Follow-up to older thread re hyperthyroidism

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lucyrima

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This is from Goodrx - which is to say, sodium chloride is what you're looking for without any other ingredients.
What is Noniodized salt?

Non-iodized salt is often purely sodium chloride (think sea salt). This salt comes straight from the sea or underground salt deposits. Depending on the manufacturer, some non-iodized salts may be processed to create a finer texture, and may be mixed with other ingredients.
Thanks again - saw a lot of diff. kinds of N-I salt - no idea what's in any of them, but pure sea salt should be good (got some for Xmas one year - sis-in-law's very 'natural') so may look for it again now. Think I need to relax and get a decent routine going... funny thing is I've responded to his all-day whines a lot, but he def. still has his 'old routine' clock in his head so even if I've just fed him 20 mins ago, when it's time, it's time! Sheesh!
 

neely

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Ecco definitely showed every sign of hyperthyroidism but a low T4
I'm sorry I just saw your thread about Ecco being diagnosed with Hyperthyroidism. If you don't mind my asking, what was her T-4 level? The reason I asked is because our cat was diagnosed with H-T last year. We immediately started treating him with Methimazole transdermal gel and although it helped our vet who is a feline specialist said he was an excellent candidate for the I-131 treatment since none of his other organs were affected "yet." H-T frequently masks other symptoms which can cause damage to the organs. For that reason we saved up and decided to pursue the I-131 Radioactive Iodine treatment. I completely understand your not being able to afford the treatment at this time. I told my husband we may have to start eating cat food after paying for it. :biggrin: Best of luck with Ecco's progress.

There is nothing short of radio-iodine treatment that will stop/reverse hyperthyroidism. It is a tumor growth within the thyroid gland that can be slowed down through proper treatment - foods or meds. But it can't be stopped entirely.
I completely agree! :agree:
 
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FeebysOwner

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Thing is, the vet couldn't palpate a tumor or anything else
Two years into this with Feeby, and the vets cannot palpate a tumor either. Feeby's T-4 isn't great at 3.7. So, she will likely be having her meds increased. But, as of now, she is only on 1.875 mg twice a day. She started out at 1.25 mg twice a day at the onset.
 
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lucyrima

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Hi, and thanks! Thing is, I asked vet to try the meth (woo-woo :), but she didn't want to because when tested in Jan. his T4 was just lowish normal. I reminded her he'd been on the herbal Thyroid Support Gold (from Petwellbeing) for a couple of wks, and that it likely gave the false positive (if you can call it that) result, but hadn't wanted to go off it (or at least not more recently) because it was helping to an extent then, but things have progressed, but when I took him in about a mo/6 wks ago (still on the TSG) she didn't do another T4, so he's been mostly on that all this time - now a higher dose than before (no side FX except for the odd sneeze). She also didn't like that I mentioned having tried Hill's Y/D and that it seemed to make a diff. (barely one can - have another on the shelf) because she thinks he could flip hyPO, but for his sake, while I know you're supposed to use it 'only' when giving it, I'm going to maybe put it in the mix of reg. food (no fish) and see what happens. I just feel so guilty as I think I brought the whole thing on - giving little bits of egg yolk, too much butter to lick, etc. before I had any idea it mattered. Anyhow, done now, just want to find a happy medium or whatever. Nite for now... and again, thx everyone for input!
 
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lucyrima

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Little update - I stopped the TSG (herbal stuff) last wk as it seem to be what was making him throw up, etc. x 2 days and he didn't want to eat food that had some in it (normally couldn't have cared less), and now that horrible heat week is over, he's more like himself except for nonstop wanting to eat - comes over, sticks out his tongue and expects me to feed him 10 x a day outside of reg. feeding times (which he hasn't forgotten). But while I'm giving him food sort of on demand, I do make him wait for short times if he's very recently had some, as I'm trying to find a balance between his voraciousness caused by hyper-T and piggishness caused by my feeding on demand. I believe he has a problem, but don't want to just feed every single time he decides to eat. He hasn't seem to gain a lot so far, but hasn't lost any either. Curious what you all think... thx!
 

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If you think the TSG produced a lower T-4 level reading, then it might be time to find out how long you have to wait to ensure the TSG is out of his system and then have another T-4 done to find out what his level is now, along with a full-scale blood work up (CBC, Chemistry), and a urinalysis.

Excessive hunger and overeating without weight gain are signs of hyper-T, which it seems you know already. So, not sure what you are asking.

If his T-4 level is within an acceptable range, and nothing else shows up in his blood test/urinalysis results (like glucose issues that could point to diabetes), then you would have to ask the vet what other types of conditions could cause voracious eating without weight gain. With all that under consideration, if he starts gaining weight, then it will be time to start weaning him off so much food.
 
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lucyrima

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Thank you - good point about waiting til the Gold is out of his system and then retesting. Will maybe give it 10 days (already been 4-5).
 
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Just found article that says sea salt does have iodine in it - so I won't be trying it out, but may look for noniodized salt.
 
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Hi - just came back from the vet who did a new T4 (no herbal x 2 wks prior) and it was 47! What the heck is going on? He's eating like a horse (explaining little wt gain) all day long and acting needy if I delay it. Could he just have played me for a fool? But he did have HT symptoms... is it possible that so much food (lots!) has artificially put him back in the 'normal' range for a moment - anyone else had this happen? And what do I tell myself re the symptoms he had like double thick claws, wt loss, etc etc etc? Need a sane voice here, because I am NOT a munchausen mother! And of course I 'feliway'd' the carrier before taking him in, but he barfed all over when we left. Aaggh!
 

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Eating a bunch of food is not going to put a cat with hyperthyroidism back into normal range - temporarily or otherwise. If the TSG was actually doing any good, maybe there is still some remnants of it in his system, lowering the T-4. But tbh, I don't think your cat is hyper-T.

Did the vet recheck his BP, which you said was a bit high before? Was his glucose level checked? Did your vet have any comments on the T-4 level, and/or whether something else might be going on?
 
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lucyrima

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Thanks... His T4 (few mos. ago) was 42, today 47. Didn't see vet today (vacation) so BP etc. not done at all, but she's calling tonite and I'll talk to her then... just reading my head off on Duck Duck... will report back with any meaningful info.
 
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lucyrima

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Thank you FBSM - I hadn't realized you'd answered re salt and will keep it in mind.
Have another Q now - vet won't try methimazole cuz last T4 was within normal range. I'm also not crazy about trying meth anyway after reading potential side FX anyhow. SO, what's been happening x a few wks is that I'm just feeding 'on demand', e.g. almost every hour or so, depending on if he just woke up (that's a trigger) or ... pick something... but sticking his tongue out all the time - "I'm hungry", tho' of course he doesn't get full meals, but good size chunks, etc and weight is terrific (could lose a lb). Any comment (I know you're busy!)?
 

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L lucyrima
I'm in Canada as well and had a hyperthyroid cat until 2020.

- Your cat will not flip from hyperthyroid to hypo thyroid from feeding hyperthyroid food.

- It is less expensive to do the pills, than the prescription food. I took the script from the vet for the medication and went to a human pharmacy. I checked Walmart, Pharmasave and Loblaws in my area and Loblaws was the cheapest. $75 for 2 months of medication.

- She MUST be on 100% of prescription diet if that's what you choose to do. No treats, anything. Her heart is at risk if you continue to mix the foods without medication or iodine treatment.

- Farley Foundation may help if you need financial assistance for the bloodwork while they sort the medication dosage.

- it is a progressive disease so she will need 2 per year blood work for the rest of her life. Unless you can afford the iodide treatment. This ensures it stays at the proper level and you are not risking her heart. Heart disease and eventually heart failure are the risks of UNDER treating her hyperthyroid

- Under treating her hyperthyroid, she's immunocompromised. She can develop chronic illness, which can develop into antibiotic resistant illness.

Because of this, please consider deciding what is financially working for you and go with that route.


Ps. If you are on welfare or disability, most provinces have financial support for pets too..you can ask your worker. There are also vet loans you can take and pay off in batches. Petcard - Canada's Veterinary Financing Company
 
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lucyrima

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Thank you so much for info! Someone (not sure it was vet or 'Google' post) said some think food-on-demand is ok, but what you say does not agree and I'm inclined to listen to you here. Should add tho' that he never goes out - I try, but he won't, tho' used to (in harness) a lot 2 yrs ago. so highly unlikely to catch anything. I financed last visit (Petcard) but of course need to pay bk monthly now x 5. Not on welfare/dis, etc, but senior pension, just that other must-do's and messed up spousal support take more than is manageable AND vet won't prescribe for food because T4 was normal. What do I do now?
 

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You can contact The Farley Foundation - Helping low-income pet owners for financial help in the future :)

There's also Home - Paws Canada


The T levels were in normal range because of the suppliment and food? If yes, I would let the vet know they were in normal range because of the food and that you'd like to make the switch to medication for financial purposes.

Alternatively, you can keep with the suppliment for now and have the bloodwork tested again in 3-6 months. Especially, after you've gained help with financial services.

If you want to stick with the food, see if your local SPCA food pantry will help with the prescription diet. Explain that you had her on prescription diet and that it kept her levels normal and you cannot financially afford to keep her on that diet yourself. pet food pantry Archives - Ontario SPCA and Humane Society
 
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1. HE hasn't been on the supplement for months.
2. I don't think the SPCA here does that.
3. I'm not in Ontario and I doubt very much that the SPCA here would pay in any case.
4. I was never worried about his flipping to hypoT.

But thanks anyhow.
 
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Just re-ordered Thyroid Support Gold (that he hasn't had in months) for lack of better answers from vet. Not just going to let him go down because of that and it did seem to help when he was on it before.
 

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Have another Q now - vet won't try methimazole cuz last T4 was within normal range. I'm also not crazy about trying meth anyway after reading potential side FX anyhow.
Please keep in mind that Methimazole in the transdermal gel form which is rubbed into the inner ear(s) has less side effects than the pill. The pill can cause gastrointestinal upset among other contraindications. I understand if your vet won't try the medicine but do you think it would be worth getting a second opinion perhaps from a feline veterinary specialist? However, I realize this may cause other financial problems for you. I hope you find the best treatment option for your cat. :crossfingers:
 
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Thanks so much - I'm aware of the ear gel thing, but going to think more about it as it still needs to be prescribed. Unfortunately, the only feline specialist (Ophthalmologist) I know (and we used long ago) was in Toronto, where I no longer live, and I'm not worried about a diagnosis now - to me the HT is glaring, whatever else might be along for the ride (watching his kidneys carefully). He is 15 tho', so something or other was to be expected in the near future, if not a lot longer... I know some live almost as long as horses these days, but they're still pretty rare. Oh, also want to mention that she checked his eyes (for high BP - there;s a way to do it) and he seemed fine.
 
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1. HE hasn't been on the supplement for months.
2. I don't think the SPCA here does that.
3. I'm not in Ontario and I doubt very much that the SPCA here would pay in any case.
4. I was never worried about his flipping to hypoT.

But thanks anyhow.
The SPCA runs food banks across North America. It is worth a try if you're wanting to continue the food route and cannot pay for it. In any case, it's worth a call to your local one to ask if they run a food bank.

The SPCA doesn't provide medical funding anywhere that I'm aware of, short of surrendering your cat. The Farley Foundation, however, does.

I'm a bit confused as you say you were never worried about him flipping to Hypothyroid but in this post you (the first you wrote in this thread), you stated that you were? Anyhow, you can't.

Really the most important thing though is the bloodwork every 6 months. If his bloodwork is showing normal now without suppliments, I wouldn't begin them again.

The places I posted before may be able to help you with financials of the 2 yearly bloodworks if you care to follow up with them.
 

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