Cat twitching. Seizure? :worry:

[Alexandra V]

My cat has been twitching as he falls asleep recently. His face and front paws go, almost as if he's having a dream, but he's at least half-lucid, so I'm pretty sure he's not dreaming. I was doing a fundraiser for Vets without Borders this weekend and I spoke to the vet tech that was there and she said that it could have been a small seizure. He recovers completely right after I jolt him awake with a sudden sound or something, and he acts completely normal otherwise.

Has this happened to anybody else? And should I rush to get him to the vet?

[ChuckSM]

Possibly with age this can happen, but if it is a seizure it could have been brought on by flea treatments or eating a "bad" plant

[wolfy-hound]

If the only time you see it happening is when he's falling asleep, I'd think it was the beginning of dreaming.

Check the balance, hold paws to check for tremors, and holding his face still, watch his eyes to see if they flicker(not him looking around, but a very distinct fast flickering that doesn't stop) side to side.

If there's no other symptoms, I wouldn't worry about a few paw twitches, but taking him to the vet for full tests is always an option.

[AkHerps]

Yeah my dog does this almost all the time. She will lay down and start twitching only a few seconds after her eyes close. And sometimes she will go into full all out running in her sleep too.

[Alexandra V]

Thanks guys. I thought it was dreaming at first, but I mean his eyes were more than half open...

The first time it happened i checked his responsiveness by moving my hand close to his eyes to see if he would blink, and he reacted well ,but i noticed that when i was trying to get him to follow my finger with his eyes he would start off well, and then just stare at nothing and his pupils would dilate and contract... :S

He's not on anything new, no flea treatments, and we don't keep any plants that would be dangerous in the house.

[wolfy-hound]

Yeah, both my dogs and cat have done that "eyes open" sleeping thing, it's creepy.