Cat Wobbly back legs & falling over

Question
Hi I have a cat age 15yrs just started to have problems with his back legs in terms of walking as if he is drunk, shaking his head which leads to him falling over, turning his head to one side, eating and drinking ok. I have taken him to the vets who say it could be a number of things, checked his temperature which was VERY high so gave him antibiotics to start with.  Do you have any suggestions on what it could be?  Any help would be greatly received.

Answer
Hi Ann,

Without observing the cat (and with my limited training) my thoughts are that vestibular disease would be high on the list of suspects. Vestibular Disease doesn't affect the hind quarters, primarily. It affects the head. It causes vertigo so that the cat is stumbling as if drunk. His rear legs may appear to be weak because of this, but the strength is actually all there. As you mentioned, there is a head tilt in many cases. If the cause is an infection, such as an inner ear infection, there can be a high fever. There is not always a known cause of Vestibular Disease. Sometimes episodes just come and go on their own. Most cats recover fine, unless a fatal root cause is found, such as a brain tumor or incurable infection.

Feline Infectious Peritonitis and toxoplasmosis would be two other possible causes. These are both infections that can causes neurological symptoms. Toxoplasmosis is curable if treated right away.  FIP is not. Both germs are fairly rare, especially if he's an indoor kitty. But it may be worth treating for toxo if the vet agrees other symptoms may be consistent with this.

The final suspect I think of would be cancer. Malignancies cause persistent high fever and can cause neurological problems depending on their location.

I wish you the best.
Jessica