Hyperthyroidism in Cats...... and dogs

You may have missed our Post on blood transfusions, for Cats and Dogs....... the BBC wrote that one just under a year ago.  Yes, blood transfusions.  Hopefully you won't need to be scrambling around to find this sort of information when you least expect it...... and to clarify, its really not supplied by the RED CROSS, but what the Vets need to do to save a "life" of a loved one, it's close enough to the truth.

"Red Cross Blood" transfusions for cats / dogs? Not only on the North Shore of Vancouver.

You may laugh, but when it comes to having pets, we have two cats in our household, and when I say "in", I mean exactly that, they're not the outdoorsy variety.   We want to keep them safe and not have them bringing any trophies back........ like one cat did......   38 years ago...... once it was a partial RAT and the next time it was a snake.


The Female had a slight problem, something called Hyperthyroidism.

She was always meowing for food (raw food - see the above Post), taking her share eagerly, and would have taken his as well if we didn't feed them separately.  The only problem, that the more she ate, the thinner she was getting.

Turned out, after the blood work was done at the Vet, it proved to be Hyperthyroidism.

Google Key Word Search       Hyperthyroidism     or rather, working backwards from the type of medication that is prepared at a Compounding Pharmacy (for humans)    it's      methimazole for cats


Fifth result down in Google is this:

Hyperthyroidism in Cats

maxshouse.com/Hyperthyroidism_in_Cats.htm

The major negative aspect of methimazole is that some cats are not the best pill takers. Rather than fight these cats, methimazole can be “compounded” by some ...

Snip....... Symptoms of hyperthyroidism

Each cat responds to his or her hyperthyroidism a little differently, causing observed abnormalities to vary from cat to cat. Among the most common owner observations are the following:

• Weight loss
• Increase in appetite
• Patchy hair loss or failure to groom (some cats have been observed to pull their hair out)
• Increase in water intake
• Increase in urine output
• Increase in activity level (some cats are persistently restless or nervous) ...Snip

The medication for our cat is Methimazole.  Its a liquid, and its added to HER meal, and we make sure HE doesn't get a chance to finish off HER plate, NOT bloody LIKELY.....! even with the medication.

What does she look like Now?  Or more to the point, how long did it take to put some "meat" on her bones,  about four months........  Now she looks, and acts, like a healthy cat.


As for dogs, this Google search for the same medication     Methimazole for Dogs

"Red Cross Blood" transfusions for cats / dogs? Not only on the North Shore of Vancouver.

Our cats (indoors) had their prerequisite shots before leaving the North Vancouver Pound eleven years ago and since then, they've been happy as a clam..... that's one human's presumption that a cat can be happy.   Sure they can purr, but there is a medical reason as to why they do it.......

Zoom Groom

Just heard (May 3, 2013) that the fur that is in the zoom  ...  ....... don't put in your garbage ... their feathered friends use it to line their nests ..... in the wild.

They are well fed (raw meat) from All Natural & Exotic Meats, well zoomed groomed (they demand it or I'll hear about it), get as much sleep as they want (I have no say in the matter), and have as much activity as they can endure (chasing each other), but for the first time in ten years one needed a Veterinarian's attention because of this:

Winter Rye

I know why outdoor cats need to chew on grass, but as to why one of MY cats chose to chow down on a rogue strand of winter rye that was brought into the house, uninvited, I'll never know.    I was out for the evening when it happened.

The spike tipped winter rye was one fur ball he couldn't deal with.   Neither could we.

Rough night sleep for the whole household.


We decided that a non-emergency appointment with a Vet could wait till 9:30 the following morning.   If it was  a sort of an emergency,  the cat could have been in by 8:00am,  and still be fine.  If it was something really serious, the door is always open with the Vet.


The Vet did an excellent "survey" of the entire cat, once the cat took ownership over the examination room.  Stainless Steel countertop wasn't the greatest for his claws to hold on to.

The surprise wasn't so much that the cat needed medicine to heal his goughed throat, it was my having to "talk" to others about their pets reasons for being gathered together under one roof..........

Which led me to ask an "icebreaker" of a question........ no, no, no, no   Nothing like "Do cats go to a heaven?".... of course they do.  Their heaven, not mine.

No, the Question was "If my cat needs surgery, is there blood available to replenish his depleted resources, for whatever reason?"   I really didn't want to use the phrase    RUN-OVER    so I just left out the reason I was asking.

To my surprise the answer was a resounding     YES!!!!!

Fact is, the receptionist said, cats and dogs, can donate blood.   Hmmmmmm.   Do I have to sign a waiver?  Does it mean he doesn't have to do any strenuous "work" around the household for a week or two, like chasing rodents?    I was going to say "mice", but mice are pets too, to some folks.

Thank you for your interest in our blood donor program!

Animal ER realizes the entire veterinary community suffers from a shortage of high quality, easily accessible blood products. We established Vancouver Animal Blood Services (VABS) with the hope of helping veterinarians and pet owners alike when the need for blood products arises.  This is a very special program and is a wonderful way for you and your companion to help others in their time of need.   Snip

"I've never thought about that before!"

That's what most people say when they first hear about pets giving blood. They've never considered that pets might need blood transfusions just like humans do. Once they think about it, their next response is usually "Of course! It makes sense that you'd need to have pet blood donors."

Choose from one of the categories to the right for more information for potential donors, veterinarians and to view some of our heroic VABS donors.

Now, if you decide to allow your pet to become a donor, the bonus is this.  Instead of your paying a Vet to check out your Pet, once a year, he'll get: 

    a full physical exam to make sure he is currently healthy.

Before I donate his blood.