The spasm or abrupt contraction of muscles can also occur in cats, especially in older cats and manifesting as tremors derived from different causes, among which we can find changes in body temperature, diseases that cause epilepsy, changes in blood sugar levels, poisoning, pain, shock or feline hyperesthesia. Such is the variety of causes that cause spasms in your cat that in the presence of them you should go to a veterinary center to correctly diagnose the cause of the spasms and treat it to avoid or control them.
Continue reading this article on our site to learn more about spasms in older cats, their causes and what to do about them.
Feline hyperesthesia
Hyperesthesia is a disease that consists of an abnormal increased sensitivity of the skin, it is not a disease at all frequent and generally appears in older, more nervous, anxious or stressed cats of any breed, sex and age.
This is not a degenerative disease and much less fatal, but cats affected by hyperesthesia may show an excessive sensitivity to touch of any part of their spinal column when we caress them, manifesting as muscle spasms or undulations in the back with rapid and strong movements of the tail with dilated pupils, as well as showing a certain degree of hyperactivity, running, jumping, chasing the tail or objects of your imagination, and even get to self-harm.
Feline hyperesthesia can be caused by a problem at the level of electrical activity in the brain that controls predatory, emotional and grooming behavior together with muscular problems at the level of the spine that can contribute to the cause and the discomfort of the disease, although it has also been thought that it is a consequence of:
- Stress.
- Some obsessive-compulsive disorder.
- Related to feline epilepsy problems.
Treatment of feline hyperesthesia
Treatment of hyperesthesia in older cats should focus on reducing stressful stimuli that prevent the cat from calming down correctly, as well as change the environment to reduce anxiety by:
- The use of feline pheromones such as Feliway.
- Make more time each day to play with the affected cat.
- Put enough scratching posts and places for it to hide or climb to sheltered heights.
Seizures
Seizures or epilepsy in cats is a relatively common neurological problem in this species consisting of repeated convulsions or convulsive attacks periodically. These attacks occur when a neuronal group is suddenly activated, causing agitation and overexcitation of a muscle or muscle group specifically of the cat in the case of focal epilepsies, or of all its musculature, in generalized epilepsies.
Causes range from:
- An indeterminate origin.
- Diseases that damage the brain.
- Poisoning.
- Liver or kidney disease.
- Thiamine deficiency.
- Vascular causes.
When a cat is convulsing, it can have anything from simple spasms of short duration to sudden movements of its body lasting several minutes that can cause a increase in body temperature or hyperthermiavery dangerous for your little feline when the ten minutes are up.
Treatment of seizures in cats
The treatment of feline epilepsy in older cats is based on the use of drugs to reduce the intensity and frequency of the attacks epileptics such as phenobarbital. This drug can also help prevent severe seizures lasting more than ten minutes, but if they occur they are a matter of urgency, requiring the use of intravenous anticonvulsants or rectal diazepam.
Hypoglycemia
Your older cat may also have spasms as a result of a low sugar or glucosein his blood, which we call hypoglycemia. Glucose is the body's main energy substrate and food for the brain, therefore, when the amount of sugar is reduced, cats begin to have problems, losing consciousness, dizziness and trembling.
Causes range from:
- Inadequate control of diabetes in affected cats.
- Pancreatic tumor.
- Liver disease.
- Systemic infection.
- Intestinal malabsorption.
- Fast.
- Prolonged seizures.
- Excess carbohydrates in the diet.
In addition to tremors and twitching, cats with hypoglycemia may exhibit tachycardia, confusion, altered appetite, depression, blurred vision, heart palpitations, ataxia, weakness, and lethargy.
Feline hypoglycemia treatment
Hypoglycemia is treated by use of intravenous dextrose and you can also try applying honey to the rim of your mouth to help sugar is absorbed quickly. When hypoglycemia is a consequence of high doses of insulin in older diabetic cats, corticosteroids can be used to antagonize the action of insulin. In the event that it is caused by an organic disease, it must be treated.
Don't hesitate to take a look at the following article on our site about Hypoglycemia in cats, causes, symptoms and treatment.
Pain
Older cats can also have spasms secondary to painful processes such as arthritis, osteoarthritis or trauma that will make your cat more reluctant to move, tremble and change his mood. The pain can also be secondary to some organic disease which is not uncommon in older cats such as pancreatitis or digestive diseases, so think carefully if your cat may be suffering pain if lately:
- Hide more.
- Your behavior has changed.
- You have less vitality.
- Request less play or jump heights.
Feline Pain Treatment
Pain in cats is treated pharmacologically through the use of analgesic and/or anti-inflammatory drugs such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAIDs, and in the most severe cases, opioids such as buprenorphine or methadone, among others. Whenever the cause has a solution, the cat should be treated because it is not optimal for their he alth to take this type of treatment chronically.
Poisoning
If your older cat has been exposed to a toxic substance or has ingested a poisonous plant, drug or chemical product, he may have spasms as a result of the poison in question. Poisoning in cats can give rise to very different signs depending on the nature of the poison, but they usually produce:
- Digestive signs: with vomiting and diarrhea.
- Cardiorespiratory-nervous signs: such as tremors.
Deriving in a shock produced when the tissues collapse due to insufficient blood supply, older affected cats showing pale gums, cold limbs and altered heart rate.
Treatment of poisoning in cats
Depending on the poisoning in question, the specific antidote could be applied in some cases, but in most intoxicated older cats it is not possible and depending on the weatherthat has happened since the ingestion of the poison could be:
- Induce vomiting.
- Use adsorbent substances.
- Do gastric lavage.
In addition to using fluid support therapy, among other measures depending on the case in question.
Dermatitis
Sometimes our older cats can have skin problems or skin problems resulting from injuries and itching caused by external parasites such as fleas, lice, mites and ticks that induce cats to tremble or contract their muscles, producing spasms to counteract this action. Other older cats may suffer from skin diseases or infections that cause dermatitis and skin lesions that cause discomfort, increased scratching or grooming, restlessness, and twitching.
Feline dermatitis treatment
The treatment of skin inflammation in cats will depend on the cause that is producing it:
- If it is an external parasitosis: effective deworming pipettes should be used to kill these annoying organisms, as well as adopt preventive antiparasitic measures to avoid future parasitism.
- If the dermatological problem causing itching is a skin disease: this must be specifically diagnosed and treated by your veterinarian to prevent your senior cat from continuing to spasm.
Don't hesitate to take a look at the following article to read more about atopic dermatitis in cats: symptoms and treatment.
Hyperthermia
Our cats are comfortable at temperatures between 17 and 30 ºC, keeping their body temperature stable, cats with little hair keeping better with heat and those with long hair worse. However, with very high temperatures our cats can experience an increase in their body temperature above 39.2 ºC, which is known asheatstroke or hyperthermia that produces clinical signs such as:
- Twitching or shaking.
- Vomiting.
- Excessive panting.
- Altered cardiac gait.
- Lack of oxygen.
- Difficulty maintaining body posture.
Treatment of hyperthermia in older cats
When an older cat has hyperthermia they should be treated effectively seeking body cooling, being able to cool the cat by moistening rags and using fluids to hydrate and cool down internally your body. In some cases, additional drugs such as antiemetics, gastric protectors, among others, will be necessary. In the worst cases of shock, your cat will need to be hospitalized.
We leave you the following article on Heat stroke in cats: symptoms and first aid, below.
Hypothermia
On the contrary, our cats can also suffer spasms as a result of low external temperatures that reduce their body temperature below 35 ºC, causing serious damage to your body. In addition to spasms, hypothermic cats exhibit:
- Dry Skin.
- Lethargy.
- Slow breathing and heart rate.
- Awkward movements.
- Hypotension.
- Hypoglycemia.
- Lost look.
- Collapse.
- Multi-organ dysfunction.
- Fainting.
Feline hypothermia treatment
Feline hypothermia should be treated as soon as possible, in addition to preventing spasms in older cats, to avoid multiple organ failure caused by low body temperature. Treatment consists of increasing the cat's body temperature using electrical appliances, wrapping it in blankets, give enemas or warm fluids and increase glucose with medication if they have hypoglycemia.
