Cat taking a 'funny turn' and not sure what's wrong

[TheGirlOnTheLanding]

A couple of weeks ago, BiteyCat was fast asleep on his favourite spot on the sofa and suddenly made a horrible yowling noise, stared fixedly at a spot near the door, then slunk off to the couch to sit in a different room. When I went to check on him, his pupils were dilated, he was hunched up, and he hissed at me (which he doesn't tend to do these days) so I was worried he had somehow hurt himself, or woken up sore. We kept a close eye on him that evening and the next day and he seemed back to his normal self - there was no limping or straining over the litter tray, he was eating normally, going out as usual - so we thought maybe he'd just objected to being woken up (a door upstairs had been closed less than carefully by one of the DC) but we've been keeping an eye on him.

All seemed fine till this morning. Again, he was snuggled up asleep (this time at the foot of my bed) while I was drying my hair, getting dressed etc as normal, then, as I walked past the end of the bed he suddenly woke, flinched back and grumbled, then crouched, tense and wide-eyed and defensive, before slinking off. Both times, he's looked really scared and as though he'd attack if you got too close. He was very reactive when we first got him, and though he is normally pretty relaxed these days we know the body language! I'm fairly certain he's not injured but puzzling about what caused this and how to avoid it in future, other than tiptoeing round him more carefully when he's asleep. Could it be he's becoming deaf so just got a real fright? We think he's about 8 (not sure as he's a rescue and was a stray before that) so too young for dementia I'd say.

Dilated pupils can be a sign of poisoning. It isn't something voluntary. Unless you and cat were in very dim light. Could he have eaten or drank something outside?

He could have - but as I say, the first incident was two weeks ago, was back to normal very quickly, and he's been fine since, until this morning, so if he'd been poisoned I'd have expected the effects to last longer and not be intermittent. His eyes go very dark and pupils dilate when he's about to attack (I've seen it when he's gone after another cat in our garden).

It's worth getting kitty checked out. I had a lovely cat with epilepsy whose pupils were enormous during a seizure m

I think I'd want to rule out a stroke, just to be on the safe side.

Yes, I think you're right, as it's not a one-off, I think I need the vet to take a look. @Wrongsideofhistorymyarse what were your cat's symptoms other than that? There was no obvious fitting, just the horrible noise and defensive reaction afterwards.

Could it be feline hyperesthesia?

OP the first seizure I noticed was an absence seizure. His others involved him running around in circles and yowling, which were terrifying to witness.

@woooweeeee I've never heard of that, but on googling I don't think so, as he hasn't been over grooming or chasing his tail at all.

@Wrongsideofhistorymyarse that sounds horrible. The first instance for us was less dramatic but similarly upsetting - it really was an unearthly noise he made, nothing like anything I'd heard him vocalise before.