Feline Hyperethesia Syndrome

[tcsrah]

Hello. I have a 8 year old female Persian we call Lolly. We adapted her from a breeder and have had medical issues with her that included muscle spasams in the low back, attacking her tail, severe over grooming on her mid back right down through the skin, and scratching leaving scabs. We have used three different shampoos on her, the most recent being the Davis Ketohexidyne shampoo which worked the best leaving her coat less dry with more shine, it seemed to work well for months but now the scabs from scratching are coming back.
As far as behavior, Lolly will often sit and watch her tail twitch and then her back muscles start to spasm and run off like she is being chased sometimes running into things. The frequency of these episodes seems to be increasing.
We had been told before we received Lolly that she had damaged her tail after she attacked it when the breeder had her spayed. She woke up from the anesthesia and attacked her tail almost biting part of it off requiring stitches from what we were told. After talking with the breeder about a year or so later we found out that part of her tail actually had to be amputated.
I plan on taking Lolly to a Pet Chiropractor that treated a Basset Hound we had for spinal problems to se if a chiropractic adjustment will help.
I have read a lot about Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome (FHS) and Lolly's behavior fits the symptoms of FHS to a Tee. If damaged nerves are causing irritation in her tail and triggering the problem I am considering the possibility of having the rest of Lolly's tail amputated. Any thoughts you may have on this would be appreciated. She is a little sweetie.

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• tcsrah
• Feb 14, 2017

 

[mollyblue]

I am by no means experienced in matters such as these... so this is just an out of the blue well my thoughts are post. Well, first, Lolly is just adorable.

Just a thought, Amputees can have phantom pain even after a limb is amputated. It can itch/hurt just like the limb were still there, even though the limb is gone... not sure if that is true in cats but certainly worth considering.  

Puffy cat has dermatitis, which is a different issue, but she also over grooms and pulls her hair out in tufts, and then walks around with tufts of fur in her mouth like little security blankets.  We have to be careful what food we feed Puffy because certain foods will make her itchier than others.  At one point she was getting cortisone shots to control the itch and I thought that was helping.  As it turns out, at the time we also had her on Max Cat wet food, which she seemed to do well on- but which we phased out in favor of the more affordable fancy feast.  She got better for a while, but after a year or so the fancy feast was making her throw up several times a week, or she wouldn't eat it very well so I decided to give the Max Cat another try.  After two cans of Max Cat the base of her tail was chewed raw again.  Its just such a struggle trying to figure out what to feed her... she doesn't like raw, one kind makes her throw up, one kind makes her itch, one kind she won't touch... and just when we think we have it worked out, we have to start all over again. 

 

[Geoffrey]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tcsrah  


I plan on taking Lolly to a Pet Chiropractor that treated a Basset Hound we had for spinal problems to se if a chiropractic adjustment will help.
I have read a lot about Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome (FHS) and Lolly's behavior fits the symptoms of FHS to a Tee. If damaged nerves are causing irritation in her tail and triggering the problem I am considering the possibility of having the rest of Lolly's tail amputated. Any thoughts you may have on this would be appreciated. She is a little sweetie.

I am a human doctor, not a vet and any advice that I give you should be checked by a veterinarian.  Having written this, I have two points that, with all respect, I must give to you, based on my many years of clinical experience.

1.  Do NOT take Lolly to anybody but a qualified veterinarian, it may even be illegal depending on where you live.  In particular do NOT consult a chiropractor as there have been a number of well conducted clinical trials that have disproved chiropraxis as a therapeutic procedure, in fact "chiropraxis" can be very dangerous to Lolly's delicate bones.  (They are much more delicate than a Basset-Hound's) 

I have seen prolonged nerve-root pain in a human following spine manipulation by a chiropractor - and Lolly has enough symptoms already without exposing her to more.   Apart from  the dangers of  "spinal manipulation", that I can professionally advise you are very real, there is no way that chiropraxis can possibly help Lolly's symptoms.

2. Do NOT try to diagnose Lolly from the internet.  You may be correct, but you may well not be - and Lolly will suffer.  Feline hyper-aesthesia has a number of characteristic signs that should only be diagnosed by somebody who has had clinical experience of them.   Lolly's symptoms are such that you should take her only to a vet to obtain a proper diagnosis and advice on treatment. 

I also agree entirely with @MollyBluethat phantom limb problems are such that amputation may not cure her pains and leave her no better off. 

I have seen many human patients who suffered from phantom pains, they at least can complain about them, but Lolly cannot.

With all best wishes to you and to your very beautiful cat,

Geoffrey

 

[JMJimmy]

There is not enough known about FHS to even remotely consider an amputation.  FHS is so poorly understood right now and I've been unable to find any serious/reputable research occurring in this area. 

The best solution for an FHS cat is to lower its stress levels.  Our Mama went from up to 6 attacks a day to 1 a week at most just by lowering his stress levels.  FHS appears to be a neurological disorder  not anything to do with damaged nerves.

 

[tcsrah]

Thank you for your reply. I know what you are going through. We use Fromm dried cat food. The Gamebird flavor is supposed to be good for cats with allergies. I have learned a lot more then I used to know when looking for a good cat food. The more meat listed in the first frew items on the description the better. Lolly also likes eating raw meat but not from a can. She likes plain white chicken breast that we buy at the grocery store but if you open a can of chicken cat food she will almost always take a sniff and walk away. I also found out the other night that she likes Arby's roast beef so I am going to try feeding her fresh cooked beef as a alternative to chicken. We have had her to several Vets that say it may be a food allergy. We have bathed her with anti fungal shampoos and have found the Davis Ketohexidyne to seem to work the best. Her fur seemed softer, shinier, and more full then it had been when using the Universal medicated shampoo. We have two other Persians that have shown no sign of dermatitis and neither have my wife and I. She was treated for Dermatitis almost two years ago after being exposed to a kitten that had ringworm. As I mentioned, her behavior of back muscle spasams, looking at her twitching tail before taking off llike a steak, the scratching and biting sure points to FHS. Good luck.

 

[tcsrah]

I respect your opinion but defend my idea of considering a Pet Chiropractor for Lolly because I have witnessed first hand seeing our Basset Hound go from a nervous, painful, panting state to a relaxed state almost instantly after a chiropractic adjustment. This Chiropractor who I only know by her first name Patty visits a number of East Central Wisconsin vet clinics on a weekly basis. She even came to my son's house toward the end when. Sophie was too unstable to ride in the car. I am estimating that she prolonged Sophie's life by about two years often going months without a adjustment when all the vet clinics could over was pain meds. Cats may be more fragile then a dog but I know this person and would trust her with any pet. I have been treated by a Chiropractor for years and am happy to say that I go a lot less after finding the right Chiropractor. I know or should I say feel that Chiropractors as far back as I remember have always been treated as a step below a medical doctor by the medical profession but as a back pain survivor with no history of back surgery I totally disagree. .

 

[JMJimmy]

Chiropractor's are great for relieving immediate pain but they never treat the underlying issue so days later it comes right back and in the long run can actually cause more damage.  It's like if you have pain in your knuckles - it feels good in the moment to crack them but long term it weakens the ligaments, compromises grip strength, results in arthritis, and pain.  In reality you may need interstitial fluid drained and a ligament repair to permanently clear up the issue.

FHS the underlying issue isn't known - theories from epilepsy to a virus to genetic disorders have been floated but the data isn't there.  What is known is stress management lessens the intensity and frequency of FHS attacks.  Lugging your pet off to a chiro is the opposite of that.

 

[tcsrah]

Ok, I did not plan on this being a discussion about chiropractic but I am a person who in my thirties really wondered what the rest of my life would be like with the constant back issues I was having. Add age 58 I have no issues. The first Chiropractor had me coming and going. The second had me come back when I needed which I am happy to say is not very often and I am a truck driver. Chiropratic in my experience does not give you immediate pain relief but will give you a quicker healing of a minor to intermediate back problem with out meds or surgery. If I were to give two tips to stay away from either one of them it would be to always use good posture and don't do stupid stuff if you can avoid it.

 

[tcsrah]

Ok, I did not plan on this being a discussion about chiropractic but I am a person who in my thirties really wondered what the rest of my life would be like with the constant back issues I was having. Add age 58 I have no issues. The first Chiropractor had me coming and going. The second had me come back when I needed which I am happy to say is not very often and I am a truck driver. Chiropratic in my experience does not give you immediate pain relief but will give you a quicker healing of a minor to intermediate back problem with out meds or surgery. If I were to give two tips to stay away from either one of them it would be to always use good posture and don't do stupid stuff if you can avoid it.

Ok, I apologize. It did seem to relieve pain immediately for my dog but I was speaking as a human. You often still leave the office said and soar but recovery is shorter as long as you give it a little time off.

 

[Geoffrey]

I respect your opinion but defend my idea of considering a Pet Chiropractor for Lolly because I have witnessed first hand seeing our Basset Hound go from a nervous, painful, panting state to a relaxed state almost instantly after a chiropractic adjustment. This Chiropractor who I only know by her first name Patty visits a number of East Central Wisconsin vet clinics on a weekly basis. She even came to my son's house toward the end when. Sophie was too unstable to ride in the car. I am estimating that she prolonged Sophie's life by about two years often going months without a adjustment when all the vet clinics could over was pain meds. Cats may be more fragile then a dog but I know this person and would trust her with any pet. I have been treated by a Chiropractor for years and am happy to say that I go a lot less after finding the right Chiropractor. I know or should I say feel that Chiropractors as far back as I remember have always been treated as a step below a medical doctor by the medical profession but as a back pain survivor with no history of back surgery I totally disagree. .

You are, of course, entitled to your views.  I was only giving you my opinion, based on many years professional experience.

Keep well, and look after Lolly,

With kindest regards,

Geoffrey

 

[ifsogirl]

Hi there! I have two cats one with FHS and one with flea allergies. Here's their treatment regimine and hopefully it will help you too! Meakha Blu takes 50mg of gabapentin for FHS every 8 hours. I have the powder capsules and mix the meds in a small amount of tuna water. She loves it and is almost symptom free. Sheba has flea allergies and if she even gets one flea bite it triger an ongoing reaction, she licks her fur off and scratches herself till she blleds, the would when healing are itching so she licks and scratches more. a catch 22. She gets a shot of long acting prednisone when she has an allergic reaction and that stops it in its tracks so she can heal up and be itch free again. But remember, even if you treat consistantly for fleas, we humans can bring a few in on our clothes or shoes and all it takes is one bite for a kitty with allergies.

it sounds like your kitty may have both issues. Definately take kitty to the vet to be properly diagnosed before starting any treatment good luck and best wishes love!