Can incontinence be a symptom of Cardiomyopathy

[AngilK]

My 8 month old male long hair - not sure of the breed - I adopted him from the animal shelter, has lost the use of his back legs, the vet did x-rays and thought maybe trauma or nerve damage, now as I read about cardiomayopathy I am wondering if this is what he is dealing with.  Does anyone know if he would lose control of his bladder and bowl movements with this disorder?  His back legs also feel colder to the touch but I have not noticed any discoloration of the back paws.  The vet said to keep him confined for about 2 weeks to see if his legs got better - I have done that, but he seems to be getting worse.   Any help and/or advice would be greatly appreciated.  

[Savas]

The only other unusal thing I can think of off hand is that your cat has a detached liver. This condition causes the liver to "float" and impede on other internal organs/systems and can cause many of the problems you mentioned.

Otherwise it's possible it's kidney connected in some way, whether it's due to the above or a more common ailment.

[zodiacqueen]

This does not sound like cardiomyopathy.  With cardiomyopathy there would be a weakening of the heart and circulation would be impaired in ALL four paws not just the back ones.  With the back legs only affected and the urinary incontinence, it makes the most sense that this is a spinal cord injury-either a slipped disk or a blood clot.  This would be in the lumbar spine region, which is the lower spine (affecting the nerves of the bladde).  Do you recall anything that could've caused a back injury?

You could request an MRI of the spine to see what's going on-an x-ray won't give you enough info.  To check for possible blood clots in the vessels, contrast dye is injected into a vein and then a CT or x-ray is taken.

Don't give up hope!  There are special "diapers" that pets use when they go into heat that you could use for incontinence.  Also, there are special wheels that can be fitted to the animals front or back legs that can make them mobile again.

Good luck and please give an update!!!!!!