Amitriptyline for cats?

[toulousesmomma]

Hi all. If you go back and read my previous posts you will see that I have been having issues with my blind cat Luna. I have tried every calming product on the market, spent hundreds on a cat behavioralist, taken her to the vet multiple times and nothing has helped. My vet put her on gabapentin to help take the edge off which helps sometimes? But only while shes on it. And when shes on it she just seems very sleepy and just sleeps so… obviously shes not having issues when shes asleep. I keep her separate from my other cat at all times but even when they are in different rooms she sometimes is on edge.


This is an email i sent to my vet this morning explaining what happened today.
‘Luna’s behavior is very inconsistent. Some days she seems very docile and loving and then others she will be prone to hissing/growling at every sound or movement. I have continued to keep her and Toulouse separate but for example this morning after she had slept in the bed all night with us she suddenly started low growling and wouldnt stop. The only thing I did was change positions. I eventually put her off the bed and she walked around the floor. When I got up I pet her and she purred and rubbed against the wall but then hissed and growled and went into a corner and was cowering. Nothing at all was going on. My dog was downstairs and I was the only one in the room and I was just getting dressed. Normally she does not do this but some days she is extra sensitive and disturbed.

I have no explanation for why this might happen. My partner and I say its a ‘bad day’ for Luna when she is like this. And when shes acting normal its a ‘good day.’

Is it possible for her to have a mood disorder? Or, and this is an even crazier speculation, is it possible she could have some sort of brain damage from bumping her head so much. She has bonked her head on walls, tables, chairs, cabinets, ect many times due to her blindness. In times where she is especially frantic and upset she runs away from whatever she thinks is the threat and in her panic will run into something and the noise it makes sounds like it hurts really bad. I’ve thought about keeping a cone on her to prevent her from bumping into things but with her anxiety already being so bad I decided not to’

He hasnt responded yet but he said before if rhe gabapentin didnt work we could try amitriptyline or fluoxitine. I am extremely hesitant to put her on these. Does anyone have any experience putting their cat on these drugs?

it is very difficult for me to keep the cats apart because I have to lock them in one room. i have been switching them so neither one is locked up all day but both of them cry when they are in a room alone. baby gates dont work because luna will sit by them and hiss and growl if my other cat is on the other side of it. she also does this at closed doors. if she is free roaming and he is in a room meowing she will get distressed and hiss and growl at the door.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi there. I don't know anything about amitriptyline or fluoxetine. Both would appear to be a form of anti-depressant, and may be better suited to Luna's issues than Gabapentin, which is really a short-term anxiety and or pain med. But I do know that based on all of the health issues Toulouse has had, that could play a role. Not to mention all of the other changes that have gone on over the past year with moving, etc.

I read through your previous posts (no, not every word), and it would seem none of this was going on before Toulouse started having health issues - is that correct? Is Toulouse on routine meds? Cats can sense scent changes in other cats for all kinds of health reasons, and I suspect a blind cat might have an even keener sense of such. Nonetheless, it does seem she is on edge constantly, and given your circumstances you probably do need to try one or the other of these meds.

For what it is worth, I did a search on this site for other members who have dealt with both - you may have already done that?? Probably more information than you need, but there may be 'tidbits' of information you can glean from them until such time that other members see this thread and have advice to offer.
Search Results for Query: Amitriptyline | TheCatSite
Search Results for Query: fluoxetine | TheCatSite

 

[toulousesmomma]

Thanks so much for your input. Toulouse has had chronic urinary issues since he was four. He and Luna lived together for two years and there were no issues. It started after we moved And it is very inconsistent. I will try reading other people’s experience with the other meds and see what they say.

I used to work at an animal shelter and heard horror stories of animals on anti depressants. I’ve been told that anti depressants just sedate your pet and that it causes them to lose their personality and what not so I have been very scared to try it. Luna used to be the sweetest baby and the idea of her hissing or growling was unheard of and absurd but now its a miracle if we go a day without her hissing or cowering

 

[Mikado]

Hi all. If you go back and read my previous posts you will see that I have been having issues with my blind cat Luna. I have tried every calming product on the market, spent hundreds on a cat behavioralist, taken her to the vet multiple times and nothing has helped. My vet put her on gabapentin to help take the edge off which helps sometimes? But only while shes on it. And when shes on it she just seems very sleepy and just sleeps so… obviously shes not having issues when shes asleep. I keep her separate from my other cat at all times but even when they are in different rooms she sometimes is on edge.


This is an email i sent to my vet this morning explaining what happened today.
‘Luna’s behavior is very inconsistent. Some days she seems very docile and loving and then others she will be prone to hissing/growling at every sound or movement. I have continued to keep her and Toulouse separate but for example this morning after she had slept in the bed all night with us she suddenly started low growling and wouldnt stop. The only thing I did was change positions. I eventually put her off the bed and she walked around the floor. When I got up I pet her and she purred and rubbed against the wall but then hissed and growled and went into a corner and was cowering. Nothing at all was going on. My dog was downstairs and I was the only one in the room and I was just getting dressed. Normally she does not do this but some days she is extra sensitive and disturbed.

I have no explanation for why this might happen. My partner and I say its a ‘bad day’ for Luna when she is like this. And when shes acting normal its a ‘good day.’

Is it possible for her to have a mood disorder? Or, and this is an even crazier speculation, is it possible she could have some sort of brain damage from bumping her head so much. She has bonked her head on walls, tables, chairs, cabinets, ect many times due to her blindness. In times where she is especially frantic and upset she runs away from whatever she thinks is the threat and in her panic will run into something and the noise it makes sounds like it hurts really bad. I’ve thought about keeping a cone on her to prevent her from bumping into things but with her anxiety already being so bad I decided not to’

He hasnt responded yet but he said before if rhe gabapentin didnt work we could try amitriptyline or fluoxitine. I am extremely hesitant to put her on these. Does anyone have any experience putting their cat on these drugs?

it is very difficult for me to keep the cats apart because I have to lock them in one room. i have been switching them so neither one is locked up all day but both of them cry when they are in a room alone. baby gates dont work because luna will sit by them and hiss and growl if my other cat is on the other side of it. she also does this at closed doors. if she is free roaming and he is in a room meowing she will get distressed and hiss and growl at the door.

One of our cats is on ami

 

[Mikado]

One of our cats is on amytriptiline for aggression towards his sister - chasing and general harassing but not physical attacking. It has worked very well w/o changing other behaviour. However, he has redeveloped seizures that he had when he was a kitten as the amytriptiline lowers the barrier to seizures. We’re trying to find the cause for the seizures but it isn’t the medication. Hope this helps. Very low dose.

 

[toulousesmomma]

One of our cats is on amytriptiline for aggression towards his sister - chasing and general harassing but not physical attacking. It has worked very well w/o changing other behaviour. However, he has redeveloped seizures that he had when he was a kitten as the amytriptiline lowers the barrier to seizures. We’re trying to find the cause for the seizures but it isn’t the medication. Hope this helps. Very low dose.

thanks so much for sharing your experience. have you noticed any other side effects to the medication? is his behavior and mannerisms now on the meds similar to how he was before the aggression started?

 

[Mikado]

He is just a little less nervous (a plus) and other than that nothing obvious. Given we’re watching him carefully I’d say the amytriptiline has been beneficial for him. I hated it when I took it but it worked. Our vet is very cautious with medications but she thought this would be better than his previous behaviour - couldn’t tolerate change in the house, was peeing in strange places which was very unusual for him. And pouncing on his sister (smaller than him)