Creature feature
My 7-year-old cat fell when he was jumping from the coffee table to the sofa and hit his head on the floor. Now he’s kind of wobbly and seems to have trouble getting his balance. The doctor says he’s OK and not in any pain. I’m still worried and want to know if he’ll get his balance back and if there’s any treatment.
Because adult cats normally have exceptional balance, the question to consider in a situation such as yours is of the chicken-and-egg variety: Did your cat’s fall cause a neurological problem or did a neurological or other health problem cause your cat to fall?
“This is something that’s important for cat owners to realize because it’s unusual for an adult cat to fall,” says veterinarian Louise Murray of the American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Murray is vice president of the society’s Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital in New York.
Finding out if there’s an underlying health issue that existed before your cat’s fall is the key to determining if he’ll fully recover and what treatment, if any, is necessary, she says.
In middle age, which Murray defines as age 7 and up, cats can develop high blood pressure, which could cause a stroke that might result in brain damage. But it’s also highly likely that a cat can recover from a stroke without any long-term problems — in other words, if a stroke led to your cat’s fall, then the resulting wobbliness and balance issues may be temporary.
However, if your cat has high blood pressure, then the condition needs to be treated or there could be more health problems. According to petmd.com, the primary cause for high blood pressure (or hypertension) in cats isn’t known, although there may be a genetic link. But 80 percent of feline hypertension is “secondary,” which means the cause might be kidney failure, hyperthyroidism or hormonal problems.
“If your cat has high blood pressure, you won’t notice until he has goes blind or has a stroke,” Murray says. “Your cat can’t tell you he has a headache.”
Your veterinarian should check your cat’s blood pressure at every exam; if you’re not sure he’s doing so, just ask. Also, consider taking your cat to a veterinary neurologist. A directory of veterinary specialists can be found at acvim.org, the website of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. You can search for specialists in fields such as neurology, oncology, cardiology and internal medicine.
Murray says other health problems may affect a cat’s balance, such as feline infectious peritonitis and feline immunodeficiency virus. In young cats, balance problems might result from the toxoplasmosis parasite and a fungal infection called cryptococcosis. But if your cat’s balance issues were caused by the fall, he may have suffered a brain injury that’s not detectable by an X-ray.
“The bottom line is you need to get your cat to a specialist right away,” she says.