my cat (jack)

Question
i have noticed lately that my cat is having problems with his hind legs he dosent seem to jump up on things like he normally did  ,.he is only going to be a year old so its cant be age..just this morning i had to help him lift his legs to get in his litter box. what can be wrong with him
please give me some sort of an answer  and yes i will be taking him to his vet but its the holiday weekend and i would have to wait till during the week now

Answer
Hi Debbie.

I can give you some possibilites as to what is causing the problems with poor Jack's legs. But, as you know, only a vet with an exam and testing can give you an accurate diagnosis.

A common cause for a young cat losing ability to use his hind legs is calcium deficiency. Fortunately, this kind of thing is reversable. Your vet can prescibe a calcium supplementation. If that is the problem, Jack can be back to normal in about a month.

Some other possible problems that could lead to the sudden onset of weakness or paralysis of the rear legs in a young cat are spinal traumas (like gettng his tail caught in something and jerking it); feline diabetes, oleander bushes (if injested can cause hind leg paralysis); blood clots on the spinal cord; and feline leukemia to name some of the common causes.

Hopefully your kitty does not have anything more serious than a deficiency. I hope I am not causing you more worry than you already have, but remember, they are possibilities NOT probabilities.

Please give me an update after you take the Jack to the vet. I am interested in knowing how he is doing and what the vet thinks it is.

Carol