- Joined
- May 17, 2021
- Messages
- 43
Hello 
I am very worried and hoping I can get some clarity. My kitty, Jespa, has had ongoing constipation for years and I have tried many natural methods (I worked for years with a holistic mobile vet) but nothing has resolved it - maybe I wasn't consistent enough with herbs she prescribed (he is a picky eater and I wasn't always able to get him to take them). Recently, he was constipated for nearly a week and an x-ray showed a stretched colon - ugh. The vet (who is not holistic) told me it is not Megacolon but that he needs to be on Miralax and Lactulose for life (I had already started both but wasn't consistent since I was trying to control it naturally). I have been giving him both medications daily, for the past couple of months, along with herbal supplements and a probiotic, and have been able to control the constipation in that he is not straining, but he is still only going every couple of days - sometimes every other day. The good news is that his vomiting has stopped.
Earlier this month, I found an integrative vet near me to get a second opinion and he said, based on the x-ray, that it is in fact megacolon. In addition, his blood work shows high Free t4 levels - the total T4 is normal (about 2.8 - so at the mid to higher range) as it was when we did bloodwork about a year and a half ago with the mainstream vet (they did not test for Free t4, though) - I did note the Total T4, although in normal range, is higher than it was a year and half ago.
The new integrative vet prescribed Methimazole and a few new supplements (I am introducing them slowly) ... Magnesium and a supplement for the constipation that I have not yet started (the idea is to wean off the Miralax). I am also giving him the probiotic and the herbal supplements I mentioned from NHV natural pet products (Maris, Yucca, Felimm, and Resthyroid). I started the Methimazole last week and then stopped a couple of days ago when I read all the scary potential side effects. Agh. I would like to treat the hyperthyroid naturally if possible, but I am so worried that the Free t4 won't decline and that the total T4 will continue to slowly rise. I don't know what to do. I am also wondering if the constipation caused the overactive thyroid or the other way around. He had been diagnosed years ago with IBS (by mobile vet) but we never could determine the underlying cause. I should mention he is also prone to anxiety - he gets scared easily and when I take him to the vet he shakes (his mobile vet no longer does house calls), so I want to avoid lots of trips to the vet, which seems unavoidable now that we have to do regular blood work.
The only signs he shows of hyperthyroidism are a big appetite (he wakes me in the middle of the night) - he is not thin and actually needs to lose a pound or two - he weighs 13 lbs (used to weight 12). He does play w/ his sister but he sleeps a lot ... maybe more than is normal ... I am not sure. He is almost 10 years old. His pee seems to be a little more than usual ... I am not sure if I am looking for things or if it really has increased but it does seem to be a lot - I am also giving him water throughout the day (via a dropper) and water and bone broth in his food, so maybe that's why. His coat is very nice and he doesn't have any of the other tale-tell signs of hyperthyroidism - when I read the descriptions of over active and under active thyroid it almost seems like he has a combo of the two. I will attach his recent blood work. Praying I can treat this naturally..
I am very worried and hoping I can get some clarity. My kitty, Jespa, has had ongoing constipation for years and I have tried many natural methods (I worked for years with a holistic mobile vet) but nothing has resolved it - maybe I wasn't consistent enough with herbs she prescribed (he is a picky eater and I wasn't always able to get him to take them). Recently, he was constipated for nearly a week and an x-ray showed a stretched colon - ugh. The vet (who is not holistic) told me it is not Megacolon but that he needs to be on Miralax and Lactulose for life (I had already started both but wasn't consistent since I was trying to control it naturally). I have been giving him both medications daily, for the past couple of months, along with herbal supplements and a probiotic, and have been able to control the constipation in that he is not straining, but he is still only going every couple of days - sometimes every other day. The good news is that his vomiting has stopped.
Earlier this month, I found an integrative vet near me to get a second opinion and he said, based on the x-ray, that it is in fact megacolon.
In addition, his blood work shows high Free t4 levels - the total T4 is normal (about 2.8 - so at the mid to higher range) as it was when we did bloodwork about a year and a half ago with the mainstream vet (they did not test for Free t4, though) - I did note the Total T4, although in normal range, is higher than it was a year and half ago. The new integrative vet prescribed Methimazole and a few new supplements (I am introducing them slowly) ... Magnesium and a supplement for the constipation that I have not yet started (the idea is to wean off the Miralax). I am also giving him the probiotic and the herbal supplements I mentioned from NHV natural pet products (Maris, Yucca, Felimm, and Resthyroid). I started the Methimazole last week and then stopped a couple of days ago when I read all the scary potential side effects. Agh. I would like to treat the hyperthyroid naturally if possible, but I am so worried that the Free t4 won't decline and that the total T4 will continue to slowly rise. I don't know what to do. I am also wondering if the constipation caused the overactive thyroid or the other way around. He had been diagnosed years ago with IBS (by mobile vet) but we never could determine the underlying cause. I should mention he is also prone to anxiety - he gets scared easily and when I take him to the vet he shakes (his mobile vet no longer does house calls), so I want to avoid lots of trips to the vet, which seems unavoidable now that we have to do regular blood work.
The only signs he shows of hyperthyroidism are a big appetite (he wakes me in the middle of the night) - he is not thin and actually needs to lose a pound or two - he weighs 13 lbs (used to weight 12). He does play w/ his sister
but he sleeps a lot ... maybe more than is normal ... I am not sure. He is almost 10 years old. His pee seems to be a little more than usual ... I am not sure if I am looking for things or if it really has increased but it does seem to be a lot - I am also giving him water throughout the day (via a dropper) and water and bone broth in his food, so maybe that's why. His coat is very nice and he doesn't have any of the other tale-tell signs of hyperthyroidism - when I read the descriptions of over active and under active thyroid it almost seems like he has a combo of the two. I will attach his recent blood work. Praying I can treat this naturally..
