Understanding what feline hyperthyroidism is and what causes it helps us get to the solution. It's important to look at the big picture before deciding on any treatment, otherwise healing won't happen.

Hyperthyroidism in anyone is when the thyroid produces too much of the thyroid hormones. This has a knock-on affect creating problems elsewhere, such as the gastrointestinal tract and the heart.

This in turn, creates more knock-on effects!

This is why it's important to look at the big picture, otherwise it's just a collection of symptoms with little appreciation of what to do with them.

Cats tend to be more prone to the hyper- variety rather than the hypo- variety, which is the opposite, ie not enough of the hormones.

Feline hyperthyroidism typically occurs in older cats, rather than the younger ones, but this is changing with the younger ones now succumbing to it. Typical signs include:

• an increased appetite with weight loss (unusual!)
• increased thirst and urination
• an increase in activity and metabolic rate
• may be more vocal
• tends to be hot, seeking cool places (very unusual)
• diarrhoea and vomiting are not uncommon
• increased heart rate, arrhythmia or even heart failure in severely affected cats

As you can appreciate, this list can be common to other problems, so diagnoses is not a fine art. However, the two unusual signs can be helpful, as long as they are a deviation from the norm.

A blood test can reveal elevated T4 cells. However, blood tests are not very accurate. Other tests include nuclear thyroid scans which sound ominous and toxic to the naturally inclined.

The common veterinary drug is methimazole. Checking with www.drugs.com for problems reveals many serious issues, including pain and a loss of consciousness.

Surgery can be used to remove the thyroid gland.

Radiation iodine therapy destroys the tissue.

All three treatments have significant risks to your cat including their ongoing health and life expectancy.

All are liver toxic and suppress the immune system. And none actually deal with the cause of the problem, only the effect.

What else can you do?

The thyroid is one of the endocrine glands. They are the ductless glands that run down through the body. 

From head to toe, they are the pineal, the pituitary and hypothalamus, the thyroid and parathyroid, the thymus, the pancreatic islets, the adrenals, the ovaries, the testes.

They support each other. However, when one is disturbed the others can disfunction.

This means sterilisation can cause a problem. Female sterilisation is the removal of both the uterus and the ovaries. Male sterilisation is the removal of the testes.

Removing just the uterus and leaving the ovaries is possible and would be much healthier. However, that is a more complicated, and longer, operation, so both the anaesthetic and the cost would increase.

It also means that the cat will continue to have her seasons.

In the male, cutting the spermatic cord would leave the testes. However, the cat may still show sexual habits, that may not be acceptable in some households!

These procedures are common in dogs, so they can be done. It's just a matter of finding the right vet, as many refuse.

Sterilisation doesn't seem to adversely affect all cats, probably because the other endocrine glands can help to some extent when all other areas are supported.

However, it could also be because cats are prey animals as well as the predators we know them for. Their size does make them vulnerable.

Prey animals tend to hide their weaknesses as otherwise they would be an easy target for someone's dinner.

So what other areas can be supported to limit the adverse effect of sterilisation?

Food is the big one.

Commercial cat food is responsible for every health issue in those fed it. It is poor quality, nutrient deficient and highly toxic. It keeps them alive, but not healthy.

Just making that one change from the commercial to a quality raw meat and bones diet can have a dramatically beneficial effect. And quite quickly.

That's your job. No-one else can do that.

If your cat is already taking a veterinary drug, you may like to consider using a natural health practitioner such as a homeopath. Good homeopathic treatment can restore a flailing immune system to how it should be.

Healing feline hyperthyroidism naturally, even when your cat has been sterilised can be effective. To get the best results, it takes your input with the diet change and the services of an experienced homeopath.