Took my cat to the vets this afternoon as he had a sore mouth, he had 10 teeth out in October and seemed to have recovered, but when his behaviour changed I guessed there was a problem with his mouth. The vet said his gums were sore and he may need to lose more teeth. He was given 2 injections, one a pain killer and the other to sort out the infection. About ten minutes ago he started fitting. I rang the vets who said either to bring him in or wait until he calms down and see how he is then. He's calm now and hiding behind the settee. I wondered if any of you had experience of cats fitting and what the result was. Do they recover? I have the choice of taking him to the emergency vet centre or waiting til the morning. He hates going into the cat carrier and the journey so I don't want to traumatize him unnecessary, and wonder exactly what the vet can actually do?

Some information.

http://www.cat-world.com.au/seizures-in-cats

Thanks for that.

Hi Daisy -
Is he eating normally or - because of his sore mouth - is he refusing food? Do you know if he's drinking? How long did the fit last? Perhaps your vet could do a blood test to see whether the sore mouth is not tooth-extraction related and there's some other problem which has provided the circumstances that caused the fit.

Bit of extra info here.

I would probably think along the following lines: if the fit had come out of nowhere, I'd probably take him in this evening. As it has come after a period when he may not have eaten much, has been stressed (vet visit) and has been given medication, I would probably now leave him overnight and see how he is in the morning.

Where does he usually sleep? Does he have a bed on the floor? In an ideal world, I'd leave him in his bed in a warm (not hot!) room over-night - with food and water - ideally where he won't climb on furniture and fall if he has another fit.

But, of course, I'm not a vet and I don't know your cat like you do.

Hope all goes well.

Could be something to do with his diet if he can no longer properly chew or if his diet has been changed because of his mouth problem. Depends on his age as well.

Also could be a reaction to one or both of the injections he was given or as mentioned by Normandie the underlying condition that is giving rise to the mouth sores.

Thanks for all replies, couldn't reply last night as he fell asleep on my lap and I couldn't reach the laptop. I spoke to the vet today and they reckon it had nothing to do with the medication but that there must be something else going on. I don't buy that, seems too much of a coincidence that he fitted after the visit to the vet and then being given the medication which was Convenia & Metacam. I have read some very disturbing reports from cat owners regarding Convenia, but as he has had it several times before without a bad reaction, I'm not sure what to think. The poor thing is still in pain as he yowls all the time. I can't give him his next dose of painkiller (Loxicom) until later this afternoon. Thankfully he seems to have recovered from the fit.
BTW he has been eating wet food as he was having difficulty eating his biscuits - which he prefers. But not eaten much today. I wish I could help him more.
He is 13 years old but has been quite fit until the problem with his teeth.

I've seen fitting coupled with yowling - in that particular instance, the cat had had a stroke. The vet thought - but it was only an opinion - that the cat wasn't in pain as much as in fear and confusion / memory damage caused by the stroke. I stress this was one incident and one vet. It's just that many animals frequently don't show an obvious reaction to pain - it makes them vulnerable so they hunker down and suffer. Hence, to me, persistent yowling may be a sign of something other than pain.

In view of the age of your cat, a stroke is a possibility.

When a friend's cat was hit by a car and broke leg and pelvis, on the way to the vet he simply - bizarrely to us - purred, which can be a normal reaction to trauma as well as contentment.

Did your vet do a blood test to see whether the cat is fighting an infection? I think, since it's Friday and vets are often unavailable / or locums over the w/e, I'd see take him back this afternoon and get the vet to consider a stroke but also, if no bloods were taken, he does a blood test.

Hope that helps and hope he improves.

After researching the drugs given to my cat I have come up with this info from 2 different sites. I have reported my findings to my vet and will see what they have to say. I am now afraid to give the pain killer Loxicom to him after reading this.

Do not use Metacam Oral Suspension in cats. Acute renal failure and death have been associated with the use of meloxicam in cats.

Do not use Loxicom Oral Suspension in cats. Acute renal failure and death have been associated with the use of meloxicam in cats.

Daisydee, short bursts of drugs like these in the correct dosage don't cause problems in the vast majority of cases unless there is an underlying problem that they may exacerbate.

There's another forum I use which is Archers (R4 soap) based on which there's a long-running cat thread with some very knowlegeable people who talk from knowledge and experience - you could ask for opinions there. You don't have to join to post, you can post as a guest. I've had help from them when various of my cats have been ill and generally I've got solid help and practical advice.

http://www.paranormal.org.uk/mustard...2939&start=680

You could just explain what's happened - cut and paste your posts from here would be fine and see if they have any suggestions and perhaps can calm your fears a little re the Metacam.

My sympathies are with you - I know how horrendously worrying it is and how helpless we feel - when something is wrong with our animals.

Different cats react differently to certain medications. My mother is allergic to aspirin and a few other things. Apparently a friend of one of my relatives had a cat that died after they put some de-fleaing agent on them. It was a supermarket product and they had to put liquid on the neck. Then later the cat fitted and died. Not sure what the product was called. But that was what I was told - then my relative got nervous about de-fleaing products.

Hi daisy - what is the cause of your cats mouth sores? Gum infections can cause toxins to enter the blood stream which can impair kidneys and the liver. If your cat has low liver or kidney function then additional problems can arise with regard to medication. All medication is eventually broken down in the liver or and excreted from the blood stream. If there is a problem with either the kidneys or the liver then all sorts of problems can arise. However a blood test should be able to pick these things up.

Another point with regard medication, formulations can vary, sometimes there are human mistakes - the wrong thing is accidentally given or to an incorrect strength.

I tried to respond earlier but my isp kept cutting me off so I gave up. I sent off an email to the vets with my concerns over the medication. The head vet rang me back and we spoke at some length, of course he denied there could have been any connection between the combination of medication and the seizure, but it seems to be too much of a coincidence to me. He has been yowling all day, but fell asleep on my lap, then he started twitching and i thought he was going to have another fit, but thankfully he didn't. He's sleeping now so at least he isn't in pain right now. I will just have to hope that each day he gets better.

My cat has been very quiet all yesterday evening and throught the night, he finally went for something to eat a few minutes ago, not very much, but at least he is out from under the settee. Unfortunately he is displaying the same behaviour that my 23 year old cat displayed after she had a seizure a few weeks ago - wandering around aimlessy, even going round in a circle. The 23 year old went into a coma 2 days later and had to be pts, but at 23 years old, she did really well as she was so healthy up to having the seizure. So I am preparing myself for things not getting any better.

I am very sorry to hear this.

He had another fit during the night, I can't see any way forward for him and feel I have to make the decision for him to be pts. What quality of life can he have? He was always going outside, but now he doesn't and just wanders around aimlessly wowing all the time. He's not the cat he used to be and I can't bear him suffering. Have others had cats that fitted but recovered?

Again, very sorry to hear you have to make a decision, its never easy, but as you say you have to think what is best for your cat.

I do have a dog that has fits, but its different, he has epilepsy for the last 4 years (started age 5 yrs). And between his fits he is his normal self.

Yes, this happens even with more popular brands like Advantage. My elderly cat had flea treatment every month all her life without any problems, although when i tried a different one, and I can';t remember the name of it, both my cats had a bad reaction to it. When my cat was 22 she had a really, really bad reaction to Advanrage, I thought she was going to die, it took her a long time to get over it. So I guess age has something to do with bad reactions too. She ceased having her annual booster and flea treaments and managed to get to the ripe old age of 23.

My boy had bad plaque on his teeth, when he went in for a descale end of October, they said he had to have 10 teeth out. He seemed to have got over this, but a few days ago I noticed he was under the weather and not eating, so took him to the vet where they said his gums were sore around the remainig teeth and they would probably have to come out, but in the meantime gave him an antibiotic and painkiller. Then the fits started,

Hi daisy, it seems to be serious, and warmth love care and painkillers may be the only path forward for your boy. Whatever it is, I think it is connected with whatever was the original cause of the mouth infection that resulted in him having ten of his teeth removed. It seems that this mouth infection has returned and is perhaps now more serious. It seems likely that the infection may have resulted in toxins entering the blood stream and weakening / impairing his organs. It is best to work with your Vets but to tell them your concerns, but it may be a question of managing the situation so that the pain he has is minimised.

ps How is he feeding? Are you giving him nutritious liquids or something?

pps: If he is in pain, locating the pain is important. It seems to be from his swollen gums? I assume he is not having any trouble passing water and waste?

Hi Daisy I hope things have improved with your lovely pussycat, not much more to add but I know how I would feel if it were any of mine, I have 4. 2 x 13 years old, 1 x 4 years old and a baby at 17 months.

Hope all turns out ok xx

Unless you are a vet, have full history past and current, and have seen Daisydee's cat, you really can't make those statements.

Daisydee, I'm so sorry to read that he isn't any better and had another seizure over the weekend. If you've not already done so, can you discuss with your vet what may be going on - has the vet done a blood test which will show any obvious liver / kidney function problems? He (your cat) has had several more days of antibiotics now... the vet should be able to say whether they're being successful in treating the assumed infection. Is your cat eating and drinking and - in view of his apparently confused state - is he managing to find and use his litter tray okay? These are all the things that matter.

If he's not eating or drinking much, he'll become dehydrated and that may increase his disorientation and problems. I'm guessing that if you've not been back to the vet over the weekend, you will do so today to discuss any progress and next steps.

As to your cat's quality of life, it doesn't sound good, especially if he is still very vocal (and wasn't previously) but getting answers to some of the above questions and talking to your vet is the best thing you can do. As owners, we're not clairvoyant and we can't always get it right in these circumstances, but our pets rely on us to speak up for them and to do our best to find the right course of action.

As far as cats coping with seizures, yes, I have a friend whose cat does have epilepsy - following a head injury in a traffic accident. She (the cat) can no longer go outside and they have a big, wired in pen with shrubs and shade for her, but she does cope well with it. She is on medication of some kind... every other day, I think.

But the key is having it properly diagnosed and only your vet can do that. By the sound of it, a watch and wait policy isn't working, you need to involve your vet as a matter or urgency. Book an appointment with a different one if you're not confident of the one you're currently seeing.

Best wishes to you. Horrible situation to be in.

My boy has now gone to pussycat heaven. He continued to deteriorate and today he was having trouble in his litter box, he was howling, so that was the deciding factor. I had already pretty much made my mind up over the weekend that he was not going to get any better, but seeing him completely disorientated as well, I rang the vet and took him over to have him pts.
How odd it is not having any cats in my house, there has always been at least one for the last 40 odd years and we had them in my childhood. But I'm not rushing into getting another one just yet, I need to be sad and get used to not having my lovely companions - how ironic that I should lose both my cats within weeks of each other after having had them for so long - My girl was 23 and my boy 13.

I don't think you are far wrong here actually, after reading something similar online in regard to gum/teeth infection.
Many thanks to all for your replies, concern and kind words.

daisydee, very sorry to hear your sad news.

Sorry to hear this Daisy. I come from a family that likes cats and it is always a little traumatic when they go to kittycat heaven.

How strange it is without any cats in the house, to feed, cuddle, empty litter tray, cuddle, stroke, talk silly to, play with, cuddle, feed, no purrs, no bellies to tickle,
I'm amazed at how much time I have now. Spring cleaning has started early.

I'm so sorry for the loss of your beloved kitty... (((((hug)))))