11 month old cat with hydrocephalus

by **Rang** » Mon Jul 16, 2012 12:37 pm

Hello all, I am new to this board. I'm not sure if this is the right forum but our shelter had an 11 month old cat returned to use about a week ago. It was obvious to us right away that something was off with him. We took him to the vet in the next day or two. The vet diganosed him with hydrocephalus. I searched the web and everything talks about very small kittens. Well this guy is little but we know that he is 11 months old. Our vet said he likely has a decent life span because if it was sever he wouldn't have lived this long. He does have neruological deficits. He walks a little funny and his reaction time is a little slower than it should be.The other important bit of information is that he was accidently stepped on when he was still in his home and had some broken ribs. He was taken to the emergancy vet and treated for those. He was returned to us because he was shy and was not getting along with the other cats in the home. Ideally I would like to take him to a specialist, but money is tight right now. I'm just wondering if anyone here has experience with hydrocephalus and if they know of a cat that has lived into adulthood with this condition? I also want to mention that when I saw him last night I thought maybe his head was smaller than it had been. Any help or comments would be appreciated.

by **critters** » Sat Jul 21, 2012 10:06 am

It's not very common; one was supposed to come here some years ago, but he didn't make it. When I was researching it, I think I remember seeing something about occasional use of a shunt, which is what they use in humans. I agree that if it were severe he wouldn't have made it this long. I doubt you'll need to do anything special since he's so high functioning.

by **Rang** » Mon Jul 30, 2012 3:26 pm

His name is Cinamon and he is just the sweetest boy. He is a little wobly and has a hard time with his balance at times but who cares as long as he is happy.

by **critters** » Tue Jul 31, 2012 8:35 am

Rang wrote:His name is Cinamon and he is just the sweetest boy. He is a little wobly and has a hard time with his balance at times but who cares as long as he is happy.

Agreed!

by **Jean** » Fri Aug 31, 2012 7:52 pm

I have a 10 year old cat with hydrocephalus. His name is Benny and he is a flame point Siamese with the bluest eyes. I have had him since he was 8 weeks old. He was found by a good Samaritan and left at my Vet. I took him to a neurologist soon after my Vet gave him to me. He put him on prednisone until he reached a year of age. The prednisone was to control any swelling that might occur while his brain was growing and before
the bones in his skull had fused.
Benny does have significant cognitive impairment as well balance problems. He also has incontinent issues and severe nystagmus. But, he is a real sweetheart and loves to cuddle. My Vet marvels that he has lived this long. We are just glad for each day he shares with our family./JeanY