Does Your Cat Have Feline Hyperthyroidism?
Pet owners who fail to get the proper medical attention for feline hyperthyroidism will only matters worse since this often leads to either heart or kidney failure. The good news though is that there are ways to treat it once this has been brought to the attention of a qualified vet.
But first, pet owners should know what are the symptoms of feline hyperthyroidism. These include drinking water more often than usual, an increase in the appetite without gaining any weight, frequent urination, vomiting, diarrhea, hyperactivity and more vocalization. These signs may appear one at a time or simultaneously and the only way for doctors to confirm this is through a blood test. Those who have high levels of T4 or thyroxine are positive for this illness. This means if it is normal but these such symptoms are still present, something else could be the problem.
When it comes to treatment, if it is not that serious yet, doctors will just recommend antithyroid drugs. Should there be no improvements, there are two other options. The first is surgery while other is radioactive iodine treatment. In both cases, the cat will no longer be able to have any use for the thyroid gland. Giving the cat antithyroid medication isn't expensive. This is because a pill called methimazole costs only $25 for about 100 tablets. The pet owner will have to give this for the remainder of the feline's life.
The cost of surgery on the other hand is $900. There are risks involved during the operation and in some cases, has made matters worse because this can lead to hypoparathyroidism especially if both thyroid lobes need to be removed.
Radioactive iodine treatment is the most expensive of the three, which costs $1200. The best part about it is that this is a one time injection. Studies have shown this will return to normal the thyroid glands. The cat will have to be isolated for at least a week to prevent radioactive contamination with humans and other animals.
Veterinarians are also beginning to treat feline hyperthyroidism using alternative medicines. Some examples of these are having the cat eat a number of herbs and even acupuncture. My own cat, Pip, was diagnosed with an over-active thyroid at eleven years old. He lived a very happy and normal life for a further 3 years on 2 tiny tablets a day. Hyperthyroidism is a very easily treatable illness.
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