My middle aged cat goes limping for a few days every few months - Is this normal?

[traveil]

My cute little stray tortie which is like estimated 7 years old when I adopted so she should be about 11Y.O this year periodically goes limping for a few days every few months. At first I got so worried that I sent her to vet immediately so they did Xray for her which is super expensive. The result came out was that she has a small strange circle at her shoulder joint which might be causing her to limp so they just gave me some meds and told me it’s due to her old age (arthritis) and mentioned to give her a follow up xray on that circle shown after a few months. Following the vets advice, I bought fish oil pills to eat every morning but she hates it and hoped these will help to strengthen her bones. I have also restricted her access to high places for that few days and slowly she didn’t show signs of limping and went back to normal. Fast forward to another few months later, same thing happened again, I panicked and off the vet she goes… Oh, and the issue with that strange small circle was never found, vet told us it wasn’t growing bigger or smaller and told us to observe her if anything happens and also maintain her weight as it is so that she won’t pressurise her joints when jumping from high places.

Funny thing is, today when she goes limping again I finally realised oh yeah my cute little cat has this ritual every few months which made me broke. I do not mind spending on supplements and vet visits but I just want to know if this is normal for old cats to go limping before I jump to the vet again? I just want her to live a long happy life indoors and not me being constantly worried every few months. I do understand she’s an old cat and might have issues any moment so I do want to prevent her from any future diseases/sickness. Should I buy her other supplements besides fish oil?

- From a very concerned pawrent

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. If she goes outside at all, that just increases the odds of her jumping or getting into things that could irritate any arthritis she has. I don't quite understand why the vet can't decipher what this 'circle' is on her x-rays, so perhaps it relates to an old injury that has caused scar tissue or a weakened area within the ligaments/muscles - which could be exacerbated by certain activities. Did the vet say they saw signs of arthritis elsewhere in the x-rays?

As far as joint supplements, you might want to try Cosequin or Dasuquin, both of which come in capsules or chews. The capsules contain powder that can be mixed with her food. The chews could serve as a daily treat. There is also a supplement that I gave my cat for over 3 years before she decided she didn't like them anymore - Glyco Flex Plus. They are big chews that you can cut up into 4-5 pieces and give as treats. I think they helped my cat, who does have arthritis, and would still have her eating them today if she would.