I'm presently visiting someone who has a very old cat and his 2 front feet look as if they've become splayed. It's not the claws/pads area. It's the feet. They no longer go straight. They go sideways.
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I find it sad looking. Meaning I feel affected by what's going on for this cat and to me he looks as if he's in pain.

Has anyone seen this in older cats? He is a white cat with black spots. Used to be quite overweight but that is under control now. I wonder if the years of carrying all that weight around were the reason for this foot problem although his owner says this is new.

I haven't had very good internet access recently but just had a look in google now but mostly it came up with hind leg problems.

thanks.

Edited to add: should have mentioned he's 18 human years old

May be low B12 . They develop this from malabsorption From
Damage to the GI tract from food with gluten.
When Oreo was ill I saw several owners picking up B12 injections
At the vet. Low calorie cat food is mostly low fat and that
May have lots of corn in it. Cats should really not have
Corn either. Sounds like neuropathy to me. They can also
Be diabetic and lose feeling from that in the toes.
Either way perhaps it is time for euthanasia?

It is sad.

Thanks so much. Yes, he's been on low calorie food. Not sure what is in it.
He's always been obsessive eater.

I can't see him living too long. It's difficult for me to tell the person here that I think it's time.

I just don't want to see him in pain.
He needs to go to the vet about this asap. (sunday here in heatwave so it won't be today)

I'll see how this goes. I will only be here a day or two longer so I'll try to observe. He's just too old and sad IMO.

I know this might sound like a strange question at the moment but would adding some fish oil (Omegas) help with any pain he might have?

I'll get the owner to talk to the vet about the B12. That makes perfect sense.

thanks again

When Sheba was very old she was checked for diabetes.

There is a blog on Google about a ginger tom with diabetes getting B12 too. I can't recall its name now.

He may have lost the weight due to diabetes... that is one of the signs. But the high grain content in low cal kibble here in the states is thought today to cause inflammation of the GI tract leading to low B12 that way. You can Google that too...that is why there are some good grain free foods available here for cats.

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When Oreo was on her last year, with the chemo for her cancer I crushed a methylcobalamin and put it in her whipped cream, twice a week. (that was her snack). She accepted it, and it really perked her up. The vet even remarked about it. I think it helped her live that last year, and still be active and relatively normal. (she was 15 when she died--we put her to sleep when her two tumors suddenly got large within days--she became very weak within days!)

Here is another link:

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I suppose he could have hurt himself jumping down? But not likely. Sheba's feet never did anything like that and she was older than this cat. Old cats also go into kidney failure. No hope for treatment for that either... so it is euthanasia for that too.

I have just done some investigating and endured a long conversation.

He's actually 19, not 18.
He's on a renal diet. His kidney function is OK now since starting this renal diet, whatever that means.

He was on the low calorie special diet but that was stopped 5 years ago.

He definitely does not have diabetes.

I checked what was in the renal diet and told them to check for corn.
No corn the owner said. I looked at it myself and there you go... maize.

Maize this and maize that, gluten this and gluten that. I said there is corn in the food. No. 1 ingredient. (just an aside I just went looking at all the other animal food in the pantry and the dog food has No. 3 ingredient - sugar. Say what?)

Anyway owner said no, it's maize. I said ummm, maize is corn. lol sheesh
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Owner "no it's not, it's wheat". Me "maize is corn". Owner "Hang on a sec, I'll go look it up".
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I thought about the cat hurting himself jumping down but it seems as if it's something else to me.

After hearing about the last couple of years of medical history, I think this strange weakness/change in the front feet is connected. Just my feeling after reading what is in this vet prescribed renal diet.

Great idea about the crushed up B12. I'll suggest that.

I'll let you know how Spotty gets on when he goes to the vet. I think his days are numbered really. I still think he's in pain, but owner doesn't seem to think that is the case.

thanks so much. Good to have someone to talk to about this as talking to the owner feels a lot like this ...


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Is this poor cat declawed?

No he's not declawed.
It's actually against the law to declaw a cat here although as far as I know, vets can do the procedure if it is in the best interest of the cat for health reasons and that would be a very rare thing to happen.