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Expert: - 12/28/2009


Question
I have read some of the previous cases, however my cat is 15. He was diagnosed with hyperthyroid 2 yrs ago of which he is on Tapazole 5mg. He has to eat moist food because he can not digest hard food & that brand has not changed. One month ago he had 4 teeth pulled and was put on an Antirobe 75mg for 14 days. Side effects were vomiting & diarrhea, of which he had the later. The way he runs around the house you would never know his age or that all of this is going on! Often he reminds us of when he was a kitten. Just in the past week we noticed that he was pulling out his hair. Can this be a side effect from the meds? Or what are the posibilities?
Thank you in advance,
Pam

Answer
Hard to say what this is from. Tapazole has many side effects, vomiting being the most common, but alopecia could be one of them. I would call the vet today and ask them to check the bottle to see of that is one of the side effects.

Cats will pull hair for many reasons, meds being one of them. So if he is flea-free, etc, there is a chance that it is from the medication.Hormones also can cause this, as can food changes, but you mentioned nothing that way. Tapazole affects the liver which can in turn cause itching and that will also make them pull their hair.

Any cat on Tapazole needs constant monitoring so I would call the vet.

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Jana Connell RVT, CVT

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PLEASE READ BEFORE SUBMITTING TO ME: I am NOT a vet and do NOT diagnose diseases. That is only for a licensed Veterinarian to do. I will give you suggestions and steer you toward calling your vet for help. You can call the vet's office and talk to the technician there or the vet at times. Don't be afraid to call them! If you have a serious issue with your pet please post it to one of the veterinarians in here- I will tell you the same thing in my answer. IF your pet is injured or in an emergency situation, CALL YOUR VET- Do not wait and post in here. Just call the vet's office and get them in to see the vet right away. Critical treatment time is lost if you seek answers here when you should have your precious pet at the vets!! Don't sit at home waiting for an answer when your pet is critically ill or injured!! I can answer most questions about small animal and wildlife care as well as small animal nutrition. I can also answer questions about all phases of dental care for small animals. I DO NOT answer questions about birds (unless it is wildlife or songbirds) or HAMSTERS/GERBILS/CHINS/GUINEA PIGS/REPTILES/FROGS/RABBITS/PET BIRDS OF ANY KIND so please submit these questions to the appropriate sections. I, as well as other experts in here, do NOT do homework questions- that is for YOU to do! Please respect these rules for all of us. Thanks!

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I have over 35 years experience in the field of veterinary medicine. I specialized in small animals and did wildlife rehab for over 25 years, mostly raptors, squirrels and opossums. I am a Small Animal Nutritional Consultant with 6 certificates from Hills Pet Foods, CNM and Purina. I also specialized in Small Animal Dentistry which is a field I truly love.

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Audubon,World Wildlife Federation, American Society of Veterinary Dental Technicians.

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Licensed with California and Oregon, RVT and CVT. Certified Veterinary Dental Technician Have over 500 logged hours of Continuing Education Credits(that means I keep up to date!).

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Nominated for Expert of the Month for the last 5 years.

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