What the eff is the matter with my cat? If anything.

[TheGMF]

I posted on here recently about my cat not settling in and being stressed following a house move. Behaviour included howling during the night, overeating and subsequent vomiting/diarrhoea. He is still howling although the v/d have become less frequent, and I'm now at the point where I can't tell if it is just stress or if there is something physically wrong with the cat.

I've also noticed him trembling on a couple of occasions when he has been sitting on my lap and tonight I saw him stumble when he jumped down off the bed. He sat down for a minute or so and then he walked off as normal. None of his symptoms are frequent (it will be a few days between vomits and it was a week between trembles) and all could be directly or indirectly attributed to stress. I have been on t'internet and had convinced myself that he has diabetes (although he is only 6) but then I read an article that said that blood glucose levels can also be affected by stress!

He went to the vets a couple of weeks ago and she ruled out any stomach bug, checked his weight, temp and heart rate and all were fine. A lot of the time he seems normal - he sits on laps and purrs and chases around and tussles with our other cat, so I just don't know what to make of it.

Stress-wise I've tried Feliway plug-in, pet remedy spray and calm-eze tablets - all of which seem to work at first but the effects were short-lived. We've been in our new house for over two months now so if it is stress - when will it end?!

[girliefriend]

Oh dear he sounds like a sensitive soul!!

If you are really worried you could ask the vet to do some blood tests otherwise maybe watch and wait a bit longer...?

[TheGMF]

Yes he does doesn't he? It's a bit of a surprise to us because, out of our 2 cats, we thought he'd settle in easiest. He was so laid back in our last house but he was a proper homebody so I think it's been a bit of a wrench for him. He is also a charming MF and was very popular with our old neighbours so I think he is missing the attention.

We had a good night (he only howled on one occasion and for a short time) and seems happier today. We will keep an eye on him for the time being. I'm most worried about the wobbly legs so will consider going back to the vet if it reoccurs.

[RubbishMantra]

Does the vet know about his wobbly legs? If that symptom has developed since his last vetting, probably best to give them a call.

[cozietoesie]

Did the vet actually do any tests - eg blood or urine work?

[wigglybeezer]

I had a cat with similar symptoms who turned out to have an overactive thyroid, but again unusual in younger cats.

[misog2000]

My cat was only 4 when her diabetes was diagnosed so definitely not an old cat disease, but her symptoms were different to your cat in that she just got very thin quite quickly and just looked a bit ropey, no d&v or wobbly legs so hopefully it's not that. Fingers crossed he is just taking his time to settle in and he will be fine soon.

[misog2000]

Oh and peeing and drinking a lot (although this may be hard to monitor if he goes outside) was another of her symptoms

[cozietoesie]

They might be separate symptoms because stress can sometimes set other things off - human or cat. I just don't like the sound of that wobble in a young cat so I'd want to vet him again I think.

[TheGMF]

I told the vet about the trembling but the wobble hadn't occurred at that point. No blood/urine tests yet - I think that's what we would be looking at doing next if we go back. She did say that he didn't seem dehydrated and his coat was in good condition and she didn't seem concerned about his weight - he was 6kg! She felt that he probably was stressed and also gave him some worming treatment (which he absolutely hated) just in case.

I don't believe he is drinking or peeing more, though it's hard to tell with two cats and clumping litter.

i think I will make an appointment for Monday and see how he goes over the weekend.