Epilepsy In Cats

2023 Author: Molly Page | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-11-27 22:49

Epilepsy is a functional disorder of the brain characterized by convulsions, usually of short duration, a fairly common condition in small animals, including cats. Seizures can be caused by any reason that interferes with normal brain activity.

Seizures fall into two categories: true epilepsy (idiopathic) and false (symptomatic). In true epilepsy, the cause of the seizures is difficult to determine, and there may be a congenital genetic disorder of the brain that causes convulsions. False epilepsy is an acquired syndrome, seizures can be a symptom of another disease, and if this disease is identified and treated, the seizures should stop.

The seizure is preceded by a period of unusual behavior: fixed gaze, disorientation, and other signs. Sometimes cat owners do not even notice them, in other cases this aura-phase of the disease lasts from five to ten minutes and allows the cat owner to prepare for a seizure: to make sure that the cat is in a safe place, such as on the floor.

During an attack, the animals fall, lose consciousness, their paws stretch out and stiffen, breathing stops. This phase does not last long (10-30 seconds) and is replaced by convulsive movements of the paws, similar to running or swimming. The jaws usually move as if chewing.

During stiffness or seizures, the pupils dilate, saliva flows, involuntary urine and fecal excretion occurs, and at the end of the seizure the fur rears.

After an attack, the animal may return to normal after a few seconds or minutes, and sometimes it may remain motionless, lethargic, confused, disoriented, or blind for several minutes to several hours.

Recent experience shows that all animals are potential epileptics. The reason may be metabolic disturbances, electrical or medical effects, but the threshold of endurance in different animals is very different. If a cat shows signs of epilepsy at an early age, then it is most likely that it has congenital epilepsy, and older cats have acquired epilepsy (the result of injury or illness).

In general, any infectious disease affecting the central nervous system can cause convulsions. What are the underlying causes of epilepsy? Leukemia, ischemic encephalopathy, bacterial meningitis, metabolic dysfunction, improper feeding (for example, one raw fish) or prolonged fasting, toxins of various kinds. Epilepsy may be the first sign of brain cancer and other brain diseases. Finally, head injuries can also be the cause of epilepsy. The disease can begin immediately after an accident, or it can manifest itself in weeks, months, years.

If a young cat has seizures no more than once a year, there is no need to take her treatment, the disease does not threaten her life and should be limited to monitoring such an animal. If seizures occur more frequently than once a month, therapeutic treatment is necessary. Anticonvulsants should be used with caution, as if the cat does not receive the usual medication within a day or two, seizures will recur and may even become more severe. Successful treatment depends to a large extent on proper home care of sick animals, which will help reduce the frequency of seizures, shorten their duration, and ease their course with minimal side effects.