PUSSYCAT QUESTION

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onemoretime

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My little cat who is now 16 years old has been diagnosed with over active Thyroid gland problems for which she is on one tablet a day for life. She lost quite a bit of weight when this was discovered and since being on the tablets her thyroid count has come back to normal but she has not put on any weight and her heart is beating much to fast. Vet took more blood tests and relieved me of more money and it has now been discovered that she has got kidney problems which dont show up until the thyroid is under control apparently. Anyway she has got to go on a low protein diet and the vet is going to supply me with Hills pouches 8 in a box he is going to sell me 24 pouches for £17.95 Milly eats 3 pouches a day of her normal Sheba ones so if she eats the same of the Hills this is going to work out very expensive and I just wondered if any of you chaps knew of a website where I can get these Hills pouches any cheaper as I am sure it will become a regular order and I dont want to have to keep running to the vets every week. Thanks in anticipation.
 
Our (well at my mums but she's mine really) 19 year old cat has this, however the vet did a blood sample to check kidney function first, which was not good, meaning she cannot have the tablets.

She has a low protein diet, and has lots of small meals as she is always hungry. She has lost a lot of weight and is very frail so we are keeping her going whilst she is still happy, we will see what happens. Mum feeds her a lot of cooked white fish and chicken, mixed with some kind of cereal stuff, she wouldn't eat the special stuff. We googled low protein diet for cats and got ideas that way.

Good luck!
 
The food - i'd imagine is K/D or similar? is a prescription only diet so maybe try one of the vet med websites. You can make a low protein diet but most people have found that a) its not that palatable to the cat b) its huge huge hassle and c) it doesn't work out much more ecconomical once you factor in your time making it and the cat not eating all of it!

Are you also getting the dry food? Alot of elderly cats with little to know teeth like a few biscuits either dry or mixed with a little warm water - sounds rank I know but they like it!
 
My kidney failure cat did not like the prescription food and I was told that it is more important that she eats than has the diet, so she stayed on normal food until the end.

She was on tablets called Fortekor for her kidneys and was also tested for thyroid and diabetes.

She survived from November to 23rd June last year - RIP Midge.

Try the prescription diet, she may not even like it and take it from there.

I am sorry to hear about your puddy cat.
 
Please do not feel that anything you have done has caused this as it is one of the most common things that older cats get (along with renal problems)

Hyperthyroidism basically means her thyroid gland is gonna produce too much T3 and T4 hormones, which is why the heart rate is increased and she has lost weight as it quickly introduces her body's metabolic rate.

The tablets should help reduce but it will take time for them to a)take effect and b) for you to find the balance of everything that best works for her.

The weight may never come back! but so long as she is not ill-lookingly thing then that is ok!

The pouches, often if you google Hills diets (whichever specification you want) there are a number of sites which sell them for cheaper than getting them from vets!

Sorry to hear about this though its not nice but hopefully you will be able to balance the meds and lifestyle to give her the best quality of life you can!
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Thank you everyone for your replies. It was very kind of you all. I know that 16 is old for a cat and she probably hasn't got much longer but I want to keep her happy for as long as we can. She is very lively still and rushes thru the cat flap and up the stairs and has filled out a bit through the flanks but apparently has not put weight on. I have got to pick up her medication for her kidneys tomorrow and the food but I will google Hills cat food and see what the price is like, all being that Milly will eat it. The vet said that things like chicken and tuna and really any meats are high in protein so I dont know what is in this low protein diet - will have to wait and see.

Once again very many thanks for all your help.
 
PS my cat did not put weight on.

You could try cooking frozen fish for your cat such as frozen pollock or something, but may work out the same price.

As long as your cat is happy, eating, rushing about etc do not worry.

My cat slowed down and found a quite place in the bathroom and did not budge from it for a few days unless it was to eat or use her loo. She eventually became incontinent.

Kidney cats can also have stomach ache due to excess acid and my cat was on omeprazole for this, an antacid from the vets for the last 3 weeks of her life.

Let us know how she gets on.
 
the kidney diet is one of the most important parts of managing kidney disease so please try really hard to get her to eat it - it has been scientifically proven that it will double their life expectancy compared to just feeding standard cat food as it is specially formulated to use high quality protein in v small amounts with restricted phosphorus etc and it really helps the kidneys.

it's really common to find cats develop renal issues after you start treating an overactive thyroid. when they're hyperthyroid they have increased blood pressure which pushes lots of blood through the kidneys and flushes out the toxins. when you stabilise their blood pressure, the kidneys start to struggle and the toxins build up.
 
The kidney food use soya protein rather than meat protein

if you go on the hills or royal canin websites it has explanations about the content of the food!

I hope she is ok
 
There used to be a small animals vet who was a livery at my previous yard. I was talking to her about my moggie Marks (brother to Spencer, natch lol) and his bladder problems and I said he wouldn't eat the prescription food. She told me she used to have a cat that needed the same prescription food quite early in it's life. Being a vet and taking no prisoners in the misplaced compassion stakes, at feeding time she used to shut her cat in the loo with his prescription diet! He soon accepted it and eventually at meal times he would rush into the loo on his own and wait for his tea!

Don't blame any cat for not eating it - it smell ghastly and a cat relies heavily on it's sense of smell to help it decide whether to eat something - that's why tinned cat food stored in the fridge after opening is so often rejected at a second feeding...the smell is weaker and different. Hope you're moggy stays bright as a button for many more years x
 
Sorry to hear about your cat, but just wanted to say that our old cat was diagnosed with diabetes and an over-actove thyroid, was on medication for both conditions for a couple of years. She wouldn't eat anything other than coley fillets (seriously, not interested) so she stayed on a coley fillet twice a day and it didn't seem to do her any harm. In the end next door's terriers got her
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Terrible end for such a courageous little cat that had moved country with us and made it to such a grand age
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Try petmeds.co.uk, I think they sell prescription cat food cheapish - you'll need a prescription written by your vet though. Google the name of the cat food and you'll probably find loads of other sites that sell it too.
 
thank you every one for all your advice it really does make me feel better. Milly had her first kidney pill this afternoon and wil start the food today hopefully!!

I will keep you posted.
Kind regards to everyone
 
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