I'm Radioactive, Radioactive...

Our oldest pet, 13 year Momo, has had quite a month! 

It all began in early October when she went to the vet for her annual checkup. We had noticed lately that we could easily feel her spine and collarbone when we petted her, but she was eating well and didn't act or look sick. So when she weighed in at only 9 lbs (she was 12.5 lbs 3 years ago), our vet, Dr. Prichard at Ellington Center Animal Clinic, told me he suspected she had feline hyperthyroidism.

A blood test confirmed his suspicions and we were given two options for treatment:

     1)  We could treat her with oral medication.  It would not cure her disease 

          and would need to be given daily for the rest of her life.  The medication has

          a high risk of side-effects, including harm to other bodily organs. The cost of

          medication and blood tests to monitor her condition could cost $800 per year. 

     2)  Treat her with Radioactive Iodine.  This is a one-time treatment which is a cure.

          The cost of treatment is $1500.  There are no side-effects.

After researching the disease and treatment methods,  it was clear that the only treatment that made sense was the Radioactive Iodine.  While it was more expensive up front, it would be cheaper in the long run.  More importantly, it was a cure with no side effects. 

On November 1,  I drove Momo to Pieper Memorial Veterinary Center in Middletown, CT which has a Radiocat facility on its premises.

Momo joined 4 other cats who would also be receiving a Radioactive Iodine injection that day.  They would all be staying in a room in the basement of the clinic for four days until the level of radiation in their bodies reached an acceptable level.  Radiation is expelled through eating and drinking, peeing and pooping.

It was hard to leave Momo for so long.  She was very scared.

I brought along her favorite food and cans of Bumble Bee tuna!

This would be her caretaker during her stay.  He was a very nice man

who has 9 cats of his own, and promised to call me every day to let

me know how Momo was doing.

The Radioactive Iodine is absorbed quickly into the cat's bloodstream and the diseased thyroid tissue. Once in the thyroid, it destroys the overactive portions of the thyroid gland.

No anesthesia is required.  It does not destroy healthy tissue.  It does not damage other

tissues or organs.  Thyroid function returns to normal within one month.

When I picked up Momo 4 days later,  she was still somewhat radioactive.

I was given instructions on how to safely care for her over the next 2 weeks 

as she continued to emit radiation.

                 1).  People could only be within 3 feet of her for 20 minutes/day.

                      She could not sleep with us on the bed.  We needed to wash

                      our hands after touching her or any of her bodily fluids.

                 2)  She was supposed to be kept inside and we were instructed 

                      use flushable cat litter for two weeks.  

This seems pretty simple in theory, but not so simple in reality.

Momo's main mission in life is to sit on my lap and get petted.  I couldn't sit on the couch and watch TV at night since she would see it as an invitation to snuggle.  I needed to watch TV from a stool in the kitchen!

Perhaps more troublesome was the change in cat litter.  She boycotted using the litter box because of the strange litter.  After ruining 2 dog beds to radioactive cat urine,

we let her outside to go to the bathroom.  We weren't supposed to do this, but had no choice.

It has been one month since her treatment.  At a follow-up vet visit today,  Momo is now back to a healthy weight.  She has gained 1.1 lbs!

And the nodule on her thyroid is gone.

Here are some pictures of this beautiful girl from this past month:

 Momo waits patiently for some turkey on Thanksgiving.

 Here she is cleaning up after eating her breakfast.

 She spends much of her day on her blanket on the couch.

 Momo enjoys looking out the window.

 When she's cold, she sleeps next to the baseboard heater.

 In the evening,  she snuggles with me on the couch.

If left untreated,  hyperthyroidism would most likely have taken Momo's life with 6 months to a year.  We feel very fortunate to have a healthy, happy cat after a pretty simple treatment.

We hope to have many more years with Momo!