Does thyroid trouble cause excessive shedding?

Probably a dumb question, but...

Roo has never, never been a major shedder.I would never get any fur when I combed her, but I've noticed this week she is shedding like crazy! Could this be a symptom of her thyroid trouble? or the meds? Or maybe it's just her old age?

I was just told by my vet about 2 weeks ago that hair loss, slow regrowth and weight loss could be a sign of thyroid problems. Older cats are more prone to develop thyroid problems.

I've heard of hair loss with thyroid, as well.

human thyroid symtoms: hair loss: wt loss: wt gain: fatigue : constipation : so many things are contected to thyroid it is scary

Originally Posted by sharky

human thyroid symtoms: hair loss: wt loss: wt gain: fatigue : constipation : so many things are contected to thyroid it is scary

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You hit it on the nail, I have had underactive thyroid for 16 years. It is a struggle and the only problem I havent' had to deal with is the constipation part.. don't mean to get to personal Thats just because I have always been a good eater when it comes to fiber. Hair loss Yes, big time.. But it grows back, weight gain too, but it can be maintained and always freaking tired

Thanks everyone!

OK, so is the hair loss a symptom of slow thyroid? Because when her thyroid was fast, she wasn't losing fur...I've just noticed it since her thyroid is now on the low side.

On another note she has gained a good amount of weight back!!

I don't have experience with thyroid problems in cats, but I was diagnosed with a nearly non-functioning thyroid about 2 months ago. My symptoms were weight gain, hair loss (I even lost my eyelashes!!!), dry, flaky skin, extreme fatigue even when getting 10+ hours of uninterrupted sleep and a ravenous thirst as well as appetite.

Don't know if this will help or not ... best to let the vet get blood to test the levels.

Thanks gayef!

Roo just had her levels checked 2 weeks ago and she's due back in 2 more weeks. She is a lot more active than she was. But if she starts symptoms other than shedding I'll call the vet and see if she should be checked sooner.

I am not sure if it's the same for cats as it is for dogs, but since my parents dog started shedding weirdly, we took her to the vet who said the following about thyroid:

They would start shedding from the back, in a symetrical pattern. If one side is shedding so is the other, and the shedding would move from the back to the front. It would be more than just thinning of the coat, there would be bald patches.The hair would be very fragile to the touch. She also mentioned loss of apetite, weight gain, too much drinking. She also said that with meds the hair comes back. She said that it's good to give it 3 weeks and see if hair is coming back on it's own, because if it is, then most likely it's not thyroid, but rather shedding due to the heat we have been getting, and the dog is getting rid of all that fur.

The dog didn't had thyroid problems,was tested, but I thought it was good info.

Thanks for the info BabyBee!! I guess there shouldn't be much difference between the symptoms with cats and dogs.

You're welcome Hope it's nothing serious...

My Princess sheds a lot

We had a dog that developed hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid) in old age, and the first major symptom was excessive shedding. He had to take 300 mg. of L-Thyroxine daily (a little pill, but it had to be ordered especially for him, because most humans with thyroid problems don't take such a high dose; I have an underactive thyroid, and take a 100 mg. pill every day).