can neuropathy cause inappetence?

Can diabetic neuropathy caused the cat to become inappetent or impact the amount of food that they consume? Can their weakness impact their willingness or ability to get to the food dish?

 

OK remember ECID
but my Trouble had severe neuropathy he couldnt walk but two steps without having to lay down and rest. BUT he was also a piggy. Neuropathy NEVER kept him from his food. I believe he would scoot across the Sahara to eat.

He was completely cured of it, through lower BG's and taking MB12. I think it was 5 mg? crushed up in every meal. We even used the cherry flavored tablets. He never tasted it and it never raised his BG's. But thats just our story.

Jeanne

 

Misty had slight neuropathy but never had a problem eating food.

 

I would say it depends. Most cats with neuropathy are not regulated and do not process food well and thus want to eat a lot. However, if the diabetes is rally uncontrolled he may also feel bad and not want to eat. I have heard that neuropathy is not painful so that is not a reason for not eating. Further, if they are not that active they might not need to eat much.

 

I would tend to think the neuropathy is a symptom, not a cause. Can you explain more about the cat's condition? I wonder if something else is going on.

laur

 

Plenty going on but not a sugar kitty. Just got the word today [finally] that F [ironically] likely has "DM" or degenerative myelopathy which is fairly rare in cats. The only references to "myelopathy" on this site are from my postings - and there is little info on it related to cats. It is a degeneration of the spinal cord. The symptoms are very similar to diabetic neuropathy - ataxia, but not necessarily painful etc. And he has inappetance and is just barely getting enough food with appetite stimulants. We are still working on sorting out his pathologies [so lymphoma is potentially in the equation too]. I was just wanting to know if neuropathy can lead a cat to not eat as much as they should or not since the issues are so similar in their symptoms. And I guess trying to line up to symptoms with the potential diseases.

Thank you for everyone's input.

 

I'm sorry to hear about F's illness. My Min also had a condition that's extremely rare in cats, even though it's not uncommon in dogs. There was almost nothing on cats on the web, but I was able to get some good tips from the dog-related sites and support groups, so maybe you can too. Check out this site and this for suggested supplements, acupuncture, etc. There is also a doctor referenced on the first site. Why not look up the doc's info and contact him? Believe me, between Min and Coco's neuro issues, I have contacted many a vet or researcher. They were all very nice and willing to talk to me. You might be able to get some leads to other things to look into, if nothing else.

PS this article also mentions the same researcher. Definitely contact him.

good luck,
laur

 

laur,

Thank you for all the custom research. :smile: I did join the Yahoo "DM" group that is really for dogs too.