Cat Walking Flat Footed On Front Legs
The heel will be touching the ground as the cat walks.
Cat walking flat footed on front legs. Before this leg issue I took him to find out if he was diabetic as well and they did the UA to see what his glucose levels were. If he has always walked this way then there are a few possibilities and these will affect him more if he has gotten overweight. This is due to a condition called diabetic neuropathy and indicates the disease has been present for quite some time.
He is asthmatic and has been receiving regular steroid shots for years for this. Keep your knees flexed and feet shoulder width apart. This will allow all the downward pointing spikes to engage and disengage at the same time.
In such cases the cat will experience weakness in the legs and so it will start walking on the sole of the foot. Thats why its quite common to see a cat with a limping front leg. Therefore the cat will walk flat-footed from the carpal wrist joint downward.
This is a common injury in cats who fall from a great height- they use their front feet to catch themselves on impact and hyperextend the wrist. According to Mike Richards DVM at VetInfo For Cats Ketamine and Xylazine the two most common drugs used for the first stage of anesthesia can in rare instances cause central nervous system problems. If this is the case stop petting the cat and figure out whats stressing it.
All will make him walk more flat-footed. Diabetes can also lead to an increased water consumption and increased amount of urination. For example your cat decided to do a sudden stunt and jumped out in front of your moving vehicle or leaped down from a high windowsill.
Puppies affected by carpal issues usually show signs between the ages of 6 to 12 weeks although symptoms can appear later. Your cat might arch its back alongside showing its teeth flattening its ears assuming a rigid posture and widening its eyes. Flat-footed or plantigrade stance is where the rear paws contact the ground from the toes to the hock or at least to where the hocks are noticeably lower.
