, the owner needs to get kitty back to the vet for a full blood profile and possibly neurological exam. Then phenobarbitol is usually prescribed to help control the seizures or reduce them. The goal with phenobarbitol treatment is to expect no more than one seizure in a three-month time period, or to expect them to cease altogether.

However, sometimes specific organ function needs to be carefully monitored in the event that the organ disfunction may be the cause.

The sudden chewing behavior could be a result of pending seizure activity, or possibly a neurological deficit, could also be a form of pica, in which the diet should be evaluated to ensure it is sufficient in nutrients and vitamins/minerals. Again, bloodwork would be helpful to determine if there is anything out of range with mineral deficiencies or organ disfunction.

The owner needs to attempt to cat-proof her home from the objects kitty is chewing on, and needs to cover/protect all electrical cords. There are "sleeves" available at hardware stores for cords, etc. She should also try to determine if any recent events or severe stressful situations have occured that may have led up to the seizure, anything unusual that occured directly before the seizure event.

Advise owner that if another seizure occurs, do NOT handle kitty, but to place pillows around her to protect kitty from harm during thrashing, etc....call ER vet immediately, and note how long the seizure lasts.

If the seizure lasts for more than one minute, ER hospitalization is necessary for sedation (usually valium) and further diagnostics (i.e., bloodwork, detecting sources of infection, viral, etc).

 
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