There seems to be a good chance my cat may have hyperthyroidism. He shows pretty much all the signs and when I felt his throat one side seems quite a lot larger. I'm in the process of finding a vet and a way to pay for the necessary tests but I'm terrified to be honest. I'm already drowning in debt and barely making it paycheck to paycheck.

Anyone have any experience with this? I wondered if homeopathic remedies work because the side effects of the traditional medicines used sound almost as bad as the illness itself! Hoping to get him in to see a vet asap but still any advice and knowledge would be appreciated because all the info on google is getting overwhelming

Stay off Google, unless you check reputable veterinary sites. People post all sorts of stuff ( like here ) and it's not always reliable.

Best thing to do is get to a vet and get things sorted-out and know what you're dealing with. Humane Societies have lower-cost services. I give my kitty a liquid medicine twice a day - it's simple. There've been no side effects. And she's better.

Good luck

...and I have to give her a 5mg Methimazole pill everyday. My kitty was a rescue and super skinny when I got her (estimated age 2yrs) and she had a crazy appetite. She would eat constantly but never gain weight. Now on the meds she has a normal appetite, but hasn't gained more than 2 lbs and still looks very skinny. The meds aren't very expensive, but having her bloodwork checked is. Hope this info helps, and good luck!

Oh thank you! That's a great relief because it was starting to sound like the medicine was too expensive and the side effects made my eyes spin! It's good to hear from people where it worked with no bad effects! Do you have to give them a special diet? the vet I asked said you can only feed a special kind of science diet to them or the medicine wouldn't help much (not sure if they were just saying that because they sell science diet though lol)

My 17 year old cat has been hyperthyroid for 8 years. She's been on the liquid meds all that time, with no side effects. She's not on a special diet, either, although I do buy high quality food (Weruva, Felidae, etc.). For many years, all I had to do was get her T4 levels checked twice a year and she stayed pretty steady. We've been having more trouble for the last couple of years, so it's been more expensive ($60 a pop for the blood work), but we always manage to get her levels right after some fiddling around with the dosage.

I know vet care can be expensive, but the meds themselves aren't too bad. Good luck!

HI! I'm a vet tech so thought i'd chime in a little =) The Y/D Science Diet food your vet is referring to your cat does not need to be on if they are taking the Felimazole or Methimazole ect.. (thyroid meds) In some cases in can be used in place of pills to treat hyperthyroidism. This is helpful to owners that have cats that are difficult to pill once or twice daily. What to expect is....blood work for your cat which can probably range upwards of $120 depending on where you live but the medication is only $25 a month where i live. Also expect to recheck the blood work to make sure that the dose you will be giving is working 4weeks later and then probably yearly there after..Hope this helps! good luck!

Thank you so much the help has been great and so informative! The whole situation is less intimidating and frightening now.