My cat just had the I 131 treatment for hyperthyroid. He's in the 2 week isolation phase now. Just wondered if anyone else has done this. He seems fine...other than not amused at being isolated. We have some pretty stringent rules about handling him, disposing of waste etc. He can "come out" once the two weeks is over. We are only allowed 30 min TOTAL time with him per day. No cuddle, no lap time... a few pets, scoop the pan and flush it, new food and water and back out ASAP. Tough on all of us. However...we were told it's about a 97% cure rate.
I went through this with my cat last spring and she's doing very well. Fortunately I caught it early enough and she was in good shape before the treatment.
As far as being in isolation once she got home, I didn't have to do that. I think it's different for every family, depending on who lives with the cat. It's just me, and I'm past child-bearing age. She spent 4 days at the vet "cooling off", but when she came home I just had to restrict my time with her and keep her away from kids. I have another cat & a dog & neither of them were banned from being with her. I did have to use special litter, though, and didn't like having to flush it down the toilet. I had visions of the stuff plugging the pipes & then getting arrested for having radioactive waste in my plumbing. No special restrictions about eating or drinking with the other 2 pets. She did sleep alone, though, as she usually cuddles with me at night.
But we all survived and she looks great. I'm glad I spent the money to do it, as the thought of pills and bloodtests forever certainly didn't appeal to me.
On the road and happy with Jed, my four-legged camping buddy.
'06 Eddie Bauer Expedition
'13 Starcraft 265RLB Autumn Ridge
I've had many patients and my son's cat was treated many years ago at UofIL. At that time the isolation had to be in their facility - so Mama was gone for a total of 4 weeks.
Total recovery with no life long problems, no medications necessary. All in all an amazing treatment for a potentially life threatening disease.
Doug, DVM
Doug & Sandy
Jill (11yr old Golden)& Charmin (16 yr old something)
Henry NOW a camping cat
2008 Southwind
2009 Honda CRV
It is an amazing treatment! I think the isolation and not being cuddled is the hard part. We are in Georgia now...and the state allows the animals to go home after 72 hours..BUT...the state is pretty strict about the 14 days of isolation and disposal of "contaminated" materials. We'll have to keep the remaining used kitty litter in a lined plastic container (5 gallon bucket type) for 90 days BEYOND the 2 wk isolation!
I even have an affidavit I have to carry in my vehicle showing that the truck may trip a geiger counter and it's due to this treatment and not to any illegal activities!
Apparently the cat is giving off gamma rays. Glad to hear it's helped other cats. We chose it because it offered a cure rather than treatment... and the cost to treat over a year or so would be the same. So... better radioactive for awhile than poking pills daily and getting bit.
Good luck to you - hope it works out really well, and that your cat is in the 97%! Our first cat had hyperthyroid disease and we treated with meds for about 8 months, then the meds stopped working. We lost him in the surgery to take out the thyroid. Terribly sad day. If we had had your option, things might have turned out very differently.
Pheremones in the room might make it a little more tolerable for kitty. I often use them when going on vacation and cats will not have their normal amount of attention.
susan
Fuzzy Wuzzy was a wabbit, Fuzzy Wuzzy had a dandelion habit! RIP little Wuz... don't go far.
I live outside of Pasadena, CA. The only place between Santa Barbara and the Mexico border that does this treatment is in Irvine -- a good 50 miles and over an hour from me. It was worth the trek down there to know that I wouldn't be pushing pills down my cat's throat for the rest of her life.
One of the fun(?) aspects about where she was was that they had closed-circuit cameras in each of the cages, so I could see her during work hours. I was able to pull it up on my computer at school & even show my fifth graders. We got to see the technicians taking her out to get weighed & fed -- lots of fun for everyone ... except my kitty.
I guess every state has its own regulations about how to treat a radioactive animal. All I cared about was making her better. It wasn't cheap, but as CTS said, the cost is basically the same if you consider how long the cat might live on pills.
Hang in there! Those 2 weeks will pass quickly and you'll have a happy, relaxed kitty. Mine sure settled down after that tumor was gone.
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