With a 13+ yr old cat, with or without the seizure, I'd have insisted on a full blood chemistry, CBC, and Total T4. These are standard tests for geriatric felines and should be run yearly, anyway. With a grand mal seizure in the mix, this bloodwork would have been the FIRST thing I'd make sure was done.

Laurie

I will schedule blood work, pretty much made up my mind to do that as soon as I got home. Would you believe this guy this evening? The other cat is sitting on my lap as I watch tv, Kitty's usual place. Kitty starts walking around and acting out! I watched as he went into the library under the Christmas tree - the tree starts to tremble - he's tossing around the extension cord!He's never ever done that. I call out for him to stop, which he does. He then stomps over to the corner of the rug and starts flipping it around, looks right at me because he knows he's not suppose to do that either. Finally I decide to find the new catnip toy I bought, the one both cats actually went crazy for, so he has something to take his frustration out on. All I could find was an older one which he wasn't interested in. By this time the other cat is off my lap of course and wanted back outside. Kitty now gets to sit on my lap and he's happy and settles down. :)

Interesting topic ... sorry you are going through this, I am too, but with my dog, Rocky.

Rocky had a seizure in September ... he was at my feet under the computer desk, I thought he was being electrocutted since I have never experienced this before. Scared the heck out of me!

Took him to the vet, researched online too (Collie's are one breed that is on the list prone to seizures). Vet said the same thing, wait and see if he has another one.

Well he did, minor seizure compared to the first, last Saturday night. Am taking him to the vet this Saturday for bloodwork.

I do love your description of Kitty acting out ... they are so funny!

Hope Kitty is OK!

Well, I got online too and sometimes that's not the best thing to do. But all along I keep thinking it could be a head or neck injury - I mean the fierce fighting that when on between he and that feral cat the first few months she was here plus the fights with the neighbor's big neutered male at the same time sure could have an effect on an older guy, especially when the vet made the casual remark that one of his eyes was bigger than the other. Whaaaa? He's always been a fighter, no stray cats allowed on his property!

Yes, he can be very playful and ornery. I especially get a kick out of it when outside he will suddenly leap in the air and run as fast as he can and right up a tree. Forgot to tell you that the first thing he did when I let him out of the crate after his vet visit was go out on the porch and sharpen his claws on the edge of the wood! He has an appt., will let you know what blood work and poss. xray reveal.

Kitty was very wobbly while walking down the hallway this morning, fell once, then sat very still. I think it's a head injury. What I don't understand is why the vet wouldn't have given this more thought, esp. because of the one eye. Like I said, I never noticed it until the vet mentioned it. We go in at 3:15pm. today.

Yes.....the eye situation is a red flag. By one eye larger, do you mean his pupil or that the whole eye is bulging? Pupilary size and response are indicators of neurological status and having an abnormality in that respect doesn't necessarily differentiate between injury or neoplasms by their presence. I'm suspecting the vet did take it into consideration and is doing a conservative approach and that may be one reason he chose not to do the bloodwork immediately, neither of which would address injuries or neoplasms. I don't see his 'wait and see' response out of line. Hoping you have a fruitful visit and that kitty is going to be OK.

The right pupil appears smaller than the left. We just got back from the vet. The vet is leaning towards epilepsy or a tumor, not head injury. He drew blood and will phone tomorrow morning with the results. As far as the pupil, he double checked, the size wasn't terribly unusual, there was good nerve(?)response and no bulge at the back of the eyeball.

Just as you mentioned, he explained that an injury would be difficult to determine without an MRI or Cat Scan. He wants to see the blood work results first. Thanks for the concern.

Vet called awhile ago. Kitty's blood work is fine. Kidney levels a little elevated but reasonable for a 13.5 yr. old, liver enzymes good. Nothing else notable, but he suggested that I bring Kitty in Monday to have his blood pressure checked.

Just so you know, elevations in renal blood values won't be evident in blood tests until at least 66% of renal function has already been lost. So "a little elevated" is a very significant finding in terms of kidney health. Chronic renal failure is something that you should start researching now, because early diagnosis and management are key to prolonging a good quality of life for your boy. The most comprehensive resource for CRF information can be found at the link below.

Here is a link that might be useful: Tanya's Comprehensive Guide to Feline Chronic Renal Failure

...and 'epilepsy' is a diagnosis of exclusion. So if your vet says it's epilepsy, that doesn't tell you anything if there's been no further testing and analysis. So could still be brain tumor or kidney issues. I'd be managing his diet and probably getting a second vet opinion - neurologist.

The thing is, if conventional testing does not find a cause for the seizures after all else has been ruled out, and brain lesion is what's left by exclusion..........what would be your course of action if it were confirmed? Chemo would probably only be palliative and buy time. Would you opt for that in a thirteen year old cat just to extend his life with questionable quality?

If the answer is no, then would you be willing to spend four figures just to have a positive diagnosis about which you would take no action anyway? I would, and have spent that much on a cat whose treatment had a good chance of cure and he coud expect years of qualty time left, but I would not spend it on a pet just to buy (probably with little quality) time. I suspect your vet is trying to be as conservative as possible to rule out everything else before you put yourself in a situation where you might have to make that choice. Honest discussion with his/her insight is called for soon. Meanwhile, controlling the seizures with medication is not unreasonable as a palliative measure if they become too bad.