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Original poster

Calling cats with hyperthyroidism

65 replies

purpleme12 · 27/11/2021 17:29

Hi
To anyone who's got/had cats with hyperthyroidism
Can you tell me about your experience
And what treatment process you decided to go with
And how that was for you
And cost

OP posts:
OldPodge · 27/11/2021 17:33

Hi, my cat is on Vidalta (carbimazole) tablets and is much much better. She was on a liquid to start off with but kept on being sick. She’s about 15 and I really thought she wasn’t going to make it.

OldPodge · 27/11/2021 17:34

The tablets cost about £40 each time. It’s a couple of month supply but would be cheaper online once I get myself organised!

Twiceover · 27/11/2021 17:40

We had an operation to remove thyroid when cat was about 12 - that worked really well. Came back when she was about 18 and has been on Thyronorm since then. Put a good amount of weight back on and was much better. Has just turned 20 and is struggling now- back to the vet on Monday to see what's going on.
Hope you manage to find the right treatment for your cat.

SleepingPanda · 27/11/2021 17:53

I’ve got a 17 year old who was diagnosed this August with mild hyperthyroidism. We opted for liquid treatment (thyronorm) that we put in her mouth with a syringe, twice a day before food. She started to have an appetite and put weight on again within 10 days. The vet says she is thriving on it so advised keeping her on it for life. I was really daunted by the syringe beforehand but watched a YouTube video to try and find a technique (Helpful Vancouver Vet was the one I found) and it’s surprisingly easy. She opens her mouth when the syringe is approaching now! I’ve just had to buy a new 100ml bottle and it was £115, but will last about 8 months with the dosage she is on.

SaggyOldClothDog · 27/11/2021 18:25

Our cat was diagnosed at 14. We opted for the radioactive iodine injection as the vet didn't think the op was an option, and she's a bugger for taking any kind of medication. It was about £3k by the time you factored pre and post op tests but it was covered by insurance. She had to go into hospital for 2 weeks (it's only one injection, but they have to be isolated until the radiation has passed through their system) then we had to keep her separately at home for about another 2 weeks. I was worried about how she'd cope, but she did really well (although she was desperate for cuddles) and she had no ill effects afterwards.

521Jeanie · 27/11/2021 18:29

My cat has been on Felimazole twice a day for perhaps five years. She's now 21! I've got very good at administering the pills so it's not an issue apart from when we go away.

Seasonschange · 27/11/2021 18:34

My cat is on special food. It’s only doable because she’s an indoor cat. It only works if they have absolutely no access to any other food. So no dreamies no human food etc. She got diagnosed when she was about 9 and she’s about twelve now. No symptoms since she’s been on it

Original poster
purpleme12 · 27/11/2021 18:48

Oh god this is hard

OP posts:
Original poster
purpleme12 · 27/11/2021 18:50

@SaggyOldClothDog

Our cat was diagnosed at 14. We opted for the radioactive iodine injection as the vet didn't think the op was an option, and she's a bugger for taking any kind of medication. It was about £3k by the time you factored pre and post op tests but it was covered by insurance. She had to go into hospital for 2 weeks (it's only one injection, but they have to be isolated until the radiation has passed through their system) then we had to keep her separately at home for about another 2 weeks. I was worried about how she'd cope, but she did really well (although she was desperate for cuddles) and she had no ill effects afterwards.
This is the option the vet has given us

Other option is giving medicine twice a day for the rest of his life

He said the radioactive thing would be about £2500

But it would be the most cost effective in the long run because of the cost of the medicine each year for the rest of his life....

OP posts:
Seasonschange · 27/11/2021 18:57

I was told the radioactive thing is better than it used to be as well because the isolation time is shorter.

Seasonschange · 27/11/2021 19:01

How old is your cat?

Original poster
purpleme12 · 27/11/2021 19:07

12, almost 13
So he said he'd expect to have a few years left in him

OP posts:
Wolfiefan · 27/11/2021 19:11

We opted against the radioactive thing as she was an old girl and the isolation was ages.
We did felizamole. Worked well. Lost her at 19. Not related.

Original poster
purpleme12 · 27/11/2021 19:17

@Wolfiefan

We opted against the radioactive thing as she was an old girl and the isolation was ages. We did felizamole. Worked well. Lost her at 19. Not related.
How old was she at the time? And how long was isolation at the time? ( I'm just thinking PP earlier said isolation has got shorter) And what was the cost of yours, what you did? I understand when you go down the medicine route you have to do regular blood tests whereas you don't with the radioactive thing....
OP posts:
m030978 · 27/11/2021 19:18

We have 2 of them!
Girlcat was diagnosed at 8, she's been on felimazole since then.
Boycat was diagnosed at 13, (really quickly as we saw the signs!) He's also on felimazole, but a much lesser dose than his sister (by adoption, no actual relation) at the moment.
The tablets go in the little lickystix really easily and they tend to take them with no problem at all.
Both cats are now 15.5 and happy, if a little lazy in their mature years, kitties.

We decided against the larger treatments as they are both stressy cats who wouldn't tolerate being vetted for 14 days!

Original poster
purpleme12 · 27/11/2021 19:19

I thought there'd be more people having gone down the radioactive route on here

OP posts:
SaggyOldClothDog · 27/11/2021 19:58

Weirdly the iodine was the least stressful option for us - our girl quickly sussed that we were putting meds in treats and would either eat round it or turn her nose up. And after a few times of trying to give her pills (and finding them on the carpet hours later) she started disappearing around the time she needed to take them. It was definitely short term pain for long time gain for us.

Wolfiefan · 27/11/2021 20:58

It was some years ago. I vaguely think it was weeks (12) of isolation. But it was ages ago. Plus girl was older then yours. Meds were £60 a month but she was in pain relief for arthritis too.

Swirlywoo · 29/11/2021 00:08

My cat had thyronorm (I think) twice a day. So far it hasn't cost an arm and a leg, and we don't have insurance. He had some blood tests plus the medication, which is easy to give twice a day in food. He's loads better on it.

Original poster
purpleme12 · 29/11/2021 00:11

Those of you who gave medicine (rather than radioactive stuff) what was the reason you chose that rather than the radioactive route?

OP posts:
BookShark · 29/11/2021 00:15

We went for the tablet option. Worked well for a few years until she succumbed to a completely unrelated infection. Wrapped them in a bit of ham each evening and she took them no problem at all. Insurance paid for it all - meant we couldn't move insurers as it would have been excluded as a pre-existing condition, but as our premium didn't increase, it didn't really matter - we effectively got the insurance for free as the premium was the same as the cost of the tablets, which they funded - I'm sure this was a mistake though!

Floralnomad · 29/11/2021 00:17

We started ours on the tablets , he was 16 , he only took a couple and had a reaction which sent him into complete liver failure , apparently it’s quite a rare side effect but it was typical that he would be the odd one to get it .

Original poster
purpleme12 · 29/11/2021 00:19

How old were your cats, when you went on the tablets?

OP posts:
Swirlywoo · 29/11/2021 07:47

Mine is about 15 and went on them this year.

Swirlywoo · 29/11/2021 07:49

Those of you who gave medicine (rather than radioactive stuff) what was the reason you chose that rather than the radioactive route

I wasn't given the other option, maybe because it was discovered when quite mild. But the results were almost instant, better fur, putting on weight, happier etc.