I-131 Procedure: How to prepare?

[cspressler]

Hi. My 16 year old cat is going in for Iodine 131 therapy in 2 weeks. He will be admitted Monday and then released on Friday, so probably spending 4 nights at the vet.

He seems to have some vet trauma and I'm worried about how he will do there, how he will be when he comes home, and how my other cat will react to him when he's been gone for 4 days.

I'm trying to figure out what I can do to help mitigate these worries. One idea I had was to put a blanket in his sleeping area for a couple weeks and then take that with him so it smells like home. I also thought when I pick him up I could rub him down with a towel that smells like our other cat.

I'm reaching out to anyone on here who might have suggestions to help. Thank you.

 

[Kris107]

These are good ideas - scents are a pretty big deal to a lot of cats. Just do a slow reintroduction. Being gone for 4 days is a decent amount of time. When he's back, let him readjust to being home without the other cats up in his business. It will have been quite an experience for him, so him getting his bearings again is #1. Plus, this give you time to get the cat smelling more like home again too. Then let the other cat come say hello. Some cats don't have issues with their cohabitating cats coming back home, but some really do. You'll have to just watch and monitor.

 

[di and bob]

Make sure you ask the evt if your other cat could be exposed to anything radioactive in his urine, etc. I don't think so if they stay at the vets, but it wouldn't hurt to ask.

 

[Meowmee]

Those are great ideas about the scent swapping, etc. and I would also give him a toy from home. Are you allowed to visit him there? I think that would help too since you said he has dvm trauma.

When he comes home, I would play it by ear and set up a room that he likes where he can be by himself for a while. If your other cat sees him right away and does not hiss or growl etc, you may not have to isolate them from each other but he should still have his own recuperation area.

My cat Quinn who is a Siamese sometimes gets very angry at other cats even if they just went for a visit to Dvm. He did that once or twice to Merlin and I think to Zena. Last time Merlin came back from Dvm when he had toxo pneumonia he didn’t do it.

The last time he went to the Dvm, Xena went with him so as to help avoid that and just to have one trip although it’s a bit of a struggle physically. They were also being treated for toxo pneumonia.

The times when Quinn did get upset it was pretty bad. He was literally growling and hissing and hounding them so, I had to separate them for a few hours. I did the scent swapping and that helped, he gradually calmed down.

With my other cats in the past, even when they were in the hospital for a few days, nobody seem to get upset. I’m trying to remember what happened when Sybil was in the hospital because that was when Quinn was a baby and she came home. I don’t think he got very upset about it at that time.

 

[neely]

Make sure you ask the vet if your other cat could be exposed to anything radioactive in his urine, etc.

Good point.
Also keep in mind you will have to give him a separate thoroughly clean litter box which your other cats cannot use because he will excrete radiation in his urine. You can use a special type of litter that can be flushed down the toilet. Our vet provided this litter for us. If you use your regular litter the clumps will have to be removed then put in a bag outside your house and not disposed of for at least 3 weeks due to the radiation content.

You are allowed to bring your cat's regular food to the vet which should help so that he continues to eat. Remember any materials you bring whether toys or blanket cannot be returned due to the radiation.

Best of luck, I think it's harder on us than it is on our cats. Although we were extremely worried our cat did fine and looking back we were thankful to be able to give him the I-131 treatment. Please keep us posted on his progress once he's home.

 

[Antonio65]

My cat was treated with I-131 and stayed at the vet facility Monday to Friday. I didn't give her any item from home to remind her of us during her stay.
She only had a new cat pillow that I bought for her and this wasn't given back at the end of the week, the staff told me it was destroyed when she was released due to risk of contamination.
I don't know how she felt during her stay, what I do know is that she didn't eat much because she lost some weight during that week.