Hyperthyroidism in Cat food query

Hi My cat was recently diagnosed with Hyperthyroidism he is 16. He was prescribed felimazole and a prescription diet. He wont eat the diet food so I got raw steak for him which he woofed down as he was starving. But I dont know what to do going forward if he wont eat the prescription food? any advice please. He is also vomiting and his stomach was gurgling, Also he shares the litter trays with my other cat, is is urine or poo radioactive? and if so will it effect my other cat?

Hello!   There are four main ways to treat hyperthyroidism in a cat:  thyroidectomy (removing the offending gland - fiddly surgery and less common these days, although useful in some cases), anti-thyroid medication (such as the one you mention), radioactive thyroid therapy and dietary management.   Some forms of dietary management completely eliminte the need for tablets or surgery, returning the thyroid levels to normal.  Others are given to help the patient to maintain weight and muscle mass while the tablets do their job.  The foods intended as a primary treatment work because they contain low iodine; if you feed this and then throw in an iodine-rich food such as a steak, this will ruin the whole effect.      MORE TO FOLLOW

However it sounds as if, in this case, there is medication to control the thyroid gland AND a (different) special diet is being given to help to control the muscle mass and protein levels and to help your cat gain weight.  As your cat is vomiting, it suggests that either the thyroid is not yet under control (the dose is not right, for example), or masked kidney disease or side effects of the treatment may be emerging.  Because this may be happening, the food refusal may well be unconnected to the type of food; the thyroid gland determines how hungry the patient is.  If they are on too high a dose of the tablets for example, they are unlikely to want to eat at all.

Therefore, we would reccommend a visit to your vet in order review the situation.  Ideally, this would happen quickly.  Many routine hyperthyroid appointments can be made weeks in advance but in this case, you could ask to be triaged by your vets' emergency team just in case your cat is dehydrated from the vomiting, or in case their kidneys might be at risk.

Looking at the data-sheet of some of the pills, women of child-bearing age or who may be pregnant are advised to wear gloves while handling the medication and cats' urine, in order to protect against any adverse side effects of the drug.  Your vet should provide you with advice about this; they can also issue (and explain) what is known as the drug data-sheet, a copy of which may well be in your tablet-container, and which is also available online.

Looking at the data-sheet of some of the pills, women of child-bearing age or who may be pregnant are advised to wear gloves while handling the medication and cats' urine, in order to protect against any adverse side effects of the drug.  Your vet should provide you with advice about this; they can also issue (and explain) what is known as the drug data-sheet, a copy of which may well be in your tablet-container, and which is also available online.

I have no expectation that your cat would be radioactive as can happen on radioactive Iodine treatment; rather, the medication can move through into the urine, so the urine should be handled with care, under the direction of your vet.