Gollum Suddenly Dropping to the Ground.... Ataxia??

[gollumthesphynx]

Hi everyone,

Hope all is well

I was wondering if anyone can provide me some support and help?
Gollum has been experiencing quick, sudden drops to the ground. Usually, his back legs are more impacted than his front legs. He would just be stretching and then sudden drop, kind of in a peeing position.

He's eating well, peeing, pooping, playing, walking, running, sleeping, is otherwise healthy. The only thing I can find online is Ataxia.

We called the vet and are scheduled to see him in a few weeks.

Thank you in advance, everyone. This community has provided me unbelievable support and Gollum and I extremely grateful ❤️

**Please note I had recently attempted to switch Gollum to a raw diet (3-4 days), he didn’t love it and was always hungry and constipated, so I’m switching/transitioning back to Farmina N&D formula.

 

[Catzzzmeow]

Don’t recall...has your baby had a recent heart scan? If not, I would get one as soon as possible. A few weeks until an appointment is a long time. If you can video tape and share with your vet it will help,as well. Positive vibes are sent...please continue to update us.

 

[gollumthesphynx]

@Catzzzmeow he did! Things are in the grey area for him at the moment, in terms of pace of progress towards HCM. but for now, he's healthy and in good shape.

that's what i said as well, i may go to another vet in the meantime because the wait time is too long. unfortunately, it's difficult to record because it happens so suddenly and not often.

thank you @Catzzzmeow <3

 

[Yoda mom]

@gollumthesphynx hugs. n head smooches. do you have a video to share,? do extremities feel cold to touch, ? any rear leg like paralysis vocalization, loss of bowels? pee? ( if so, can be a sign of a clot, contact vet asap. not to alarm but wanted to share because I never knew of and just something to be aware of.

my girl had a few clot episodes and then would get back up like nothing nothing happened. episodes were over by the time I got to the vet.
my vet gave me protocol to follow if they reoccurred. may not be related but with any collapsing something to ask vet to rule out if there are any signs I shared..

please keep us updated.

 

[gollumthesphynx]

@Yoda mom, none of the above, luckily. Thank you for sharing your experience! I'll definitely keep an eye of this in the future.
He has a bit of constipation from transitioning to the raw, but finally pooped a bit today hehe.

Hoping to have an emergency visit early next week.

Thanks again for holding space for this and responding <3

 

[Yoda mom]

@gollumthesphynx hugs n positive vibe head smooches! all paws are family! please keep us updated often.

 

[pussiette]

@gollumthesphynx please see if you can see a vet in the next day or so a few weeks until an appointment is a long time and these guys are so sensitive.

I am sorry Paige that he has alot going on right now.

 

[gollumthesphynx]

@pussiette thank you for your kind words and support!!

i think it’s time for us to find him a new vet. i’m going to do my best to get him a visit this week. hopefully by the end of this week.
as for now, we’re transitioning him back to his favourite kibble and he’s happy sunbathing and playing with his bird toy haha.

i just want to keep reminding myself that i need to remain strong and positive for him. i feel so emotionally drained from constant stress and worry for his health, when there’s not more for me to do other than give him the best care and love. he is also displaying healthy behaviour, so maybe i shouldn’t be so hard on myself.

 

[Catzzzmeow]

@pussiette thank you for your kind words and support!!

i think it’s time for us to find him a new vet. i’m going to do my best to get him a visit this week. hopefully by the end of this week.
as for now, we’re transitioning him back to his favourite kibble and he’s happy sunbathing and playing with his bird toy haha.

i just want to keep reminding myself that i need to remain strong and positive for him. i feel so emotionally drained from constant stress and worry for his health, when there’s not more for me to do other than give him the best care and love. he is also displaying healthy behaviour, so maybe i shouldn’t be so hard on myself.

Glad you are trusting your gut and getting another opinion. In the meantime be sure to jot down notes about the incidents like length of them, how often etc. I know people can get stressed at appointments can forget information.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Sheldon13]

@pussiette thank you for your kind words and support!!

i think it’s time for us to find him a new vet. i’m going to do my best to get him a visit this week. hopefully by the end of this week.
as for now, we’re transitioning him back to his favourite kibble and he’s happy sunbathing and playing with his bird toy haha.

i just want to keep reminding myself that i need to remain strong and positive for him. i feel so emotionally drained from constant stress and worry for his health, when there’s not more for me to do other than give him the best care and love. he is also displaying healthy behaviour, so maybe i shouldn’t be so hard on myself.

I highly recommend you call your vet in the morning and ask for a referral to a cardiologist. When this was happening to my previous kitty, it was all heart related and the Cardiologist said it was a fairly emergent thing. I had her in the Cardiologist office in less than a week and she was put on meds to help prevent clot formations. If it is heart related for your baby, then clots are what is causing this and it can develop into a much more serious thing if not treated.


Love and Sphynx ~ It’s all you need

 

[pussiette]

@gollumthesphynx its so hard keep finding answers time is against us on these battles. We are here here for you.

 

[Yoda mom]

@gollumthesphynx , hello, thinking of you and your baby, checking in for updates. hugs n head smooches

 

[gollumthesphynx]

Hi @Yoda mom ! Thanks so much for checking in.
I officially transitioned him back to his N&D Farmina Formula/diet, so he's pooping more regularly/normal now!
But everything appears to be better??

We still have an appointment with the vet this week!

I'll definitely keep you and the community updated with any news.

Thank you <3

 

[Condo commando]

I'm sorry raw food didn't work out. Just in case I want to add that cats don't poop as much when they eat raw food. This is from Dr. Lisa Pierson's web site catinfo.org just FYI.

"Many people write to me stating that their cat is “constipated” simply because they are not passing feces every day. However, this is not necessarily a sign of constipation. Cats on a low residue (low fiber/low waste/highly digestible) diet will often not pass stool every day.

There is very little non-digestible matter contained in this diet. Therefore, the volume of feces will often be much less when compared to cats on high fiber or poorly digestible diets."

She goes on after that with signs to look for. Just google on catinfo.org to read more.

 

[gollumthesphynx]

Hi Everyone!

I apologize for the delay in responding.
I was finally able to take Gollum to the vet and the sudden "collapse" he's experiencing is possibly due to a lower spinal disc/nerve damage. We're doing an x-ray in 2 weeks to confirm. Vet says the only treatment really is rest and no high-impact jumps as well as an anti-inflammatory medication.

Does anyone have any perspective on this?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Sheldon13]

I don’t have experience with that, but did they say why they think there may be damage?

Additionally, do you have a neurologist near? They would be best to treat nerve damage. If I had to guess, the best treatment for symptoms might be addition of Gabapentin or something similar.


Love and Sphynx ~ It’s all you need

 

[gollumthesphynx]

@Sheldon13 they think that he could be predisposed to this, but that because of the position he's put in for the ultrasound, it prompted it. he had an ultrasound earlier this month, and these sudden falls happened right after the appointment.

thanks for sharing. we are scheduling an MRI with a neuro after we get the Xrays done.

 

[Condo commando]

No high impact jumps is easier said than done. I had a cat that had stitches and I was told to keep her from jumping so one thing I did was I slept on the living room sofa which was low. Shoot even now I have a footstool next to the bed for them and my oldest Sphynx uses it all the time.

 

[Sheldon13]

Me too! I left the steps up from Ellie and both young cats still use them.


Love and Sphynx ~ It’s all you need

 

[pussiette]

My girl had this but nothing significant appeared on the scan. It resolved in time with care and rest including hospital.

 

[pussiette]

I also put cardboard cat scratchers that were like a little step for her near the bed etc to help