rapid eye motion

Question
Hello Jessica

I have a close to 14yr old desexed male cat who is exhibiting abnormal rapid eye motion combined with being very wobbly on his feet.....in fact falling at times. The latter problem has occurred before and we thought it was perhaps caused by a fall that effected his arthritic spine and hips. He comes good usually but today he has both issues together which is alarming and would point to something neurological. Generally he is a very outgoing cat wanting attention but today he is quite subdued and we are concerned and mystified. Can you help ?

Answer
Hi Cynthia.  You're correct, this would probably suggest something neurological.  I'm sure there are a number of venomous creatures and poisonous plants in Australia that we don't have in the U.S., but those would be of a concern to me.  Fleas and ticks can carry diseases that could cause neurological signs, too, such as cytauxzoonosis or mycoplasma haemofelis.  The first is not curable but the latter is.  Further still, there is the protozoan germ toxoplasmosis that can cause neurological problems.  This is treatable, as well.  More grave conditions can include cancer and the feline leukemia virus.

It could also be that your cat is suffering from a bout of vestibular disease, which isn't well-understood, but is often related to the ear.  It can be caused by an ear infection or ear polyp, but sometimes there's no cause found.  Cats with vestibular disease will usually have eyes that move back and forth (usually slowly), and they can become very dizzy.  This causes difficulty walking.  A lot of them will have a head tilt, as well, and will fall down to one side when they try to walk.  Sometimes they suffer nausea, and the vet will need to prescribe them a medication to calm their stomach so that they'll eat.  If no cause for the vestibular disease is found, the only way to get through it is to wait it out.  Most of the time, the episode passes after a week or two.  It's important to keep the cat comfortable and out of harm's way until he's fully recovered.  He may need help being fed soft food on a saucer just under his mouth, and then being escorted to his litter tray.

I think vestibular disease could be likely considering that he's had similar episodes in the past, but I would definitely recommend getting him to the vet.  Any neurological symptoms certainly warrant a professional opinion.

Best of luck with him!

Jessica