Hyperthyroid Cat

Has anyone dealt with this?

I have a sweet 14 yr young cat who wasn't feeling well. I mostly decided to have her checked because I knew her ears were bugging her.

Overall, she wasn't herself.

Her appetite is big, but even with that her weight was down.

Blood workup discovers she's hyperthyroid. Can't say I'm surprised.

Anyway. Choices.

Daily meds, every 12 hours indefinitely or a costly one time only radiation injection.

I have more questions for the vet but what I've read is the vet hospital will keep her for a few days because their waste is basically radioactive. She's super sensitive and the thought of them keeping her worries me more than the treatment itself.

I'm leaning towards the injection. I'm currently medicating her for her ears twice daily. I just can't imagine myself doing something similar to either one of us for the next 5 or more years.

The injection is approximately 1500? That doesn't include the x-ray they need prior.

At 14 she's on the bubble where daily meds could cost just as much or more.

Just curious if anyone crossed this path and what their outcome was.

I am sorry about your kitty . 😞 One of mine has kidney disease.

Yes, we had an old kitty who developed this. We ended up taking him to a vet who specializes in cats as he was having problems the regular vet didn't seem to know how to address.

Anyway, the vet gave us meds to put into his ear. He was fine with that, it was effective and he lived a long time perfectly normal and happy and keeping normal weight. He was a pretty shy one but he got easily used to getting the meds and getting petted and have his ears rubbed so it wasn't a pain or a big deal for either us or him. No side effects either.

When it comes to medical procedures, I'd do a lot more research independently on the pros and cons and side effects, especially considering the age of the kitty. I'd probably get a second or third opinion as well before proceeding. Over the years I've noticed that some vets are very conservative about what they'll recommend or risk and others are highly aggressive in suggesting procedures and it's not so much about money either. Just different personalities.

Yes, we had an old kitty who developed this. We ended up taking him to a vet who specializes in cats as he was having problems the regular vet didn't seem to know how to address.

 

Anyway, the vet gave us meds to put into his ear. He was fine with that, it was effective and he lived a long time perfectly normal and happy and keeping normal weight. He was a pretty shy one but he got easily used to getting the meds and getting petted and have his ears rubbed so it wasn't a pain or a big deal for either us or him. No side effects either.

 

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Was this from.a compounding pharmacy by chance? The vet did gloss over this and I'll assume it was a cream?

I just realized I hadn't considered it based on his brief and unclear explanation. He didnt really seem to be proponent of it.

I am sorry about your kitty . [emoji20] One of mine has kidney disease.

Was this from.a compounding pharmacy by chance? The vet did gloss over this and I'll assume it was a cream?

I just realized I hadn't considered it based on his brief and unclear explanation. He didnt really seem to be proponent of it.

You know, this is how we ended up going to the cats only specialist clinic. It was actually more liquid type than cream, maybe more like gel type. It was a long time ago so I can't quite remember exactly. We got it from the vet clinic so no idea where they get it from. What I do remember well is that the vet there was way more knowledgeable about this and had quite a few different options for meds depending on the cat and what he'll tolerate.

The meds were not expensive either and overall worked very well in his case. I don't even remember that vet suggesting anything different. We did need to go back for a few check ups at first, but once he was stable and it was clear the meds are working well and properly balanced, didn't really need to keep checking unless we notice a problem, but didn't have any.