Tripawds Three Legged Dog & Cat Forum Archives

Hi Josh,

Welcome. Your future posts won't need to wait for approval so post away.

What you are describing sounds a lot like the "Cats walking backward after amputation surgery" phenomena. It happens more than most vets think, we just tend to see it a quite often here because we have such a concentration of animal amputees joining us. It's a type of unaddressed pain, probably phantom pain , which is when the severed nerves have a miscommunication signal with the brain, trying to tell it to move the leg when it actually isn't there anymore. It happens in humans, and dogs, and cats, who tend to express differently than dogs do, like what you are describing. The good news is that it usually subsides in time and medication and rehab can help control it faster.

This article will lead you to some information you can talk to about with your vet. These Forums search results show that it happens to others, too. My suggestion is to call your vet, describe the symptoms and how often they happen, and request that your cat be put back on Gabapentin (or Pregabalin, which tends to be more accurately responsive to pain), for at least 2 weeks.

Also, please consider taking advantage of our Tripawds Rehabilitation Therapy program which can pay for your first rehab visit . These experts are great at pinpointing the source of uncontrolled pain and their therapy is often needed in addition to pain medication to control the pain faster.

Keep us posted!