My daughter's cat, Midnite, was 8 in April. He is neutered and has never had any health problems other than an allergy to fleas (thanks to the vet's office when the dog went in to get neutered). He is a total inside cat who generally weighs 11 lbs.
My daughter has been away for 2 weeks and is expected home this weekend. Midnite always gets a bit depressed and "needy" when she is not home, he will go off for hours at a time and hide and "pout". So, I didn't think much of it when I came home Monday afternoon and found him in an empty cabinet in my husband's office. I'd seen him on my daughter's bed that morning before work and he seemed fine, responsive, and purred as soon as I stroked his head good bye. However, Monday evening he wouldn't speak to me when I found him in the cabinet so I let him be. By 10PM though, when he still had not come out, I became concerned and went in to get him. As soon as I reached in to pick him up he started crying. I set him on the floor thinking he was upset with me for disturbing him, and he collapsed on the floor. I picked him up again and began stroking him and carried him to my daughter's bed so I could call my husband. While I was on the phone, Midnite began pulling himself toward the edge of the bed with his front paws, dragging himself. I managed to grab him just before he went off the edge of the bed.
I called my vet who told me to bring him in. While there that night... Temp was 98.6; weight 10.5 lbs; breathing rapid and shallow, Lateral X-ray showed small spots scattered all over the lungs, and the heart was non distinct but visible. It also showed a fuzzy area in the abdomen so he tapped it for fluid but it was negative. He said it could be a number of things but the spots on his lungs concerned him, he told me the possibilities were Feline Aids, Leukemia, FIP, cancer, or possibly pneumonia. He checked his ears (clear), gave Midnite an injection of Baytril and kept him overnight on a heating pad to try and raise his body temp.
Yesterday the vet ran FIV/FeLV (negative) and took another X-ray this time with Midnite laying on his back so they'd see both lungs. He called me and told me that the FIV/FLV test was negative, and that he seemed to be responding a bit to the antibiotic so they were leaning away from FIP, and that test is fairly unreliable anyway. He said there was no mass or tumor showing anywhere, but that he could not rule out cancer. Midnite was more responsive but he still was not able to stand on his right hind leg.He told me I could come pick him up in the afternoon. When I arrived, both vets were there to talk to me. They showed me the new X-ray, which showed the tiny spots fairly evenly distributed on both lungs. They told me they had finally gotten him to stop purring long enough to get a good listen of his lungs and they heard tiny clicks and some wheezing so they were leaning further toward pneumonia. He said to not let him get stressed out because he could suffer respitory distress, and to feed him whatever he will eat within reason. So I took him home and shut him up in my daughter's room with a low profile litter pan, a pan of water and a plate with some Fancy Feast cat food on it. I also fixed him a pallet with one of my daughter's towels, her pillow, and one of her stuffed animals (anything that smells like her) on the floor and put everything within a few feet of each other. I laid him down on the pallet and stroked him for a few minutes before I had to leave to take care of everyone else. When I returned an hour later he had used the litter pan but had not touched the food and it is difficult to tell about the water. He was partially under my daughter's bed and I coaxed him out. He was able to stand but he was wobbly. I checked on him several times last night and at 10 took him some tuna, but he didn't seem interested. This morning he had not used the litter again but he was responsive when I touched him. He was able to sit up fairly normally, stand and take a few steps but would lose his balance on the right rear after a couple of steps or if he tried to nuzzle me. He did eat about 2 Tbsp. of tuna this morning but I had to hand feed him. My husband was going to make a pallet for himself in her room when he got off work this morning so Midnite could cuddle him if he wants. My question now is (yeah I'm finally getting to one) Could Midnite have had a stroke of some kind that could explain the weakness in his right hind leg? My vet didn't mention it... but all I know is that I need to do everything I can to help him. I don't have a lot of money so if it is cancer about all I can do is whatever I can to keep him comfy.

My aunt had a cat years ago that had a stroke. Taking him to the vet they found nothing. But as we watched him. We all decided that had to be what happened. After a few months he got better. We worked with him until he got us of all his legs and his motor skills back. It is very possible that is what has happened. What you explained is exactly what my aunts cat was doing. Just like a person when you have a stroke they sometimes gain all their movements back if they work at it. Again it depends on if it was a small stroke or a large on. When your daughter comes home that will help a lt. nissing her is hard on him. Good luck and I wish you all the best

Thank you... I know it's hard on him, he has been her shadow since he was 4 weeks old.

I have a small dog and when I am gone he won't eat and just lays around. When a pet is very attacted to their ower they seem to be lost when we are gone. I'm sure when he sees her he will feel safe and she can give him what he wants. Her love . A lot of people thnk animals don't have feelings but they do. They just show them in a different way than we do. He will have a better reason to get better and try

Let me tell you about a cat I had.I was a vet tech so I had access to all health care available.Well ,My cat was like yours,healthy for several years,then suddenly developed the same symptoms as yours.We tested for everything,all was negative.The vet finally came to the decision that he had a form of lupus.The disease was attacking his organs,and he was unable to defend against it.We gave him steroids,prednisone and dexamthisone.He would do great,almost immediately show improvement,but the next day he would return to his weaken state.I did this process for about 2 months and finally his body gave up.This may not be what is wrong with your cat,but there are so many diseases out there that a cat can become infected with.I've lost many to feluk,and this is a devastating disease.I vaccinated them against it,and they still wound up becoming infected.Let us know how your cat is.:)

UPDATE!

So far so good... Midnite seems to be responding well to the antibiotics (what I could get into him that didn't get slung) and he is eating a bit on his own now. He is also up walking without losing his balance as often, and actually comes to greet us when we open the door. Last night I took our other 2 cats into the room one at a time so they could visit for a bit, and other than having to keep them out of his food and litter that went well. The only reason I don't let him out is that I still don't want him stressed and our dog wants to play so badly. Midnite is the only cat we have that has not accepted Bash after 3 years. So for now he will stay where he is.
Thank you all for your support and for letting me get this off my chest. I will continue to update as (fingers crossed) our baby Midnite improves.