Hyperthyroidism

[JustThom]

Thom, 7yr male, neutered has a heart murmur. He is also being treated for an upper respiratory infection.

I read that Hyperthyroidism can cause heart murmurs and aggressive behaviour. Does anyone know if this is true? Thom is Highly Aggressive towards other animals and attacks without provocation. He also attacks feet.

Any information you can provide about Hyperthyroidism and aggressive behaviour would be appreciated. Thank you in advance. Hope you have a purrfect day!

[Kay]

hyperthyroidism tends to occur in cats older than Thom, and the main symptoms are increased appetite and loss of, or at least no gain of, weight - it can also cause jumpiness and agitation, but not aggressiveness as such - a blood test would make sure though, and possibly throw up something else going on with him

this sounds more like a behavioural problem, though, to me - how long have you had him? has he always been like it? under what circumstances is he aggressive? have your circumstances changed recently?

[Willowgill]

Hi I don't believe the two are connected. I had a cat with hyperthyroidism - in fact i've had two. The first one was about 15 when she developed it - she went on a tablet medication and lived to be 18 when she died from heart problems. Harry was about 13 I think when I noticed he was very thin - they confirmed it was his thyroid and operated to take away half of it - he was fine after that until he developed kidney failure 2 years later. Neither were aggressive in fact H was just the opposite. I now have a very aggressive cat but she shows no signs of the thyroid issues and as far as I know doesn't have a heart murmur. She also goes for feet but to her it's a fun game of diving out from under the bed as I walk round it

[lilynmitz]

I agree, this sounds like a behavioural Issue to me. Hyperthyroidism is rare in cats less than 10 yrs old, but heart murmurs are fairly common in cats of all ages, although it does need to be taken seriously.

I think you need to recategorise his behaviour from "aggressive" to "defensive". He's saying "keep away, I feel on comfortable having you so close, or, I'm afraid you're gong to hurt me". This sounds like a very stressed cat to me, which won't be doing his heart murmur any good. Have a look at the Advice and Info section of this website, at "Aggression in Cats", and also "cat Heirarchies", under the health and behaviour section of the advice page. Then look at his world from his viewpoint, and try to work out what's upsetting him, then deal with that. Meanwhile he needs a peaceful environment, and lots of love and reassurance to help him calm down.

[Cindy 14]

My 13 year old cat Cindy has just had a thyroidectomy as I went to vet saying she had been vomiting small amounts of food for some time and after having blood tests she was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism. I'm feeling a bit concerned now as she is now showing all the really restless symptoms of hyperthyroidism after the op that she barely showed at all before it. I'm really hoping this is only temporary as otherwise I feel I've just paid a lot of money to put her through an operation she didn't really need