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Little fits



 
 
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  #1  
Old December 12th 04, 03:24 PM
Mary
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Default Little fits

My ten-year-old, very overweight female spayed cat began having little fits
last August. She had recently been diagnosed with hyperthyroid and put on
Tapazole, for what that is worth. (Yes, that's right, hyPER, and she is fat.
They said it happens sometimes.) At the time she was put on the Tapazole her
heart rate was in excess of 300 bpm--the first sign we had of her
hyperthyroid.

The fits are strange--she usually kind of leans to one side and feels around
with her front paws, with her head down and her eyes closed. This morning
she lifted one paw and waved it around, but she was out of it, e.g. does not
respond to us. The vet back in August said the high heart rate had probably
caused arrythmia and put her on a beta blocker. I bought a stethoscope and
began taking her heart rate twice a day. It has been between 180-210 for
months, and she did not have any fits that--we saw, anyway.

At her last vet visit he said we could take her off the beta blockers so I
did--three days ago. This morning she had a fit. Does this mean she needs to
be back on them? (I did give her one this morning, as it seems logical to
me.) Did he mean I should taper her off of them? The fit passed in maybe 20
seconds and as usual she was fine. When I took he heart rate it was 210. She
ate a good breakfast. (Needless to say I have a call in to the vet but he
has not called back yet.)

Thanks for any advice.


  #2  
Old December 12th 04, 04:49 PM
Mary
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"Phil P." wrote


Thyroid hormones have a direct effect upon the nervous system. You might
want to have her T4 checked again.


Phil, she is due to have bloodwork in January--I'll see if I
can get her in earlier. I forgot to say that when I took
her pulse I could actually HEAR her heart skipping beats.
It sped up and slowed down twice. Recall that her
August ultrasound at least indicated no structural
abnormalities, for what that's worth. The vet still has
not called.


Hope she's ok.


Thanks. She seems perfectly fine, just the way they
often do right after scaring the crap out of you.


  #3  
Old December 12th 04, 04:50 PM
Mary
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"Nicole H" wrote in message
...
could it be a seizure?


The vet did not think so--there is nothing jerky about
them. But then the vet has never seen one.


  #4  
Old December 12th 04, 05:53 PM
Phil P.
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"Mary" wrote in message
m...

"Phil P." wrote


Thyroid hormones have a direct effect upon the nervous system. You

might
want to have her T4 checked again.


Phil, she is due to have bloodwork in January--I'll see if I
can get her in earlier. I forgot to say that when I took
her pulse I could actually HEAR her heart skipping beats.
It sped up and slowed down twice. Recall that her
August ultrasound at least indicated no structural
abnormalities, for what that's worth. The vet still has
not called.


Hope she's ok.


Thanks. She seems perfectly fine, just the way they
often do right after scaring the crap out of you.



Mary, is taking Atenolol by any chance?

Phil


  #5  
Old December 12th 04, 08:06 PM
Rocky
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Mary said in alt.med.veterinary:

could it be a seizure?


The vet did not think so--there is nothing jerky about
them. But then the vet has never seen one.


There's a huge variety in seizure severity. While I've seen
plenty of dog epileptic seizures, I've never observed a cat's -
it sounds possible in your girl's case, though.

http://www.canine-epilepsy.com/felineepi.html

--
--Matt. Rocky's a Dog.
  #6  
Old December 12th 04, 09:27 PM
Mary
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"Phil P." wrote


Mary, is taking Atenolol by any chance?


No, she is on 5 mgs of Propranolol twice a day, every 12 hours. The vet said
I should have tapered her off of it. I swear he says he tells me things that
I don't hear. I need to slow down enough to make sure I hear everything he
says from now on. He said to put her back on it and leave her on it until he
sees her in January. But if it was the fast heart rate that gave her
arrythmia, now that it has not been fast for months, I would think she could
come off of the beta blocker.


  #7  
Old December 12th 04, 09:29 PM
Mary
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"bluemaxx" wrote in message
...
I know that when *humans take Beta blockers (I did migraine
control), that you need to "wean" yourself off of them, although it is a
quick wean. I was told to reduce the amount I was used to taking by 1/2
for one week, and then to stop taking them altogether.

And three days would be just about the time frame that you would start
feeling the effects of taking no Beta blockers whatsoever, as they do
stay in your system. I also remember doc telling husband not to go any
longer than 4 days without taking his Beta blocker (for hypertension) or
he could possibly have a heart attack. Perhaps that's something to
think of? Hope your puddingtat comes out ok!
Linda



Linda, thanks for this information, you're right about cats, too--they need
to be tapered off. My mistake, and a stupid one. She seems fine now, and
thank
goodness a Sept. ultrasound showed no heart abnormalities structure-wise.
We got her when she was already fat, and I was worried she had heart
disease.


  #8  
Old December 12th 04, 09:34 PM
Mary
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"Rocky" wrote in message
...
Mary said in alt.med.veterinary:

could it be a seizure?


The vet did not think so--there is nothing jerky about
them. But then the vet has never seen one.


There's a huge variety in seizure severity. While I've seen
plenty of dog epileptic seizures, I've never observed a cat's -
it sounds possible in your girl's case, though.

http://www.canine-epilepsy.com/felineepi.html

--

Matt--thanks for this. She does indeed go into an "altered
state of consciousness" but she does not twitch at all or
salivate. And afterward it is as though nothing happened. I
read the first article you sent above, but have not gotten to
the others it links to. I will before I take her back in. She
has not had another episode, ate normally, has been alert
and aware in between naps, of course! She has had no
episodes at all since being on the beta blocker until now,
three days after I stopped it, so it seems that must help.


  #9  
Old December 12th 04, 11:45 PM
buglady
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"Rocky" wrote in message
...
There's a huge variety in seizure severity. While I've seen
plenty of dog epileptic seizures, I've never observed a cat's -
it sounds possible in your girl's case, though.


...........Matt, I can tell you from first hand experience that while dogs
tend to paddle, cats will arch their backs to the extreme and go completely
rigid and scream, Ain't pretty to watch.

To the OP - cats with longterm hyperthyroidism tend to get cardiomyopathy.
Even though she was just diagnosed, it's hard to tell how long she might
have had it. Tapazole can have negative side effects too sometimes. Has
the vet checked the BP recently? I'm wondering if she isn't blowing blood
vessels in her head. Does it seem like she can see OK? And try to get the
blood draw done as the same time you did last time. There's a study that
shows T4 can be all over the map during the day. If there's any kind of
diurnal rhythm to it, at least you can knock off one variable.

Personally I'd keep her on the beta blocker until you consult with a vet. I
dont' know the long term side effects of that drug, but you might check that
out in the meantime. Better than having strokes and going blind
though........

buglady
take out the dog before replying


  #10  
Old December 13th 04, 12:38 AM
Nicole H
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Default

Neighbor's dog doesn't jerk when he seizes. His face goes blank, he's stiff
and is generally not aware of anything. Seizures aren't standard issue.
I hope you find an answer soon.
Nicole
"Mary" wrote in message
m...

"Nicole H" wrote in message
...
could it be a seizure?


The vet did not think so--there is nothing jerky about
them. But then the vet has never seen one.




 




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