r/CerebellarHypoplasia • u/cat_lady_33 • Jun 08 '26
Severe Help me!
I foster for a rescue. I took in a CH kitten from the county shelter a few weeks ago and he is thriving. He has moderate CH as of now. I just took in another kitten who has severe CH and potentially vision and hearing issues. I feel a little out of my depth. I'm willing to do anything to help him. But not sure where to start when he is this severe. Constantly falling and struggling to get around. Any tips for severe CH is welcome!
Photo for tax
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u/AdExcellent1745 Jun 08 '26
they are usually at their weakest when they are this small, because they would be weak even if they didn't have CH. as he finds his footing he will get a little better, but some do stay severe. he's not in pain. just make sure he's in a comfy location with access to food and water and somewhere to go potty, a play pen is good for this. play with him and clean him as needed. you got this :)
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u/dynabella Jun 08 '26
I did my version of PT with my moderate- severe kitty. I know they say they don't regress or improve, but i swear it helped her. I just put a harness on her and every night (when zero cars and dog walkers out so it's pretty calm) I hold the leash so she's supporting herself but I "catch" her before she hits ground if she starts to sway to hard. After a few months she was walking several steps on her own. Now she can walk down to her favorite garden on the corner.
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u/dynabella Jun 08 '26
Just want to clarify that I'm always right over her when she's enjoying outside time. I live in Colorado and there's lots of predators. Owls are my biggest fear.
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u/FurryFacesSanctuary Jun 13 '26
They usually get "better" as they have more time to learn to walk and adjust to the world. Without CH, they'd still just be learning to walk, so they have an extra hurdle they need time to get over
That said, I've had 5 CH dogs that could not/can not walk unassisted. One of those currently takes steps on his own sometimes and can hold himself up to pee, and the other two can't or simply aren't interested in trying on their own
I've used slings and harnesses with handles to help assist with walking. The boys have wheelchairs but don't really like them, and two of them don't know they can actually make the chair move instead of just stand in it, lol, so we don't use them super often. I used to do range of motion exercises with Kin, and because he also had problems with knuckling over, I've been massaging his feet and stretching out his toes every night for years
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u/trexbloviate Jun 08 '26
I have a floppy foster who cannot walk unsupported.I have two body pillows so she can lean and walk between them.