Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome

The term ‘Hyperesthesia’ refers to an increased sensitivity of one of the senses. In humans, it can take many forms, including auditory (when painful loud sounds are heard despite nothing actually happening in the environment) and smell (when powerful scents are detected despite no trigger).

In cats, Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome specifically refers to a heightened sensitivity to touch – that’s why it is also known as rippling skin syndrome or twitchy cat syndrome.

This article is on my site because my 12-year-old Ragdoll cat Charlie got it – skin rippling, flipping around to bite, itch, or scratch. He was never at peace – constantly attacking his body. I don’t think he slept for an hour for three weeks or more until I put him on steroids (not the recommended thing to do).

What’s happening is that, basically, their bodies are raging with inflammation from toxins that are continually circulating in their bodies.

This isn’t a rare, strange, or mysterious syndrome. A moderator on the Feline Hyperesthesia Group on Facebook told me that five people a day join the group there – 5 people a day! This is starting to be an epidemic with our cats, and we need to help educate our veterinarians as to why this is happening.

But first, let’s walk through the formalities…

What is Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome?

Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome – sometimes called rippling skin syndrome – is a condition that can affect some cats. It gives them extremely sensitive skin, which can cause them distress, particularly if they are petted in that area. It has other names, too, including neuritis, atypical neurodermatitis, and ‘twitchy cat disease.’

Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome Signs and Symptoms

There are various signs that your cat might be suffering from FHS. You may see the skin itself reacting – rippling or rolling from the shoulders, down the back, and up to the tail. It’s not always visible. What you might see instead is a change in your cat’s behavior – they might suddenly react to their tail or flanks as if they are being pestered – even in their sleep – or they might try to lick or bite at the area. Their tail might twitch, and they may react badly if you try to stroke them in the affected area.

Diagnosing FHS

Diagnosing Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome is not straightforward, and there are a number of tests that a conventional veterinarian will do.

Many of these tests will be done to rule out alternative causes of the behavior in the cat, such as spinal arthritis, skin parasites, allergies, and fungal infections. These could include X-rays and MRIs. This is called a diagnosis of exclusion – working out what it isn’t before ending up at hyperesthesia.

You can also post a video in the Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome Group on Facebook, and those experienced FHS cat owners can tell you if it looks like it.

Neurologic

Some of the neurological conditions that will be ruled out before a diagnosis of FHS are epilepsy, spinal diseases such as neoplasia, and brain tumors. Because Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome is not always simple to treat, these serious but understood conditions need to be removed from the potential causes first.

Behavioral

There are a couple of behavioral conditions that could be causing your cat to act in ways similar to those with FHS. These are compulsive disorders and displacement behaviors. Your vet will look at whether your cat may be suffering from these before considering a formal FHS diagnosis.

Musculoskeletal

Myositis and myopathy are two musculoskeletal conditions that can have similar symptoms – these will be checked for by your vet before confirming FHS.

Dermatologic

As mentioned above, there are several dermatological conditions that may cause skin irritation that could see a cat reacting to the area near their tail, including flea allergy dermatitis, atopy, or a food allergy.

Clinical Signs

The clinical signs of Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome include sudden bouts of either hyperactive or aggressive behavior from the cat, frantic grooming that’s directed toward the tail or the back, a sudden fixation with the tail, including chasing or attacking it, and the rippling of the skin.

Some cats may also show dilated pupils and may appear to be hallucinating – following the movements of something which is not there. Many cats suffering from FHS will also be very vocal and may display a change in mood – aloof cats may suddenly be more affectionate. In contrast, loving cats can become more aggressive due to their sensitivity.

Insidious Form

Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome often takes an insidious form, which means that it comes on gradually over time rather than suddenly appearing.

The result is that it can be harder to spot – the changes in your cat’s behavior may occur slowly over a long period of time and not be as noticeable. If you start to notice subtle changes, try to look back over their behavior over the past few months to determine whether your cat has been showing signs for longer than you realized.

Pathophysiology

Some veterinarians believe Feline Hyperesthesia to be related to obsessive-compulsive disorders, which can be triggered by varying chemical levels in your cat:

Serotonin

If your cat’s brain isn’t producing enough serotonin, it can lead to incidences of compulsive disorders, which some believe are related to the behaviors triggered by FHS.

Opiates

Some theorize that increased levels of opiates in the brain create a pleasure sensation in your cat when they are acting on their compulsions, which reinforces the behaviors and encourages the cat to keep doing them.

Dopamine

Cats with increased dopamine levels can sometimes show an increased frequency of compulsive behaviors.

However, it’s important to note that only some veterinarians believe that FHS is linked with compulsive disorders. A Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine professor believes it could instead be linked to problems related to seizures.

The definitive cause is still widely debated, and seizure activity is sometimes related to compulsive behaviors too.

You’ll learn from the videos included in this post, though, that there is another school of thought – that it comes from a toxic overload in the cat – vaccines, flea medications, fragrances in the home, chemicals used in the home, drugs from anesthesia and more.

Toxicity and Imbalance – A Holistic View of FHS

Because the formal cause of FHS is still debated, it can leave cat owners feeling frustrated.

But it may be that several causes cumulate, including stress and imbalance in your cat’s body because of toxicity.

Dr. Richard Pitcairn, a veterinary homeopath, stated that conditions like FHS (considered a type of psychomotor seizure) are indicative of rabies vaccinosis.

Toxicity doesn’t refer to poisons – but instead to a variety of factors that can affect your cat’s various systems in their body, triggering imbalance and causing them to work ineffectively.

There are a huge number of potential factors that could be causing this toxicity. Pam of Purrfectly Holistic identifies flea treatments and vaccines as two prominent potential causes, but it differs for every cat and every home and could be dietary issues, chemicals within the products in your home, chemicals in the air, and more.

Pam was the one who healed my 12-year-old (at the time) Ragdoll cat Charlie.

In July 2021, my 12-year-old Ragdoll cat, Charlie, started showing signs of Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome. Our vet confirmed what was going on. Our veterinarian didn’t have much experience with it – only had one other cat that had had it in her 20 years of veterinary care.

Knowing that Gabapentin was the drug of choice to “control” the syndrome, I knew it wouldn’t work for my Charlie based on prior experiences with another veterinarian. So, I started seeking holistic help. We saw many folks and did many consultations before I finally tried Pam – and she’s the only one who truly helped him heal.

Feline Hyperesthesia Treatment

Most veterinarians only know how to treat the problem (symptoms) of the syndrome – few know how to go after the problem of the syndrome…and that’s medicating these kitties so they don’t mutilate their bodies.

With the holistic approach, the opposite view is taken. Instead of tackling the symptoms with treatments, you can work with a holistic specialist like Pam at Purrfectly Holistic, and they will help identify the common causes. They’ll then give you a plan on how to detox your kitty from those causes and the products you should use.

Every cat is unique – what made your FHS kitty become a FHS kitty could be entirely different than what made Charlie one. It’s essential to have a specific detox plan designed for him/her. That’s why I loved working with Pam – before working with her, I was throwing things against the wall to see if they stuck, and Charlie suffered through it.

One thing that’s harder with the holistic route is knowing which product will work, etc., and having no guidance. Pam gave me detailed guidance on what to use, how much, how often, etc.

There are six main steps to the holistic approach:

1. Nourish – Make sure your cat has the energy they need to tackle the issue. Depending on your cat’s existing diet, this step might not be necessary. It was not necessary for my Charlie
2. Detox – removing the bad energies from your cat using detoxifier products
3. Rebuilding a healthy gut – 100% of the cats with this syndrome have leaky guts.
4. Rebuilding a healthy immune system – this ties in with the healthy gut since 70% of the immune system is in the gut.
5. Diet modification – Getting your cat onto a species-appropriate diet, which may need to be a novel protein diet
6. Home modification – Removing toxins from your home, including chemically-treated products, plugin “air fresheners”, fragrant laundry soaps, and detergents

There is no single list of products you should use to treat FHS holistically. That’s because the causes will be different for each cat. A specialist can evaluate your cat’s energy and lifestyle and determine from there what the likely stressors are.

The goal then is to remove the triggers in your cat’s environment, detox them to remove the negative influences in their body (such as heavy metals from vaccines and more), and then use products to help rebuild your cat’s systems. Healing your kitty in this way can help to put an end to FHS symptoms.

Here’s a video interview with Pam that talks through the process:

Some of the products that Pam recommends in that video are:

• Newton’s Detoxifier for Pets
• Detox Blend or Liver Defense by Animal Essentials
• Adored Beast’s Liver Tonic
• Thuja Occidentalis (to combat vaccine side effects)

Important – these products should only be taken as part of a treatment plan as discussed with a holistic specialist, and you should consult with your veterinarian as well. Don’t give your cat some/all of these products without specific advice, dosage, etc.

Pam mentions that these are not physical medicines, but they are energy medicines, and so they need to be used only if they fit the cat’s particular problems and in the proper doses.

You’ll need to consider removing toxins from your home, too, including many products that have fragrances, fire-retardant and other chemicals. Sometimes these things can be found in laundry soaps and detergents, hand soaps, and more. While the toxins used in some of these products may seem low, remember that your cat is smaller than you and so more susceptible.

And also, if they have other issues with imbalance, these toxins can tip the balance to trigger symptoms, so they still need to be addressed.

And you may also be recommended to make changes to your cat’s diet, including making sure they’re getting plenty of antioxidants in their food and switching away from processed and kibble dry foods, potentially to a raw cat food diet. Always talk to your veterinarian before you make any big changes to your cat’s diet.

Other Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome Natural Treatments

Adored Beast’s Feline Gut Soothe is a supplementary blend of pre and probiotics with anti-inflammatory herbs. I was able to keep my Ragdoll cat’s FHS at bay with this product, although it returned over and over until I sought the help of Pam. A few others have been able to use this product as well – according to reports in this Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome Support Group on Facebook.

Although the Gut Soothe was essential at the time, it wasn’t addressing everything, and it wasn’t until I paid for Charlie to have a Mind Body Spirit Release (was called an Optimal Cat Health Analysis when I bought it) that I was able to get to the root of the problem. Pam of Purrrfectly Holistic talks more about that process in the video above.

Here’s what Pam did that NO ONE ELSE SUGGESTED OR DID = DETOX!! It’s imperative.

Pam and I sat down and discussed how she helped to get to the root cause of the FHS problem in Charlie:

Things That Helped My Charlie’s Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome:

Again though, it’s better to get to the source of the problems and fix them outright.

Medications Treatment

Some veterinarians may recommend medication to help either lower anxiety in your cat or to directly target some of the symptoms. Also recommended by Cornell University, in some situations, is Gabapentin, a seizure medication that can help to control the nerves. Some other vets may recommend Phenobarbital, a similar drug.

Be aware that some of these drugs can have nasty side effects, leaving your cat devoid of energy or almost looking like they are paralyzed until the effects wear off. A lot of people choose to avoid using these medications for these reasons.

Herbs

A veterinarian, trained in Chinese herbs as well as other healing modalities told me that “Three Seed Combination” is usually used for FHS cats.

Behavioral Treatment

Because there is considered to be a link between anxiety and hyperesthesia being triggered, behavioral treatment will be recommended. This is all about looking at stress management techniques for your cat and will involve looking at factors in their life that could be causing them to be nervous and changes that can be made to improve their routine.

Again though, the holistic approach will get to the root of the issues.

Further Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrom Resources:

Julie Anne Lee of Adored Beast Apothecary talks FHS and her kitty at 47 minutes in:

Dr. Karen Becker talks about FHS.