Help! Rusty is twitching...

[Karen]

It does sound like seizures of some sort, and sadly that can be very hard to track down a cause for. I have not heard of allergies causing seizures, particularly environmental ones - the smoke is likely an irritant, though, so keeping that out of the place for your own sake as well as theirs is best.

He is likely as confused by the seizures as you, so the extra clinginess is to be expected. Have you changed food or anything in his diet? Hopefully others will weigh in.

Did your vet discuss any anti-seizure meds for the time being?

[Artie]

You may want to read up on FHS (feline hyperesthesia syndrome). Lady is doing very well on Gabapentin.

She didn't exhibit all the symptoms listed, and does not have any dental issues, but she certainly had the seizures.

Good luck!

[mmc87613]

I was actually thinking it may be some sort of reaction to grain. I heard that sometimes food allergies can cause twitching due to the pruritis and he does groom himself Good news though, today and yesterday he doesn't seem to want to be near me at all and the clinginess all but stopped. Bad news is he's jealous and is not a fan of Chloe at all! However, I got a new fur baby yesterday and he is definitely going through an adjustment period now. I just couldn't pass her up though she is pretty adorable.

I did some research last night and I now I am wondering if it truly is a seizure if the cat responds when you call it's name. Rusty can twitch and I can call his name and he will usually respond and the twitching will slow down and stop. I thought that when seizing the person or animal is unaware of their surroundings? I am a nursing student and at least in humans, people who have petit mal seizures aren't aware of their surroundings at least to my knowledge. In addition, he doesn't drool or shake or have any other seizure symptoms. Sometimes he will do the eye thing, but I was talking to my ex-roommate last night and she stated that she noticed the eye thing when we first got him and the person we got him from said that sometimes one eye became a little smaller than the other and the vet said it was normal. The only difference is that now it twitches when he has his facial twitches. The vet said it might be his teeth, which I've never heard, of so the next step is to pay what I think is an exorbitant amount of money (at least for a nursing student on a limited income) to get his teeth cleaned.

I found these videos on YouTube and they are a pretty good representation of what Rusty is doing. The only difference is sometimes his eye does this weird thing where one twitches and gets smaller than the other, but again I am pretty sure his eye has always been a bit smaller at times and it's been going on since I got him almost 3 years ago.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pemRplsn7jY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3u2i9IcGnBo

[mmc87613]

So just as I finished posting my reply Rusty did something weird. He was walking around the living room and his back kind of rippled, almost as if he was putting his scent on something but a little bit different. They he went under the coffee table and a minute later did this weird twitching thing and it looked like he lost his balance and he just started licking himself. He did this for about three to four minutes continuously and then went by the TV to continue. When he was done, it was like nothing had happened and he went laid down to sleep.

Does this sound like FHS or a seizure? Maybe a reaction to stress. The vet is absolutely no help right now. I called and he said to, "wait and see what happens." He's also said he's, "not sure what really happened." He recommended I see a neurologist since his blood work came back okay.

Super frustrated and absolutely devastated right now. I was hoping desperately that it was a simply allergic reaction, but now I'm not sure. I called the neurologist, the only one in the area is about 2 hours away, and it's $118 just for a consultation and MRI's cost anywhere from $1200-$1400.

[Karen]

That behavior does sound like a seizure. Where are you located? Is there any veterinary school near you that may be able to help at a lesser cost? Is there another vet near you you could ask for a second opinion, since your is not being helpful?

The grooming himself is common behavior after a seizure, cats find it comforting.