Help a Cat with Ataxia

Ataxia is a feline condition that usually produces balance issues, trouble walking, and other signs like vomiting and weakness or lethargy. This affliction can only be cured by treating the underlying cause of the symptoms. It is crucial that you take your cat to the vet and enlist their help in determining what is wrong with your cat. In the meantime, ensure your cat’s safety by making stairs inaccessible and helping the cat get to the litter box.

Steps

Managing Ataxia Symptoms

  1. Administer prescribed medications. In order for your cat to recover, you’ll need to be diligent in your treatment. You should give your cat its prescribed medications on time every day, and follow the medication instructions to the letter.[1]
    • If your cat refuses to take its medicine (or if the symptoms of ataxia are already quite advanced), your cat may need to be hospitalized and treated by the veterinarian. This way, the vet can administer drugs and fluids intravenously, and monitor your cat’s progress.
  2. Turn your cat to avoid bed sores. Cats with severe ataxia have a lot of trouble moving. This means that it is quite possible for an ataxia-inflicted cat to develop bed sores from long periods of sitting in the same position. You should turn your cat over onto its other side every couple of hours to help prevent this from happening.[2]
    • Be careful not to upset your kitty too much in the process. Be gentle and move slowly. Trying to move your cat too quickly could increase anxiety or make the cat vomit.
  3. Help your cat use the litter box. If your cat has ataxia, it may not be able to make it to the litter box without too much difficulty. This means that your cat may eliminate outside of the litter box. To avoid this, you should place your cat in the litter box once every few hours to make sure it can go to the bathroom properly.[3]
    • Watch out for any soiled linens around where your cat is sitting. If the cat feels unable to make it to the litter box, it may eliminate on the couch or bed nearby.
  4. Keep your cat away from stairs. For a cat with ataxia, the stairs can be a dangerous place. Your cat may try to use the stairs without realizing how poor its balance and mobility has become. You don’t want your cat to fall down the stairs and hurt itself even more.[4]
    • Try to use baby gates to make the stairs more inaccessible. If this doesn’t work, consider confining your cat to a separate room while it recovers from the ataxia.

Treating Common Underlying Conditions

  1. Address the cause of your cat's ataxia. Ataxia itself is always caused by something else. It is crucial that you treat this other condition in order to help your cat recover from its ataxia. Whatever method of treatment your vet recommends, follow it.[5]
    • Ataxia could be caused by a viral infection, meningitis, parasite, spider bites, brain damage, hypoglycemia, ear infection, bone cancer, diabetes-induced nerve damage, tumor, or any other number of underlying diseases.
  2. Treat hypoglycemia. Hypoglycemia is when a diabetic cat has low blood sugar and can be a precursor to bouts of ataxia. If your cat has a hypoglycemic event, you will need to encourage your cat to eat some food. If your cat is unable to eat its normal food, try feeding it some honey or corn syrup. If your cat is unconscious, put some honey or corn syrup on its gums. If your cat does not regain consciousness, take it to the vet immediately.[6]
    • Some symptoms of hypoglycemia include lethargy, anxiety, difficulty standing, weakness, seizures, muscle twitching, or unconsciousness.
  3. Treat feline diabetes. If your cat has diabetes, this means that it has trouble regulating its insulin levels. You will need to get a diagnosis from your veterinarian and then give your cat daily insulin shots at consistent times each day, with the dosage and frequency determined by your vet.[7]
    • Diabetic cats also need to maintain a healthy weight in order to minimize the effects of their diabetes. You should be cautious about giving your cat too many treats or any human food.
    • You should also provide your cat with a high-fiber, high-complex carbohydrate diet to help with weight loss and to help control your cat’s blood sugar levels.
  4. Treat an ear infection. Ear infections can cause symptoms of ataxia in cats. If your cat has an ear infection, it will need to be diagnosed by a veterinarian. Treatment involves cleaning of the ear canals, ear drop ointments (either antibiotics, antifungals, or anti-inflammatory drugs), and possibly surgery – depending on the severity of the case.[8]
    • The main symptoms of feline ear infections include shaking its head, scratching its ears repeatedly, skin wounds around the head and ears, hair loss on ears, discharge from the ear canal, or redness of the inner ear.

Recognizing and Diagnosing Ataxia

  1. Watch for changes in gait. One of the most prominent symptoms of feline ataxia is a change in gait. This can take several different forms. A cat with ataxia may seem to stumble or wobble often. Or it might start goose-stepping (a high stepping gait). Cats with ataxia may also sway from side to side or lean to one side while walking or standing.[9]
    • A cat with ataxia might also fall over often while trying to walk.
    • In general, cats with ataxia appear as if they have poor coordination.
    • Any noticeable change in gait is cause for concern. Monitor your cat’s behavior and the way they walk for a few days. If the change seems to continue or worsen, contact your veterinarian.
  2. Monitor any change in food intake. If your cat loses its appetite and seems to not be eating, this is something to worry about. It is often a symptom of some underlying cause, one of which could be ataxia. This is an especially prominent possibility if the appetite loss is paired with a change in gait.[10]
    • Monitor your cat’s food intake carefully and see if it decreases over the span of a few days.
  3. Notice signs of lethargy. If your cat seems to be overly lethargic, this could be a symptom of ataxia. Any perceived weakness or unusual amounts of laziness should be monitored and reported to your veterinarian.[11]
    • Try to get your cat to engage in normal play-time activities. If it resists or seems uninterested (or unable), consider calling your vet.
  4. Consult your veterinarian. If you suspect your cat is suffering from ataxia, make an appointment with your vet as soon as possible. Since ataxia is always caused by some other disease, it’s important to figure out the root cause and treat it immediately. Otherwise your cat will not get better.[4]
    • The vet will need to be informed about your cat’s entire health history to help determine the underlying cause of the ataxia symptoms.
    • Your vet will perform a complete physical checkup, with some possible additional tests. Some additional tests could include a urinalysis, cerebrospinal tap, CT scan, ultrasound, fecal test, or other blood test.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://www.petmd.com/cat/conditions/neurological/c_ct_ataxia?page=2
  2. ↑ http://www.cathealth.com/neurological/vestibular-disease
  3. ↑ https://www.vetary.com/cat/condition/ataxia
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 http://www.cat-world.com.au/Cat-Health-Collection/ataxia-in-cats.html
  5. ↑ https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/ataxia-in-cats
  6. ↑ http://www.vetstreet.com/our-pet-experts/preventing-and-handling-diabetic-emergencies
  7. ↑ http://www.vet.cornell.edu/fhc/Health_Information/brochure_diabetes.cfm
  8. ↑ http://www.vetstreet.com/care/chronic-ear-infections-chronic-otitis-in-cats
  9. ↑ http://www.animalplanet.com/pets/healthy-pets/what-would-cause-cat-to-fall-over/
  10. ↑ https://www.petcarerx.com/article/how-ataxia-in-cats-and-dogs-affects-balance-and-movement/1669
  11. ↑ http://www.treehouseanimals.org/site/PageServer?pagename=caring_ccg_feline_health_issues
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