Skip to main content
Skip to main navigation
Skip to talk navigation

Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Saved Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Flip

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

1 2 3 4

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

The litter tray

Deafness in female ginger cats?

90 replies

TalkinPeace · 18/12/2013 16:32

I have just 'acquired' an elderly ginger and white tabby cat.

She appears to be absolutely stone deaf - does not even react to tapping on the floor next to her.
Is this common or should I be looking for other symptoms?

I found her yesterday. She is a large framed cat but weighs under 2.5kg, so there may be issues linked to her starvation as well.
The vet checked her and there was nothing obvious but I am fostering her till her owner comes forward or I have to rehome her (have 2 other cats).

OP posts:

Report

ToffeeOwnsTheSausage · 23/12/2013 22:08

Oh, she does look so much better. She is gorgeous.

Fluffycloudland77 · 23/12/2013 22:16

She's such a handsome cat. How are the other cats taking it?

TalkinPeace · 23/12/2013 22:24

Fluffy
So so.
They are unimpressed but she is still so incredibly weak that her hisses are a bit meaningless
I gave all three of them coley tonight so they all luff me
They are all pretty much ignoring each other - which is actually as good as I could hope in the circumstances!

OP posts:

cozietoesie · 23/12/2013 23:05

That's not bad at all because if ever I saw a boss cat, she's one. They'll likely have recognized that by the time she's healthier.

TalkinPeace · 24/12/2013 20:08

Well, she's been here a week so legally she is ours.

A silly question
She still gets very distressed when being picked up.
Once up - and draped over a shoulder - she purrs, but the lifting bit clearly gives her distress.

I've never had a cat that has been this ill before.
Is it linked to the starvation or should I be on the lookout for something else?
My instinct is that the lack of muscle on her abdomen means her ribs rub against her organs etc ...

She is now washing from head to foot BTW

OP posts:

cozietoesie · 24/12/2013 20:43

Many cats don't like being picked up - and I think her recent troubles may have exacerbated that. You just can't tell right now whether she has something wrong inside, I think. I'd just let her make all the running; and sit on the floor with your back against something so that she can eg come on lap without jumping.

Excellent news about the washing from head to foot. That's a real sign she's improving.

TalkinPeace · 24/12/2013 20:51

Thank you.

I'm so used to my other two being happy picked up (and my several previous ones) , and I want her to feel more secure in the rest of the house
but you have reminded me it is only a week since she was nearly dead

I'll let her progress at her own pace

OP posts:

cozietoesie · 24/12/2013 21:17

By the way - looking at that latest picture, I've slightly rethought my estimate of her age. I think I'd put her at around 13 or 14. (Further refinements may come with more pics.) I'd be interested to see what the vet has to say. on her next visit.

Shall she be having some festive dinner tomorrow?

TalkinPeace · 24/12/2013 21:20

she - and the other cats - will get all sorts of leftovers tomorrow
I'm waiting for a good weather day so I can get a pic of her sunbathing in the kitchen with the other two!
Vet is booked for Friday so more may become clear then :-)

OP posts:

Fluffycloudland77 · 24/12/2013 23:04

My cat whinges like hell when you pick him up, unless its to his advantage eg I'm rescuing him and then it's fine

ToffeeOwnsTheSausage · 25/12/2013 16:23

My newish cat still doesn't like us touching her unless she is fully happy. She is only 1 and is suspect she has been abused. It is all a case of taking it at their pace. This is all new to us too as my previous cast came to me at 5 weeks and I knew her as well as I know my children. You are doing a great job. She is very lucky to have found you.

Tiptops · 26/12/2013 20:58

Well done for taking her in OP. Brilliant to hear how she's progressing, and I can really see the difference between the two photos. One thing that is worrying me is her being allowed outside again - if she came into rescue we would only ever allow her to go to a indoor/ cat proofed garden home. It is just far too unsafe for deaf cats to be allowed outside so please reconsider your hopes to do this.

TalkinPeace · 26/12/2013 21:05

Tiptops
My old cat was deaf for the last 4 years of his life and was absolutely fine.

I've taken in cats from a rescue centre and I'm afraid my thoughts on their unerstanding of healthy cats are unprintable.
I'll go with the guidance from my vet and my knowledge of having owned cats into old age over the last 27 years.

There is absolutely no way I'm having litter trays for years to come.
She will learn to have part of the garden as her territory, as each of the other cats do.
By the time the spring comes round she'll be strong enough to cope.

Bear in mind this is a cat who is still so weak that she cannot get onto a chair or up a flight of stairs.

She'll get her microchip tomorrow so that if she does decide to go out the cat flap can get back in.
Not that she seems to care, she sat and sniffed it, clearly knew what it was and knew that out there was the land of cold and hungry so retreated back to her bed by the boiler!

OP posts:

cozietoesie · 26/12/2013 23:20

Are you seeing any improvement in her strength?

Looking forward to the report after tomorrow's vet visit. I'll bet they didn't expect to see her again in the land of the living.

TalkinPeace · 28/12/2013 17:39

Well she's microchipped and vaccinated : and in a right snot with a sore neck!
But she'd put on 300g in 10 days - which is more than 10% of body weight.

Vet was very impressed and has approximately aged her at 12 - based on teeth, claws, eyelids, scarring and hips
I've not taken many pics lately as she's still pretty darned lazy.
Back legs are still very weak but now I do not have to shut her in her little room at night she can roam and strengthen up.

Last night she watched the other two playing with a laser pointer - so all three within a few feet of each other - a tad of hissing but no more.

we're getting there !

OP posts:

Fluffycloudland77 · 28/12/2013 18:39

You are making excellent progress. Do you think you'll keep her?

cozietoesie · 28/12/2013 18:45

Of course she will!

I'll go with 12. Seems about right.

NOW - have you named her?

TalkinPeace · 28/12/2013 19:05

Fluffy
Yup, I think we are stuck with her now
cozie
her microchip gives her the name we picked before Christmas - Zing short for Zingiber
and she's down as being DSs cat as that is who she loves!

as soon as there are good photo ops I'll take some pictures and post them.

OP posts:

cozietoesie · 28/12/2013 19:12

Lordy - I clean forgot.

Does she answer to Zing yet?

TalkinPeace · 28/12/2013 19:21

no because deaf !
but do not call her late for lunch
starting to react to a tap on the floor or the sound of her (different from other cats) food bowl being moved

I suspect the deafness is age related but was made much worse by the starvation : she was well into major organ shutdown by the time I found her.

she went to look at the stairs just now. decided to try that one in a while!

OP posts:

cozietoesie · 28/12/2013 19:27

I reckon you have a chance with that name - despite her deafness. It has a good percussive quality if enunciated properly.

Good luck with her.

TalkinPeace · 01/01/2014 21:36

She can still hear absolutely nothing - clapping hands behind her head, banging on the floor etc
BUT
I've noticed as she's up and about much more that the arthritis in her back legs is really bad - she's still made no attempt to get onto any furniture or climb the stairs
so when she goes back to the vet shortly I'll get a bottle of metacam and see if that helps on the hearing as well

OP posts:

Don’t want to miss threads like this?

Weekly

Sign up to our weekly round up and get all the best threads sent straight to your inbox!

Email address

Log in to update your newsletter preferences.

You've subscribed!

Fluffycloudland77 · 01/01/2014 21:53

Poor zing. Would a hot water bottle soothe her joints?

TalkinPeace · 01/01/2014 21:57

the rug in front of the woodburner this afternoon seemed to work ok!
don't have a hot water bottle
when the house gets peaceful in the next day or two I'll try her with a lap!

OP posts:

cozietoesie · 01/01/2014 22:37

I'd be wondering about her having really bad arthritis simply because (if I recall) you said her tray use was good and that's often where it shows. If anything, I'd be inclined towards some continuing general weakness from starvation and muscle loss allied to wanting to stay downstairs - maybe because she knows you have other cats around and is happiest where she now feels the most confident.

Interesting to see what the vet says when she goes. I wonder how much weight she's put on now?

Flip

1 2 3 4

Please create an account

To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account.