For those who have cats on thyroid medication?

Question

How long did it take for you to see a difference in your cat after beginning treatment? (Putting some weight back on, less "meowing", less thirst, etc?)

Answer 1

The symptoms of your cat are interesting, are you sure that your cat has a thyroid problem and not diabetes?  

Answer 2

My cat was on thyroid meds for 2 years until the symptoms got beyond the control of the meds.  We had her thyroid irradiated Labor Day weekend last year.  It was expensive, but it changed her life.  She is completely off meds, and she gained back weight.  Ask your vet if this is the right option for you.  The radiation, even though costly, paid for itself in the first six months of no medications.

Answer 3

my cat had thyroids and was on medication,but because she kept stressing out every time i tried to give her tablets,the vet decided to operate,she was operated on 4 mths ago and improved better than with tablets,has put on weight,wasn't a cat that meowed a lot,but her purrs are very loud when she is lying with me in bed at night.and yes her thirst has subsided..i was a bit dubious of op because she was 15,but i worried over nothing,she really is a changed cat.

http://i336.photobucket.com/albums/n340/...

http://i336.photobucket.com/albums/n340/...

Answer 4

We caught ours before she was showing signs--we'd taken her in to get a blood test before a dental cleaning and they saw her thyroid was going out of whack.

She was first put on tapazole, but the little pills were almost impossible to get down her (she's hard to pill), so we went with a compounded medication that is put in her ear twice a day and rubbed in. That's the methamazole, she is ok with that and it's kept her levels stable for 2 years now.  The price was the same, $35 for a one month's supply.

Answer 5

Once they are on the right dosage, the symptoms should subside in a couple of weeks, often sooner.  You need to balance the dosage though with any side effects, as some cats tolerate the methimazole better than others.  Some cats get diarrhea if the dosage is too high.  My own tiger cat (he's 15) does very well on his dose, but my foster cat (she's 14) gets diarrhea at the "proper" dosage so her dosage is less than what it should ideally be.  Both are doing extremely well though, and Tabitha is getting a bit plump :o)  

If you're cat isn't tolerating the pill form of methimazole very well, it can be compounded into a transdermal cream that gets rubbed into the ears, and has fewer side effects (like diarrhea or vomiting) than the pill does.

Answer 6

You should see a marked improvement in roughly 3 weeks to 1 month provided the correct dosage has been found. Sometimes when you have the post medication blood work done (about 30 days after starting medication) the dose may be changed to make certain the thyroid function is where it should be.

Answer 7

It will take about a month for you to notice a change, You should be going back to your vet about then for another blood test.

If you are finding your cat is being sick or having diarrhea you should speak to your vet as there are a couple of differnet tablets that could be used.

If you cat is healthy apart from the thyroid and isnt too ols have you considered have the Op to remove the thyroid ?