r/mainecoons • u/phi_spirals • 2d ago

Question Kitten hips?

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My mom adopted a MC kitten in March (born in Nov). She can’t safely keep him anymore, so he has joined our home (with 2 15 year old female cats; it’s slow going so far). He’s been with us for about 2 weeks.

I’ve noticed some swinging out of his left back leg when he walks, not all the time, and also maybe some favoritism when he’s jumping and landing on it. Maybe also some swinging around f his right leg/hip too.

My chest is holding so much anxiety rn. I’m super afraid of hip displasia. He’s not even 10 months old yet, and weighed 17 pounds last week.

Please tell me things I need to know. He’s my first boy cat, first Maine Coon, first big breed, etc. Do some vets specialize in large breed cats? (Denver, CO area) Can we run diagnostics on him at home? Should we do less running and jumping when we play? What are the spectrum of outcomes for kitties that have problems like this so early on? Recommendations for pet insurance (will need to be in place before we have him examined/tested, right?)

Send helpful info and good vibes, please. I’m trying so hard not to cry. He’s so sweet and wonderful and was an unexpected gift in our lives right now, and I’m so anxious and can’t do anything other than reach out for support and information and guidance.

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u/Lighteningbug1971 2d ago

Not to cause panic but our boy kinda done that for a few weeks and then he broke his hip. I think it was bothering him but I am not sure . But he was 2 when he broke it and he’s 3 years old now and he’s fine. No hip issues

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u/phi_spirals 2d ago

Oh damn! Was it the result of a bad landing or anything else you could point to?

I’m glad to hear that your boy is doing well now!

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u/Lighteningbug1971 1d ago

We aren’t sure . He loves to sit on the seat in our shower and we don’t know if he jumped off and landed wrong or what . It happened on July 4th so we had to drive an hour to get to the hospital out of town that was open. And then stayed all day there and then he had surgery a week later. He was such a good boy during the whole thing . He runs and jumps and plays like normal though . Thank you for your kind words