THE RAMPAGING HOUSE CAT IN PORTLAND ORE
COMPILATION AND COMMENTARY
BY LUCY WARNER
NOVEMBER 17, 2019
THIS STORY FROM JANUARY 10, 2019 GIVES MORE ON THE MYSTIFYING
AND FRIGHTENING BEHAVIOR OF A BEAUTIFUL HOUSE CAT, THE STORY OF WHICH MADE
NATIONAL NEWS. THE FOLLOWING THREE STORIES CONCERN THE CAT’S HEALTH. THOUGH HE
DOES NOT HAVE RABIES AS I FIRST GUESSED -- HE WOULD HAVE LONG SINCE DIED -- BUT
HE IS BELIEVED TO HAVE AN UNUSUAL CONDITION CALLED HYPERESTHESIA, WHICH CAN TAKE
THE FORM OF EXTREME EPISODES OF SENSITIVITY TO A NUMBER OF STIMULI FROM LIGHT
AND SOUND TO TOUCH. IT SOUNDS A LITTLE LIKE MIGRAINE OR EPILEPSY IN HUMAN
TERMS. HE IS ON A KITTY ANTIDEPRESSANT AND AN ANTISEIZURE MEDICATION.
TO SEE THE FELINE PSYCHOLOGIST JACKSON GALAXY WHO HELPED PUT LUX
ON THE PATH TO HELP, GO TO: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCheL-cUqfzUB8dfM_rFOfDQ.
MOVIES
Portland's '911 cat' Lux update: What happened after 'My
Cat From Hell' episode
Updated Jan 10, 2019;[First] Posted Jun 27, 2014
By Kristi Turnquist | The Oregonian/OregonLive
The saga of Lux, Portland's so-called "911 cat,"
may yet have a happy ending -- but there's more to his story than those who
only followed Lux's case in brief TV accounts or the Animal Planet "My Cat
From Hell" show may realize.
As millions of people know, Lux became famous after his
then-owners, Teresa Barker and Lee Palmer, were so afraid of Lux's
aggressive behavior they called 911 for help in controlling the feisty feline.
But that was just the beginning of Lux's journey. After the
911 call made news around the world, Jackson Galaxy, the cat behaviorist
and host of the Animal Planet show, "My Cat From Hell," came
to Portland to try and figure out what was going on with Lux and his guardians.
In the "My Cat From Hell" episode that first
aired June 14, viewers saw Galaxy persuade Barker -- who had raised Lux from
kittenhood, but was worried about the cat scratching her baby -- agree to
let Lux go to another home. In the episode, Lux was diagnosed as suffering
from feline hyperesthesia syndrome, a complex condition that may sometimes
cause a cat to lash out with outbursts of violent behavior.
When last we saw Lux, he was living with Mollie and Jim,
his foster guardians who agreed to give Lux a home, and an onscreen end note
said Lux was, so far, responding to medications for his condition.
Then word came that Lux had more outbursts, and Mollie
and Jim had decided that for their own safety, they could no longer keep Lux. The
cat was being treated by the Cat Hospital of Portland and was in another foster
situation.
So where does that leave Lux now?: Mollie (who prefers
her last name not be used) and Dr. Amelie Hatfield, the veterinarian from
the Cat Hospital of Portland who we saw in the "My Cat From Hell"
episode treating Lux, both have some added information to share about America's
favorite dysfunctional cat.
In an email, Mollie answered some questions about caring
for Lux, and when it became apparent to Mollie and her husband that Lux needed
professional care.
Lux's outbursts: Mollie writes, "When we first took in
Lux he was a cat with some issues. A
particular concern was the fact that he wouldn't play and moved only slowly.
But, we kept at our homework and Lux progressed, a step at a time, until
finally he was turning a corner for the better, even chasing a string toy.
At that
time, he really blossomed and was able to get his
tension out in a
constructive way. We thought we were in the clear."
Mollie continues: "But then came the first outburst,
a complete surprise and with no warning. One minute he was a sweet, loving
kitty and the next, he was like a wolverine. I've seen many violent cats, mad
cats, feral cats, scared cats, cats in pain, and this outburst was like none of
them. He continued to lash out over several days."
It was after that initial outburst, Mollie says, that "Jackson Galaxy and Animal Planet stepped in and
had Lux tested and given an MRI. It was then that we discovered Lux had a rare
form of Feline Hyperesthesia Syndrome, which can cause violent and
unpredictable outbursts in cats. The vet started him on medication, and when he
seemed to be responding. Jim and I took him back into our home. That's where
the show ended."
But despite Mollie and Jim's efforts, Lux had more
aggressive episodes. Mollie continues: "Within a few days of taking
Lux home following his diagnosis, Lux had another outburst. These outbursts
would come without warning. It became
difficult for us to give his medicine, and we decided he
needed professional care."
Lux was one of a kind: As veteran cat foster guardians,
Mollie and Jim had experience with many kinds of cats, but Lux was one of a
kind. Mollie writes: "I had never seen anything like this before. That
was what was so shocking about Lux's outbursts. Though I knew the 911 story and
have worked with all sorts of crazy cats, I was not prepared."
Describing how Lux behaved in their household, Mollie
writes: "There were small differences from the beginning. Even as Lux
grew more confident, he was still standoffish. He did a lot of exploring,
sometimes around and around the same places, as if learning every detail. He
was somewhat affectionate and loved being petted but disliked being held and
never sat on our laps or came to sit beside us like most cats do. He rarely
meowed until he was about to have an outburst. But it was the outbursts
themselves that distinguished his abnormality. It was like someone in pain,
long-lasting and exhausting."
Making a change: On his website, Galaxy has also written
about the twists and turns of Lux's case. Giving credit to Mollie and Jim for
never losing sight "of the fact that how (Lux) acted didn't define who he
is," it was time, Galaxy writes, "to institute some short-term
changes, for the sake of all involved. I was lucky enough to have made contacts
with an amazing cat hospital during this journey. They said they would take Lux
and temporarily house him, make sure he gets his meds, give him attention and
work the behavioral action plan I had already assigned to Mollie and Jim."
Mixed emotions: Mollie says that surrendering Lux was a
difficult decision. She writes: "I still struggle with the desire to give
Lux his forever home. I consider adoption a lifetime commitment, and to give
him up goes against everything I believe, but I truly have faith he is in the
best of care now, and what's best for Lux is most important."
The veterinarian's perspective: In a phone conversation, Amelie
Hatfield, of the Cat Hospital of Portland, filled in more details of Lux's
story and medical treatment. What wasn't shown on "My Cat From
Hell," Hatfield says, were the details of the thorough testing that was
done on Lux. "We were somewhat disappointed to see that almost all of the
medical aspects of his diagnosis had been cut out," Hatfield says.
"Three hours of medical filming were removed," she says, so that what
viewers saw on the show was basically, "Hi, your cat has hyperesthesia,
here are some drugs. Maybe there wasn't enough time to include more footage of
what happened."
PHOTOGRAPH -- Jackson Galaxy, of Animal Planet's "My
Cat From Hell," in Portland with Lux, the "911 cat" whose case
was featured on the June 14 episode of the show.
In the "My Cat From Hell" episode, all viewers
saw of Lux's first visit to the Cat Hospital, Hatfield says, "was a very
brief clip of me palpating his abdomen and touching his back." In fact, on
the cat's first visit, Hatfield continues, Lux's original owners came in, and
"we discussed what the problem was," including Hatfield taking an
extensive history of Lux.
During her exam, Hatfield noted that, while Barker and
Palmer had said Lux was a 22-pound cat, he actually weighed 10-and-a-half
pounds. And Lux also wasn't a Himalayan, though he had been described as
that breed. "I can't say his parentage wasn't Himalyan, but what I can
tell you is we would not call him a Himalayan. He's a domestic longhair."
"It's important to us," Hatfield says, "that
people know that there was real medicine behind this."
Lux -- a challenging case: Hatfield says she agrees with
Jackson Galaxy's comments that Lux is one of the most puzzling cats he's
treated. "What we want people to understand is Lux is not a classic
case," says Hatfield. "Which makes his diagnosis hard." Even if
Lux doesn't present as a true textbook case of feline hyperesthesia syndrome --
as Hatfield says, most cats present with the syndrome at age 1 to 2, with
symptoms such as biting their own back legs, or their tail -- it's apparent
that something inside him makes him suffer from unpredictable violent
outbursts.
"It's been documented that these cats that might turn
on themselves may turn around and send that aggression outwards," says
Hatfield. "Which differentiates it from a behavorial problem," which
is more predictable. "This is unexpected, and cats will show very
similar signs to true seizure behavior."
Lux's present -- and future: Hatfield says that Lux has
been on medications -- an antidepressant and an anti-seizure medication
-- for eight weeks. "We kept him at the cat hospital for five to six
weeks, because we needed to really cautious." Lux is now in another foster
care situation, with a Cat Hospital client who, "like Mollie and Jim, is
extremely cat proficient and experienced, and knew what they were getting
into." Medicating and boarding Lux at the clinic and then placing him
in a new foster situation has been "quite successful," Hatfield says.
"He has not had any hyperesthesia events. It's really good news for him,
we were all really worried for him, and we want him to be well and safe."
The key, Hatfield says, is how Lux responds to the
medications in the long term. "We are hopeful that once he's proven that
he's not going to have any more hyperesthetic events --
which we won't be comfortable with saying until he's had at least six months of
medication -- we hope at that point, that we'll find a permanent home with an
experienced cat owner that's willing to keep him on his medications and is
interested in giving him a loving home. We would consider euthanasia an
absolute last resort, and only if the disease recurred and we were not
controlling it with medication."
Hatfield says she and her colleagues are "very
hopeful" about Lux. "We want to let the public know that he's not the
devil cat. Our goal is to work with him and keep him stable. If he relapses,
we would try another drug."
Lux's personality: On medication, Hatfield says, Lux
is "a very sweet cat. He is a very loving cat, and he seeks attention and
he head-butts you, and rubs his cheeks on you. He'll stand by you, and he leans
on you. He has a lot of very positive qualities and very loving
qualities."
-- Kristi Turnquist
Do you have questions, rants or raves about what you're
watching? Join Kristi Turnquist for TV Talk Live, our weekly live chat here at
Oregonlive.com/tv, every Thursday at noon.
A CAT WHISPERER TO THE RESCUE
Aggressive Oregon kitty to get help from cat whisperer
MARCH 19, 2014 / 5:35 PM / CBS/AP
Hold on, Lux - the Cat Daddy is coming.
Jackson Galaxy, star of Animal Planet's "My Cat from
Hell," will be traveling to Portland, Ore., to work with the 22-pound
house cat who became a worldwide phenomenon after he trapped his owners, their
baby and the family dog in a bedroom.
Lee Palmer called 911 on March 9, saying Lux was on the
rampage. Palmer said his 7-month-old son, Jesse, had pulled the cat's tail. Lux
responded by scratching the baby's forehead. The baby was not seriously hurt,
but Palmer said he kicked the cat, and that set Lux off into a paroxysm of
anger.
Palmer and his girlfriend, Teresa Barker, snatched up Jesse
and their dog, a Pomeranian named Smokey, and barricaded themselves in a
bedroom while Lux howled and yowled outside. Police arrived and caught the cat
in a snare.
Although Palmer and Barker said they wanted to keep Lux,
the part-Himalayan was brought to the Multnomah County Animal Services shelter
on Monday. Shelter officials said the family had not yet decided whether to
give up the cat and they would work with the family to find the best solution
for Lux.
And now they will be getting some help from Galaxy. The
feline behaviorist's visit will be filmed for his show's fifth season, which
kicks off April 26.
Galaxy says he wants to find out what's behind Lux's
aggressive behavior.
"Every parental site on the Internet blames the cat
for this confrontation. Every pet site blames the family," he said, adding
that something is wrong if the cat is acting out. "We need to step away
from the hysteria. There is a story behind all this. Don't assume
anything."
lux.jpg
Lux, a 22-pound part-Himalayan cat, trapped his owners
inside their bedroom.
LEE PALMER, AP
Galaxy said there are many reasons a cat may behave
aggressively, including health reasons.
"I've known cats who acted out similarly to Lux
because of an abscessed tooth, a brain tumor, hyperthyroidism or diabetes,"
he said.
Galaxy said he was going to Portland to act as Lux's
advocate and find out what's wrong.
"I have no idea what made Lux aggressive," he
said. It could be a chemical imbalance, a history of stressful environments
or because he was kicked."
The behaviorist, who has worked with tens of thousands of
cats, said the thing that bothered him most about Lux was his continued
aggression the day Palmer called 911, including the animal's ongoing assault on
the door even though the threat was gone.
But the word "attack" doesn't sit well with
Galaxy because 75 percent of the time, it's tied to a grouchy mood or a
warning, he said.
"If I have a headache, I won't be the nicest guy in
the world. I may snap at you," he said. "This may have been Lux's way
of snapping. Hypothetically speaking, someone pulling his tail may have been
the last straw."
First published on March 19, 2014 / 5:35 PM
© 2014 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The
Associated Press contributed to this report.
I LISTENED TO THE TELEVISION NEWS REPORT ABOUT THIS CAT AS
WELL AS READING THE ARTICLE AND I AM MISSING ONE IMPORTANT THING – A STATEMENT
THAT THE ANIMAL HAS BEEN QUARANTINED OR TESTED FOR RABIES. I DON'T CARE IF IT
IS A HOUSE CAT AND IT DOESN'T GO OUT. MANY IF NOT MOST OLDER HOUSES HAVE SOME
MICE, RATS AND/OR BATS AND ALL OF THOSE ANIMALS CARRY RABIES. THEY ARE ALL ALSO
THE TYPE OF CREATURE THAT A 22 POUND CAT WOULD CERTAINLY CHASE DOWN AND MAYBE
BE BITTEN IN THE PROCESS OF CATCHING IT.
THAT BABY WHO WAS SCRATCHED DOES NEED TO BE WATCHED AND IF
NECESSARY VACCINATED FOR RABIES. A HOUSE CAT SIMPLY DOES NOT ATTACK A HUMAN
LIKE A RAMPAGING LION IF IT IS HEALTHY. DOGS SOMETIMES DO, BUT CATS DON'T. THEY
WILL MAKE A QUICK SCRATCH OR BITE AND HISS OR EVEN GROWL IF ANGERED, BUT NOT
PURSUE AND ASSAULT HUMANS. WE ARE NOT PREY TO THEM. SOMETHING IS VERY PROBABLY
WRONG HERE.
THE OFFICERS AFTER CRATING THE CAT SHOULD HAVE TAKEN HIM TO
A VETERINARIAN OR AT LEAST THE CITY POUND. AS FOR WHETHER HE SHOULD BE GIVEN TO
A NEW HOME, ABSOLUTELY NOT. HE IS NOT A SAFE PET. HE SHOULD BE FIRST PUT DOWN
AND THEN EXAMINED FOR RABIES, WITH A FOLLOW THROUGH ON GETTING THE BABY
VACCINATED IF THE VIRUS IS DETECTED.
911 CALL -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEhfuqmc-uw
Me-OW! 22-pound house cat attacks baby, traps family in
room – CBS
CBS News March 10, 2014
PORTLAND,
Ore. -- A 22-pound house cat attacked a baby inside a Portland house, forcing
the family and a dog to barricade themselves inside a bedroom, CBS affiliate
KOIN reported Monday.
The Barker family
called 911 shortly before 8 p.m. Sunday, officials said, but said the baby did
not need medical attention. The 911 operator stayed on the phone and could hear
the cat, Lux, screeching in the background.
"Every time we
opened our back bedroom door, the cat would hiss," owner and mom Teresa
Barker told KOIN.
She admitted the
baby's father hit Lux after the baby was scratched but said he was merely being
protective.
When officers arrived
at the house, they saw the cat scram into the kitchen, where it jumped on top
of the refrigerator.
The cat was soon
captured and put into a crate.
"The cat remained
behind bars in the custody of the family and officers cleared the scene and
continued to fight crime elsewhere in the city," Portland police said in a
release.
The family is still
discussing whether to try to find a new home for Lux.
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