Feb 28 2009
Saddle Thrombus in Cats
Saddle thrombus, which is more accurately termed aortic thromboembolism, is a serious emergency which sneaks up on cats most often due to underlying heart disease.
Most owners don’t know what happened. Their cat’s back end suddenly doesn’t want to work. They are often dragging their back legs to move, may be open mouth breathing, and crying in pain. Some people confuse it with injury to the back.
What exactly happens is that a clot that has formed at some point dislodges from the place it formed and then lodges itself within a thinner portion of the vessel. Most times, this clot lodges in the far end of the aorta, which is located between the rear legs. Thus, blood supply is cut off to the back legs. They would feel cold on the feet and the paw pads may appear bluish from the lack of oxygen.
This is an extremely serious emergency and there is no home remedy. Even with quick attention, treatment is severe and the outcome not always a good one. Although many cases of saddle thrombus cannot be foreseen, it is always in a cat’s best interest to have a thorough physical exam every year to help early detection of heart disease that could lead to such an extreme situation. However, heart disease often lurks with no outward symptoms until something more severe occurs. Luckily, we do have the medications available today that can help some of these cats when they get medical attention a.s.a.p.
Christine, LVT
This happened to my wild-and-crazy Orion, too, “The Evil Orange Cat.” There didn’t seem to be any warning at all; one day he was the mighty hunter, the next he was immobile under the desk. Thanks for posting about this. I hadn’t heard of it until it happened to my cat.
This is a very serious problem, and can happen extremely suddenly. Unfortunately, many times the cat doesn’t get to the vet in time to treat it. A good topic for discussion!