Hello, when my male Scottish Fold cat was only 3 months old he started limping and his hip seemed to be displaced. 2 vets told us that it would resolve with rest. He started walking normally again, bu

Question

Hello, when my male Scottish Fold cat was only 3 months old he started limping and his hip seemed to be displaced. 2 vets told us that it would resolve with rest. He started walking normally again, but he was never able to jump. He always climbed onto beds and chairs using his front legs and over the following months he gradually became less active.

He is now 1 year and 5 months old and weighs 8,73 pounds (he weighed 9,25 pounds two months ago).

Recently, he started hiding and appeared to be in severe pain. Our vet gave him an anti-inflammatory injection, and he became extremely playful and acted like a completely normal cat again. However, while running and playing, he seemed to injure himself. His hips appeared visibly displaced. He started hiding again, refused to eat or use the litter box, and could barely tolerate being touched. Once again, the anti-inflammatory injection made him much more comfortable.

We had new X-rays taken, which I have attached. I have also attached his X-ray from when he was 3 months old for comparison.

The vet says that he has Scottish Fold osteochondrodysplasia.

I would be incredibly grateful if any veterinarians or veterinary radiologists could take a look at his X-rays and share their opinion on what they see. He is so young and in so much pain, I'm completely devastated, please help.

Thank you

Dylan Wilson · Accepted Answer

Sorry to hear this situation with your cat. Unfortunately, osteochondrodysplasia is a common scottish fold genetic trait that comes with the breed. The folded ears trait comes from a genetic mutation that leads to many skeletal development issues at a young age. It is a lifelong condition that will lead to osteoarthritis of the affected joints. Expectations is lifelong pain management and environment changes to help with mobility. You should be able to work with your veterinarian to manage his condition.