Tuesday, March 31, 2009

This is not good :(


My cat Miu-Miu had an episode of vestibular syndrome a few years ago.  At the onset of the episode, she was walking in circles.  In a few short hours, her hind legs were paralyzed and and she was unable to walk independently.  A trip to the vet (which I was convinced would be her last) gave us hope that she could recover.  I came to the understanding that she may or may not recover, and any improvement may not end up at 100%.  It took a few months for her to have satisfactory improvement.  For about two months, she would not come out.  All of her food and water was kept next to her and I had to rig a litterbox to look like a pontoon boat, with stabilizers on either side, so she wouldn't tip it over getting in.  Eventually, she began walking around again, like she's drunk, a typical symptom of vestibular disease.   Her capacity to jump is diminished, but she can still jump on a chair or the futon, just not the bed.  Miu-Miu is shy by nature, and spends a lot of time under the dining room table.  She comes out at night to cuddle on the futon and dig her claws into me, albeit, lovingly.  

Today I heard some banging from the kitchen and ran towards the noise, only to find her on her back, next to the wall, flailing around, seemingly trying to right herself.  I pulled her away from the wall, in the hopes that she would roll over by herself, but she continued to twitch.  I really thought she was having a seizure, and knew there was nothing I could do but wait it out.  After another minute,  she stopped twitching and began howling.  Now I'm stressed out.  I can't afford a  trip to the vet, after paying for the body work on my car.  She stopped meowing and at the moment is resting comfortably under the table.  I'm periodically checking to see if she is mobile, and hope that this is an isolated incident.  One good day is not worth a week of bad ones.

6 comments:

misplacedpom said...

Oh man, I hope she gets better soon but let me know if there is anything I can do to help if she does need to see the vet. I don't like thinking og poor little kitties in pain :(

miukat said...

Thank you so much! She's seems back to normal, as normal as she was before. She's funny like that. If someone walks by her, she runs under the table. She was able to jump on the futon and I'm just waiting to see how she is doing by tomorrow. I don't think it was a seizure. She didn't have the other symptoms like vomiting, foaming at the mouth and urinating/defecating during the episode, so I guess it was due to the vestibular issue she has.

Tawana said...

Ooh. I'm glad to hear she is doing better. When our kids are not feeling well. It always hurts the mommies more. :-)

Jody said...

Oh you poor dear...a car accident and your beautiful kitty. I am so sorry. I have two kitties that I luv more then anything and I know it's really hard when you don't have money to pay for huge vet bills. Some vets will do what they can to help anyway.

Anonymous said...

So sorry to hear about your kitty, I sure hope she recovers, I hate the whole not having enough money thing!

miukat said...

Thank you everyone for all your support. I did the math yesterday and estimate that Miu-Miu is conservatively pushing 14 years. (They weren't sure how old she was when I got her.) Whatever happens, she has had a good life and her quality of life remains good, so I am just here to ensure she remains happy and comfortable. She is back to status quo. The episode didn't seem to affect her at all after it was over, just a little scared. Hopefully, it is not something that will recur, though I feel that it probably will.

 
blog template by suckmylolly.com