Hyperthyroidism In Cats Diet

And while it appears to be effective in the interim we would not recommend this diet for long term use.

Hyperthyroidism in cats diet. Anti-thyroid drugs inhibit the production of thyroid hormones. Generally cats with overactive thyroid glands need a high-calorie diet with enough fat and plenty of high quality animal-based protein. In cats thyrotoxicosis is usually caused by a benign tumor on one or both thyroid glands.

However it may not be appropriate for all cats depending on other medical conditions so important to work with your veterinarian and decide if using this therapeutic diet is the best way to manage your cats. Hills Pet Nutrition produces a prescription diet for cats with strictly controlled iodine levels. Restoring and preserving any remaining muscle tissue in cats treated for hyperthyroidism depends upon the cat.

When making diet adjustments for a cat suffering from hyperthyroidism you first have to focus on the foods that need to be excluded from the diet. Diet control for hyperthyroidism. Without iodine the thyroid gland cannot make any hormones.

Forty-nine client-owned cats with. Cats with hyperthyroidism can lose a noticeable amount of weight especially older cats who may already find it more difficult to absorb essential nutrients. Studies have shown that an iodine-restricted diet alone can control thyroid hormone levels without the need for medication.

This means that a cats system eats its own muscle tissue in order to meet the increased protein requirements of the new state. Since iodine is needed to build thyroid hormones the lack of iodine in your cats food would prevent thyroid hormone production in your cats body. Next you need to increase the amount of healthy food or even base the entire diet exclusively on this.

Although thyroid tumors can be cancerous the chances are less than 5 percent in cats. We encourage you to read cat food labels and consider these guidelines.