Sunset Boulevard is a nine week old Kitten born with Cauda Equina Syndrome (CES) and two rear, club feet. She is a Manx; that means she was born without a tail. Sunset needs life-changing surgery. Saved from euthanasia by veterinarian she was immediately brought into Rescue. Her front end is so spicy sweet. We have to save her.

Her legs are completely lame. She never developed muscles. Her bones are twisted at every joint. She walks on her twisted hocks as if they were a foot pad. She failed her sensory tests. The walking is an automatic response. She is not aware. She is aware that she has legs. She can take a few steps. She stumbles. She falls in the water bowl. She was born incontinent. She was covered in sores, a UTI and other infections. Since coming into Rescue in April, she has improved slightly. We did veterinary acupuncture and she can now urinate and have a bowel movement.

There is nothing we can do to treat her conditions. They will only get worse. She is scheduled for bilateral rear amputation on June 4. I know this sounds scary, but I have done it successfully with three dogs and they thrive like a fully able dog. I have wheelchairs ready for her. Should she need them. Please support her journey for life-saving and life-changing surgery. Thank you so much.

Cauda Equina Syndrome

About

Cauda equina eyndrome is a condition where the spinal canal narrows and puts pressure on nerves in the lumbar (low back) and sacral (part of the spine that sits in the pelvis) areas. Cauda equina syndrome is also referred to as spinal stenosis or narrowing of the spinal canal. The nerves are crushed. They may not even have had a chance to fully develop.

Cauda equina syndrome is rarely found in cats. When it does occur it can caused by anything from a birth defect to a protozoa.

Symptoms

* Trouble walking, inability to walk, or total lameness

* Pain in the low back near the hips and tail

* Weakness/paralysis in the back legs and muscle wasting

* Weakness/paralysis of the tail or carrying the tail abnormally low

* Incontinence with urine, feces, or both (rare)

Treatment

Cauda equina is a progressive disease and symptoms will worsen over time.

Disease Information Sites

There don’t appear to be any websites devoted to this condition in cats.

Support Groups

I couldn’t find any groups devoted to cauda equina support, probably because this condition is so rare in cats.

Bilateral Club Foot

The condition (often called twisted leg syndrome or tarsal hyperextension/arthrogryposis) occurs when the tendons, ligaments, and muscles in the leg are tightened or twisted due to fetal positioning.

Sunny has a severe case. Each joint from her hip to her toes is twisting a different direction. As she grows, this will only get worse.

Treatment

There is no corrective surgical option for Sunny B.

Sores and Lesions

Sunny arrived in Rescue in far worse condition when she arrived in the herd. Her wounds are severe. Her entire rear end, including her Volta and anus are infected and bloody. We suspect this was from dragging. Sunny was incontinent with both urine and bowel movements. Her infections are coming along, but they are still severe.

She has sores on her legs from dragging. While they do look a little better, they will never heal completely. Right now we are battling systemic & localized infections.

Treatment

Antibiotic injection and petroleum jelly.

Incontinence

Sunny was unable to have a bowel movement or urinate on her own. She had to be physically expressed multiple times daily. We immediately got her into veterinary acupuncture to improve that situation after two sessions. She had a bowel movement on her own. A week and a half later on our way home from Florida. She peed all by herself in the car. And she peed and she peed and she peed. Which she can’t do is control it. So when she urinate, it is running down her legs. She cannot wear a diaper right now because of the sore on her bottom. So we clean and we clean and we clean.

Manx

A Manx is a cat that was born without a tail. Sunset does not have a tail. We don’t know if that is a genetic defect or has been caused by the CES. It’s just one more thing that makes her unique. It’s one more thing that makes her an excellent candidate to be a house shrimp.

Thank you for supporting Sunset Boulevard journey, you can follow her progress on all of the socials as The Herd House : #OperationSunsetBoulevard