Deaf cat help please

foxinsocks

On Friday my cat was lame in her front left paw. She was limping on it, but was still able to jump, although landing was a little inelegant and full of regret. We took her to the vet, who x-rayed her. She was also due her vaccinations, and needed her ears cleaned. She was sedated for the x-ray etc. It turned out that she had a thorn deeply embedded in her paw. It was removed of course, and she was given a painkiller and anti biotics. We were also sent home with more painkiller and antibiotics.

It is now Sunday. My cat is still walking around like she is drunk. She falls off things, and is either over or under jumping onto things, so she either misses and falls, or else it looks like she's trying to pounce.

She is not reacting to sounds, at all. Her ears are staying firmly forward, no matter what noise we make. Her meow is SUPER loud, like she can't hear it, so is trying harder. Normally if we say her name, or especially the word 'Treat' she'll come running from half a mile away, but her ears aren't even turning.

My question is, has anyone out there had this problem after a vet visit, or an ear clean. Could it be a reaction to the sedative, or her vaccine, or some physical trauma due to the ear clean, or the ear cleaning fluid they used? Is it likely permanent? Will she get better?

We are taking her back in to the vet in a couple of hours, although there's likely nothing they can do really on a Sunday, it's more to have a look at her I suppose. I'm worried, and I'm hoping someone out there has had a similar problem so I can have some idea on what to expect. This cat isn't just a pet, she's family.

Just to add, she's only 3 years old

planetX

It does sound like a problem with her ears, that's not a reaction you'd expect from vaccination - they may have damaged them by over zealous cleaning. Hopefully it's temporary:(

lolo62

that sounds traumatic! ive never had an experience like that with any of the above mentioned...i hope your kitty is ok

i just looked up temporary deafness and it is possible from certain drugs and/or infections so hopefully thats the case

http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/cat-care/deafness.aspx

foxinsocks

Vet agreed with Dr. Google. It's likely caused by either a reaction to the medication, or more likely, caused by hypoxia leading to brain damage causing likely permanent and profound deafness. The vet says it's possible her coordination will improve, but not the deafness.

She's currently crying (VERY LOUDLY) because she wants to go outside

I think I can hear the local shrew population throwing a party

planetX

foxinsocks wrote: »

Vet agreed with Dr. Google. It's likely caused by either a reaction to the medication, or more likely, caused by hypoxia leading to brain damage causing likely permanent and profound deafness. The vet says it's possible her coordination will improve, but not the deafness.

She's currently crying (VERY LOUDLY) because she wants to go outside

I think I can hear the local shrew population throwing a party

Or is he covering up, I'd be suspicious enough to get a second opinion.

foxinsocks

What could she be covering up??? Even if there was something sinister going on, my cat will still be deaf. I'm not sure what good a second opinion would be

planetX

Covering up that they damaged the eardrums by cleaning too deep in the ear.
Happened to a relative of mine, deaf in one ear thanks to a useless GP.

foxinsocks

The vet now tells me that she spoke to the sedative manufacturer, and they say they've never heard of this reaction, and they blame the ear cleaning fluid. The theory is that it's gone into the inner ear of both ears. I have been given an anti-inflammatory, on top of the antibiotics I already had, in the hope that this will help to clear the fluid build up...

it's vaguely credible, in that her personality is totally unchanged, it's purely her hearing and balance that are affected, so it *might* possibly be just her ears, and not brain damage. Vet still says it could be permanent though...

foxinsocks

We have been giving her the anti inflammatory for 4 days now. yesterday she was showing signs of getting back to herself. For example she was eating the dry food again, whereas before she was having trouble with it falling out of her mouth while she was trying to chew it. We even saw her ears move, which was exciting.

Today though, there's no sign of hearing coming back, she is just desperate to get outside. It didn't help that our other cat brought a live mouse to the back door, and played with it in front of the deaf cat.

It's so hard not to compulsively test her hearing! Once again, I'd like to ask if anyone has had any experience like this with a cat coming home from the vet deaf.

lolo62

foxinsocks this sounds like a nightmare for you and your cat!

have you tried getting a second opinion?

i havent had my cat suffer from deafness but the flea treatment i was given by the vet recently scalped the whole area and im constantly trying to stop her from scratching it raw...three weeks later the fur still hasnt grown back

when this happened i was furious as in the small print side effects 'mild alopecia' is listed as possible (btw it is not mild)
i was not told this by the vet and put my trust in him that what he gave me was safe and good for my cat, not harmful

next vet i went to prescribed me 'metacam' along with antibiotics for her sore throat...this time i decided to do some research on the net and apparently 'metacam' is considered unsuitable-and dangerous- for cats as it can cause renal failure...again this is not something i was not informed about as i was forking out €30 on top of consult fee... in the states they have actually banned its use in cats.

if i were you id do some research on all the medications used both at home and by the vet. do you have insurance? if it helps i know of an excellent vet i could recommend to you, ill be going to him next time...

edit sorry just see there youre in monaghan..im in dub

Wisco

Lolo, I hope you reported the flea treatment reaction to your vet or the manufacturer as that is NOT a common problem. If they don't know about it, they can't do anything to prevent further problems in other cats. Any adverse drug reactions should always be reported.
Also, if you read the fine print on most drugs, there are potential serious side effects. Metacam wouldn't be licensed here if it wasn't suitable for most patients and in fact is safer than some alternative NSAIDs for cats. There are always problems which MAY happen- doesn't mean they WILL happen in a healthy animal.
Just remember Dr Google is not always right and there are plenty of misinformed people who put scary/potentially incorrect info out there. If you're not happy with what your vet has told you or the treatment provided, go somewhere else.

lolo62

Wisco wrote: »

Lolo, I hope you reported the flea treatment reaction to your vet or the manufacturer as that is NOT a common problem. If they don't know about it, they can't do anything to prevent further problems in other cats. Any adverse drug reactions should always be reported.
Also, if you read the fine print on most drugs, there are potential serious side effects. Metacam wouldn't be licensed here if it wasn't suitable for most patients and in fact is safer than some alternative NSAIDs for cats. There are always problems which MAY happen- doesn't mean they WILL happen in a healthy animal.
Just remember Dr Google is not always right and there are plenty of misinformed people who put scary/potentially incorrect info out there. If you're not happy with what your vet has told you or the treatment provided, go somewhere else.

thanks wisco i reported the reaction to pfizer and the vet...had her in for follow-up too but they just said that she is sensitive and this doesnt happen most of the time with the stronghold...thing is when i went to the next vet he seemed to be totally against stronghold and recommended another brand

the point i was trying to make is that i think pet owners need to be a bit more savvy about what they are giving their pets as vets personal opinions on particular medications seem to be quite varied...as do their diagnosis' on the same symptoms

in relation to the metacam the warning was put on the box by the company that make it...this is what it says ''Repeated use of meloxicam in cats has been associated with acute renal failure and death''
in the US the Food and Drug Administration has approved it for dogs but not cats

personally i dont disregard information just because its from the internet and i dont believe that just because something is licensed here that it is safe for use, it has been my experience that the EU seems to be a bit behind the rest of the world when it comes to this kind of thing

foxinsocks

last week, almost a month after she came home deaf, we began to be aware that she was definitely hearing things (as opposed to the coincidental turning of head). Mostly because we were constantly testing her to see if she could hear things. One of her ears has started to move. A few days after that she was even hearing whispers. We tested her with a car on the road, and she was DEFINITELY hearing it long before it arrived, so now we can let her out. It's just as well, because attempting to 'walk' her on the harness would have been comical had it not been so tragic.

She is still not totally right, I think one of her ears is still having problems, because she is not moving it around like the other. Also, about half the time it's like she can hear something, but she can't tell where the sound is coming from because she turns her head, but in the wrong direction. Is it the same as depth perception needing 2 eyes, that direction has to come through both ears? I don't know.

Anyway, it is looking good for Flowers the cat, she is her loving self back with us, and her violent mean self with her sister, and her stalky shrew hating self with the outside. She has been staying much nearer to the house, and her running in with a MASSIVE tail has been a little more frequent, but mostly she seems happy. The whole experience was horrible, I hope I never have anything like that again. Hopefully the vet will believe me when I say my cats are 'special' next time

anniehoo

Good to hear shes slowly coming back to normal.

I just cant believe your vet didnt offer further tests or refer you to a specialist. After a basic vaccination and ear cleaning, your cat was left deaf with neurological type problems. :eek: Thats shocking.

planetX wrote: »

Covering up that they damaged the eardrums by cleaning too deep in the ear.
Happened to a relative of mine, deaf in one ear thanks to a useless GP.

Very possible, my Dad has constant tinnitus from a GP doing this last year.

I suppose theres not much i can offer now, im just amazed that your cat was affected so badly and potentially permanently and your vet didnt try and investigate further

foxinsocks

I think they were holding off on more tests to see if her hearing came back. The vet told me that the sedative guys said it would 'probably come back eventually'

Ah we'll probably never know what happened for sure.

lolo62

fantastic news! so happy your cat is getting better...their senses are everything to them so thank god shes not profoundly deaf anyway..

my cat is called Flower too