Eclampsia in a cat: symptoms and treatment

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

The appearance of kittens is a joyful event. If these kittens are not just purchased, but born to your own cat, it's just a holiday! It would seem that when all the kids curled up in the basket, you can breathe easy. But it was not there. Now it is necessary to monitor the newly-made mother even more closely, since pregnancy could lead to a dangerous disease called eclampsia. A cat that has just given birth has no chance of coping with the disease without your help.

Eclampsia

This is an acute nervous disorder that occurs in recently born and lactating animals. Eclampsia in cats after childbirth is most often caused by a lack of calcium in the body. This leads to a metabolic disorder, which leads to seizures, and often the death of a pet. Clinical signs of the disease are similar to those of epilepsy. Most often, this pathology overtakes young cats in the first week after the appearance of offspring. In addition, the disease can occur against the background of teething, poor nutrition, infectious diseases. Whatever the cause of the pathology, it is necessary to immediately begin treatment.

Causes of occurrence

According to observations, postpartum eclampsia in cats occurs most often for three reasons. This may be a genetic predisposition, impaired metabolism or external causes. The latter is understood as too frequent childbirth, mastitis, a large number of cubs in one offspring, lack of nutrients.

Symptoms

Eclampsia in a cat has well-defined symptoms, but sometimes they can be confused with signs of nervous disorders. That is why it is impossible to independently prescribe treatment to an animal; a specialist should do this after a series of tests and analyzes. Especially important is the blood test, which will show the concentration of calcium in the blood.

After giving birth, it is necessary to observe the animal very carefully in order to see in time that it develops eclampsia. In cats, the symptoms of this disease can be as follows:

- pet behaves inappropriately, she looks like she is lost;

- mastitis appeared;

- the mood of the cat changes dramatically from horror to happiness;

- reduced temperature;

- impaired coordination;

- dilated pupils;

- convulsions.

Yesterday a friendly cat today can start hiding from everything and everyone,including from their own kittens. Immediately, she can rush to the offspring, drag the cubs one by one, transferring them to other places. Eclampsia in a cat can also manifest itself in the fact that she begins to bite herself, bite kittens, and be in fear all the time. Sometimes this behavior even ends with the fact that she eats her offspring.

About 8-12 hours after the first signs of illness appear, the muscles lose their elasticity and become stiff. For this reason, the cat can take strange poses, bend, trying to eliminate this inconvenience.

Treatment

Treatment must begin immediately. It consists in saturating the body with calcium. However, it must be remembered that its excess is just as harmful as its deficiency. Therefore, only a doctor can prescribe medications and recommend doses.

So, having noticed the signs of the disease, you should immediately contact the veterinarian. Before taking, you can enter one and a half cubes of calcium gluconate and 3 cubes of "Gamavit". If it is noticed that a cat licks, drags, bites kittens, they must be separated for about a day.

If the disease is severe, the animal will be left in the clinic for a few days. Eclampsia in cats, which is treated early, resolves fairly quickly. The animal is injected with a calcium solution intravenously. If you will be doing injections at home, you should remember a few simple rules:

- at home, the drug is administered only intramuscularly;

- it is better to acquire "human" calcium, it is absorbed by catsmuch better than veterinary;

- the introduction must be done in different places, each time changing limbs;

- calcium must be heated to a temperature higher than room temperature, so it is worth holding the syringe in your hands for several minutes before insertion.

Forecast

Postpartum eclampsia in cats treated promptly has a very favorable prognosis. Just a few injections of the drug, and the cat will not even remember the disease. However, only a few days without treatment, and the animal will no longer need help at all.

It is for this reason that it is necessary to pay maximum attention to the cat who has given birth, noticing any, even minor, deviations from her usual behavior.

Prevention

In order to avoid such a dangerous disease as eclampsia in a cat, it is necessary to carry out prevention. In this case, prevention is proper nutrition. And not only during pregnancy and lactation, but before that. The animal's diet should contain the optimal amount of calcium.

If for some reason the cat does not receive the specified macronutrient, it is necessary to give it calcium preparations that will compensate for its deficiency in the body. However, we must not forget that its excess is no less harmful. Therefore, if a cat receives calcium from medicines, their dosage should be calculated by a veterinarian.

Only careful attention to the pet and timely contact with a specialist in case of suspicion of eclampsia guarantee the preservationhe alth and life of the cat and its cubs.