Relief For Me As I Make A Decision About Rusty's Treatment
Rusty has been more tired than usual today but she woke up enough to eavesdrop on my conversation with Koharia from the North West Nuclear Medicine for Animals clinic (Vancouver, BC).
After speaking to Koh I decided that the Radioiodine (i-131) Treatment will cause Rusty the least amount of grief in the long run.
She goes in July 21st and stays for a week. She will have some radioactive stuff injected under the skin in the shoulder blade area the same day. THAT'S IT! It will not make her sick and she will feel the same as if I'd dropped her for a week and she never had any sort of treatment at all. (Seven days of loneliness ... that's all ... and I imagine she'll sleep just like she does at home).
When I pick her up her too-small-bed can't come home with us because it will be glowing with radioactivity (well, maybe not exactly glowing).
The clinic only takes 8 cats a week ... all coming in on the same day. The people who work there love cats and give them a lot of attention. Those cats who want to walk around can come out of their cages.
Every day I will get a phone call to report how she is doing.
When she comes home I am not supposed to hold her for more than 30 minutes for 10 days.
The Radioiodine (i-131) Treatment is a total cure and apart from a blood test at one month and another one at 3 months Rusty should be able to sail on into her old age with her heart murmur, slightly failing kidneys and me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
P.S. (To answer Rebecca's questions) Humans have many times more radiation when they have similar treatment and they stay in hospital for 3 days or less. The 7 days for cats is a government regulation and not a treatment time (it's just a wait-unitl-you-can-go-home time).
Yes, it's expensive ($1500 + tax) ... a sad thing for families who don't have the money. They say the procedure pays for itself in less than 18 months as the chicken tasting liquid medication she's taking right now is expensive too.
In 2% of cases the procedure has to be done a second time and there is no charge for that. As Rusty's hyperthyroidism was caught very early she has almost no chance of being in that 2% group.
Relief For Me As I Make A Decision About Rusty's Treatment
Rusty has been more tired than usual today but she woke up enough to eavesdrop on my conversation with Koharia from the North West Nuclear Medicine for Animals clinic (Vancouver, BC).
After speaking to Koh I decided that the Radioiodine (i-131) Treatment will cause Rusty the least amount of grief in the long run.
She goes in July 21st and stays for a week. She will have some radioactive stuff injected under the skin in the shoulder blade area the same day. THAT'S IT! It will not make her sick and she will feel the same as if I'd dropped her for a week and she never had any sort of treatment at all. (Seven days of loneliness ... that's all ... and I imagine she'll sleep just like she does at home).
When I pick her up her too-small-bed can't come home with us because it will be glowing with radioactivity (well, maybe not exactly glowing).
The clinic only takes 8 cats a week ... all coming in on the same day. The people who work there love cats and give them a lot of attention. Those cats who want to walk around can come out of their cages.
Every day I will get a phone call to report how she is doing.
When she comes home I am not supposed to hold her for more than 30 minutes for 10 days.
The Radioiodine (i-131) Treatment is a total cure and apart from a blood test at one month and another one at 3 months Rusty should be able to sail on into her old age with her heart murmur, slightly failing kidneys and me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
P.S. (To answer Rebecca's questions) Humans have many times more radiation when they have similar treatment and they stay in hospital for 3 days or less. The 7 days for cats is a government regulation and not a treatment time (it's just a wait-unitl-you-can-go-home time).
Yes, it's expensive ($1500 + tax) ... a sad thing for families who don't have the money. They say the procedure pays for itself in less than 18 months as the chicken tasting liquid medication she's taking right now is expensive too.
In 2% of cases the procedure has to be done a second time and there is no charge for that. As Rusty's hyperthyroidism was caught very early she has almost no chance of being in that 2% group.