# Rear legs not moving



## azukre (May 19, 2004)

My cat came out from under the sofa, and all of sudden both of his back legs cannot move on its own, and he's crying for help!

I'm current outside of state, and this city does not have animal emergency. I can only wait till morning?

Anyone know why? I'm very worry!


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## Heidi n Q (Nov 22, 2006)

Sounds like he has injured himself. If you must wait until morning, keep him quiet and calm in a small place where he cannot move around much.
Good luck, and keep us posted on his progress?

I have a cat who is 11 now, when he was a kitten he injured part of his tail...the last 4" just drooped all of a sudden. No motion, no wiggles, no nothing. He could lift his entire tail, the the last few inches were lifeless. I think he was stepped on accidentally by my husband, or got his tail accidentally closed in a door while playing and it needed time for swelling to go down. He healed on his own within a few days...
Heidi


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## doodlebug (May 13, 2006)

There could be a variety of things wrong from injury to medical issues. There is no way to tell and no advice we can give you other than get him to a vet as soon as possible. As Heidi indicated, keep him as quiet as possible until you can get him to the vet. I would recommend confining him to a small room, like a bathroom with food and litter box in very close proximity to him. You don't want him to try and get around and get injured (like falling down some stairs or getting hurt trying to jump on furniture). Also if you have any other pets you want to keep them away from him. 

Good luck and keep us posted....


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## queen of the nile (Aug 16, 2003)

You have to find an emergency vet. If it is a city, there must be a vet that takes emergency cases! Please, please call around! If he can't move his hindlimbs, this can be due to several causes, all of which are painful, and must be addressed immediately. I cannot stress enough that this is an emergency!


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## Jet Green (Nov 28, 2005)

Azukre, this exact thing happened to my childhood cat, and it was diagnosed as cardiomyopathy. The key symptom was that his legs felt cold to the touch. I don't know anything about the illness, but in his case, the prognosis was poor and he had to be put to sleep. I really hope this isn't what's wrong with your kitty, but I concur that getting him to the vet ASAP is imperative.  Sending all positive thoughts and hopes to you both.


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## CataholicsAnonymous (Dec 4, 2006)

I hope you can do your best to find emergency veterinary care just as soon as you possibly can. If it is a serious injury, you're dealing mostly with a cat who is in an awful lot of pain. Worse yet, there is a very real possibility that the cat has a blood clot (saddle thrombus) and would need to be put on blood thinner asap. (That's what can happen when the cat has cardiomyopathy.)


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## Lisa 216 (Oct 25, 2004)

I agree with everyone, this sounds like an emergency situation  I'm so sorry -- I'm sure this is very scary for you. Hang in there and all the best to you and your cat. Please let us know what happens when you can.


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## DesnBaby (Apr 18, 2004)

OMG 8O , I hope your cat will be alright  , I'm hoping for the best, keep us updated.


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## gunterkat (Aug 19, 2006)

i hope your kitty will be alright. Please, do you best to find an emergency vet. 
Hugs and prayers
:cat


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## dmcwlvssr (Apr 24, 2005)

sending hugs and prayers!


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## Sweetvegan74 (Jun 18, 2005)

My cat Tugger had heart problems and his back legs went numb and were cold. He passed away hours later.

I pray your cat is OK! Please keep us updated when you can

(((((((((((((HUGS))))))))))))))


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## azukre (May 19, 2004)

Thanks for everyone's care and information. I'm really appreciate all these!

Unfortunately that night I was still unable to find emergency hospital in Taipei city, and even 119(911) hot lines can't help either. I had went to the biggest animal hospital in Taipei and were told they had no emergency(24Hr) long time ago. This is very sad for my cat.

My cat is 9+ years old. That night, his right hind legs went numb, and then left hind legs went numb as well. Also, he's breathing very hard and rapidly, and tongue were sticking out. Finally 6 hrs later the hospital opens up, he was x-rayed and found 2 spur near upper spinal cord & lower part and told me this maybe the issue. However, during the temperature test vet. cannot measure the temperature and the vet diagnosed that maybe has blood vessel clot, and gave him the following mediciation:

Cephalexin Cap 250mg / Cap
Prednisolone 5mg/Tab
Sucrafate 500mg/Tab
Varidase
Vitamin : B-Complex Tab

From CataholicsAnonymous's reply, it read likes blood clot = Cardiomyopathy. However when I asked the vet is this Cardiomypathy, he cannot confirm it. I asked vet. for more information and he will get back to me. Right now, my cat just lying there and won't move, and sometimes he's breathing very hard and crying(sounds very painful for him)
Are there any further diagnosis that can help determine my cat's sickness?


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## queen of the nile (Aug 16, 2003)

This is absolutely horrible  . I didn't realize that you were not in North America. There are two sorts of things that could cause this acute injury: trauma (fracture, disk extrusion, crushing injury, hemorrhage into the spine) or a blood clot. Due to the fact that the temperature was not measurable, I would be leaning towards blood clot.

Varidase is used to dissolve blood clots, and the other medications are to protect against the problems associated with shock (severe injuries are one of the things that causes shock).

Blood clots (saddle thrombus) are seen in about 20% of cats with cardiomyopathy (heart disease with unknown cause). Cardiomyopathy cannot be confirmed with out ultrasound, however, so this is why the vet could not confirm it.

Has the vet recommended trying anything else, or told you how long it will take before you know if dissolving the clot will work? Is he still at the hospital?


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## azukre (May 19, 2004)

Is saddle thrombus the same as cardiomyopathy? Is surgery possible on Saddle thrombus or Cardiomyopathy?

The vet did not recommend any testing, and no info. on how long the clot will be dissolved. He was brought back on the same day. It has been 48 hours and both of his hind legs still cold and not moving at all. 

Right now, he would cry like every 2-3 hours and breathing hard rapidly. I'm going to take him back to the hospital for different vet. Right now is about 2am here.


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## Lisa 216 (Oct 25, 2004)

azukre said:


> It has been 48 hours and both of his hind legs still cold and not moving at all.
> 
> Right now, he would cry like every 2-3 hours and breathing hard rapidly. I'm going to take him back to the hospital for different vet. Right now is about 2am here.


I agree with taking him back -- it sounds like your cat is in terrible pain  

I don't have any advice on what might be wrong, but I'm sending good wishes for you and your cat. Please keep us posted when you can.


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## queen of the nile (Aug 16, 2003)

Here is a quick article on saddle thrombus. Saddle thrombus is not the same thing as cardiomyopathy, but can be caused by it.
http://embracepetinsurance.typepad.com/blog/2006/10/saddle_thrombus.html

I am extremely surprised that your cat is not on pain medication, and that they decided to send him home. As you can see, this condition is very painful. To be honest, the outlook with a clot is not good, and dissolving the clot often doesn't work. You need to prepare yourself for the fact that euthanasia may be the kindest choice. Please take him back to the vet to get more information about whether that might be the best thing to do in this situation. I'm very sorry that this has happened.


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## azukre (May 19, 2004)

My cat just passed an 30 minutes, and I'm trying to find a place here for cremation.

I'm really depress and mad about myself, and his symptoms is exactly like saddle thrombus.

Thank you for all the care!


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## CataholicsAnonymous (Dec 4, 2006)

Oh, azukre, I'm so very sorry. Don't beat yourself up about what happened; you did the very best you could. Thromboembolic disease in cats is a terible thing. I lost my sweet GaGa Zhabor to it many years ago (and she was rushed to the clinic at the first sign). A good friend just lost one of her cats to the same thing last week. You and many of us have done the best we could under whatever circumstances we had. The truth is, it is very rare for a cat to recover from the clot. Even with thinners, the clot almost always breaks off. 

He's no longer in pain, and he knew how much you loved him.


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## Lisa 216 (Oct 25, 2004)

I'm so sorry   

I agree, you did your best for him. Please don't blame yourself for this. I'm sure your kitty knew he was loved.


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## DesnBaby (Apr 18, 2004)

I'm so very sorry  . If he had cardiomyopathy I think he would have lived. My cat has it and is on medication. We found out about it because at first she had a heart murmur then it developed into the disease. We also have to do ultrasounds on her almost every year. Surgery cannot be done for it. There's no cure, just taking medication for her to live a longer life.


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## gunterkat (Aug 19, 2006)

Poor kitty   I'm so sorry for your loss. You did the best you could for him.
He's better now and playing at the Rainbow Bridge. *Hugs*
:cat


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