Hi everyone. This is my first post on your Forum but I have been lurking around for some time. I share the frustrations that come with caring for a hyperthyroid loved pet. I have a short story to tell you about the Y/D diet after receiving a response from Hill's yesterday to an inquiry I made . If your cat refuses to eat the diet when they were eating it before the shortage there may be a reason.
My cat Buddy is 18 years old and was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism 3 years ago. He was not a good candidate for Iodine 131 (not that I would put him through that) and he could not tolerate methimazole. The only option left was iodine-free diet or should I say very very low iodine diet. He was on Y/D canned exclusively for almost 3 years. He didn't love it but he at least ate it. His T4 numbers did come down back into the normal range (high normal). Then the Y/D shortage happened and like everyone that could'n get it, I had to find an alternative. I started making a pate of boiled white and dark meat chicken and left the Y/D dry out for him ad-lib for the vitamins and minerals. He ate very little of the dry but enough to help balance out the diet. His T4 was at 4.2 when tested 7/7/22. That was 4 months before I could no longer get the Y/D diet. I finally received a shipment from Chewy on 11/9/22. Buddy refused to eat it no matter what inducement I tried. So I continued to make and feed him the chicken.
I had his blood work done on 11/17/22 and his T4 had dropped to 2.5. Go figure that one out. It was a better result than when he was exclusively on the Y/D. My vet told me just keep doing what I was doing.
So I emailed Hill's to see if they had any incite or explanation as to why his T4 went down and why he refused to eat the new diet. This is part of the response I received from Hill's:
We have upgraded all of our Prescription Diet packaging as well as upgraded some of our formulas including Hill's Prescription Diet y/d canned feline formula. There were no ingredients added or removed, just a minor change in the formulation.
I knew the minute I opened the first can that it was different. I don't believe that nothing was added or changed. If it isn't broken you don't fix it. So Buddy still won't eat it and would rather starve. You make up your own minds.
Has anyone had trouble getting their cat to eat the new Y/D diet?
My cat Buddy is 18 years old and was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism 3 years ago. He was not a good candidate for Iodine 131 (not that I would put him through that) and he could not tolerate methimazole. The only option left was iodine-free diet or should I say very very low iodine diet. He was on Y/D canned exclusively for almost 3 years. He didn't love it but he at least ate it. His T4 numbers did come down back into the normal range (high normal). Then the Y/D shortage happened and like everyone that could'n get it, I had to find an alternative. I started making a pate of boiled white and dark meat chicken and left the Y/D dry out for him ad-lib for the vitamins and minerals. He ate very little of the dry but enough to help balance out the diet. His T4 was at 4.2 when tested 7/7/22. That was 4 months before I could no longer get the Y/D diet. I finally received a shipment from Chewy on 11/9/22. Buddy refused to eat it no matter what inducement I tried. So I continued to make and feed him the chicken.
I had his blood work done on 11/17/22 and his T4 had dropped to 2.5. Go figure that one out. It was a better result than when he was exclusively on the Y/D. My vet told me just keep doing what I was doing.
So I emailed Hill's to see if they had any incite or explanation as to why his T4 went down and why he refused to eat the new diet. This is part of the response I received from Hill's:
We have upgraded all of our Prescription Diet packaging as well as upgraded some of our formulas including Hill's Prescription Diet y/d canned feline formula. There were no ingredients added or removed, just a minor change in the formulation.
I knew the minute I opened the first can that it was different. I don't believe that nothing was added or changed. If it isn't broken you don't fix it. So Buddy still won't eat it and would rather starve. You make up your own minds.
Has anyone had trouble getting their cat to eat the new Y/D diet?