Why is My Cat Shaking His Head?

 

Has your cat started shaking his head or frequently scratching his ear?  If so, you might want to have him checked for ear polyps.  This is one of several conditions that impact a cat's ears and the most common.  This condition in cats doesn't have an absolute cause but one school of thought is that they are triggered by a virus and frequently develop in younger cats.  Cats who are positive for leukemia and FIV might be more susceptible to getting them since their immune systems can't fight infections as well.

What is a polyp?  According to vethelpdirect.com, they are fibrous "non cancerous  overgrowths of cells," attached to the ear.   The most common locations for polyps in cats are:

1. In the ear canal.
2. Within the middle ear (so beyond the ear drum).
3. In the back of the throat – here they often start in the middle ear and grow down, exiting through the Eustacian tube and into the back of the throat!

If you've ever talked to your vet about cleaning your cat's ears, you'll have learned that the structure of a cat's inner is really unique and designed to help cats have super hearing as well as their amazing balance and agility.  Bluepearlvet.com describes it this way:

"The ear canal is a long tube that originates at the base of the earflap and extends to the eardrum to form the external ear. The middle ear is a hollow cavity (bulla) within the skull that is separated by the eardrum and contains three fine bones that transmit sound to the inner ear.

The balance organ and a hearing organ that change sound into electrical signals are located in the inner ear. The sympathetic nerves are located within the middle ear. The auditory tube runs from the middle ear to the throat."

BCR's Georgia has ear polyps in her ear canal being treated right now and Popcorn has experienced them in the past.  Her procedure resulted in her having her head tilt.  (You can read Popcorn's story here.) 

The signs and symptoms of ear polyps are similar to those you'd see in a cat with an ear infection, mites or a another kind of blockage:  shaking the head, scratching or rubbing the ear, pain when the ear is touched, a bad odor and, in some cases, discharge.  If the polyp and infection are in a cat's inner ear, they may also have a head tilt or frequent shifting of the eyes.  Throat polyps can cause difficulty breathing.

As always, if you see your cat experiencing any of these symptoms, go to your vet immediately.  Knowing your cat's medical history and any existing conditions will help the vet figure out if your cat has polyps or if there's another problem at work.  The vet may use an otoscope to look for a polyp in the cat's ear canal, and will likely examine his mouth and nose, too.  Depending on what the vet finds, additional tests might be needed and could include an X-ray or CT scan.

So what do you do if your cat does have an ear polyp?  First, your vet will surgically remove the polyp.  Depending on where the polyp is located and how far it has extended, the surgery could be a simple removal or might require a more invasive procedure.  If it's a simple removal, recovery is pretty fast.  The ear scratching and other symptoms should disappear right away and your cat should get back to normal.  Do keep an eye on your cat because ear polyps return in about 50% of the cases.

Popcorn has done extremely well after her last polyp removal in 2013 and we expect Georgia to make a full recovery, too.  As you would do with your cat, we'll monitor them both to watch for any new signs of polyps.

CLICK HERE to read the full bluepearlvet.com article.

CLICK HERE to read the full vethelpdirect.com article.