Questions about FIP

laurie314

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Kitty Girl was 11 months old and on 2-14, I had to have her put down. She was not acting right for about 3-4 weeks, we had her checked out and the initial diagnosis was upper respitory. Antibiotics were given and a Vitamin b shot..from that day she went downhill so fast. Her belly was so swollen and she had such a hard time moving around. She was so weak. I bought KMR and started forcefeedings. She just moaned and cried. I know I did the right thing and i was with her , holding her and talking to her until she was gone..BUT, I cannot help wondering...what in the world happened. She was an indoor cat and had been with me since a week old. She was abandoned and I bottle-fed her. She seemed so healthy and playful. I read that FIP is a devastating illness..but does it hit without any signs, like it hit her? I just can't seem to let this go and move on. I lost other animals before but this one has hit me so hard..I can't beleive it. I miss my girl so much, I am angry that she was robbed of such a long life...I thought we would have many happy years together...Maybe thats what my problem is and why it bothers me so much. Any advice?
 

seppolina

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Oh Laurie, I'm so sorry about your Kitty Girl. I lost a foster kitten a few years ago to FIP & it took me a very long time to deal with his loss. I found him & his 3 siblings in a cardboard box outside of a McDonald's one day while I was heading in to lunch. Lucky for them (& for me) I worked at a vet clinic at the time, so I rushed them all back to work. They checked out as physically healthy, so I took them on as foster kittens until I could get them spayed/neutered & adopted out. They were all friendly, happy & playful, with my Little Man (who eventually died of FIP) being my favorite. When they reached 2 pounds I brought them in to be spayed/neutered. The other 3 had their surgeries that day, but when they did the pre-op on Little Man they found he had a low-grade fever & put off his surgery. Nothing else seemed amiss - he was still playful, loving & cuddley. His fever persisted for over a week, and by the end of that week he started slowing down. He prefered sleeping to playing and the spark in his eyes that I loved so much was gone. The vet finally tapped his abdomen & found that it was filling with fluid. They told me that it was FIP & that there was nothing that I could do. It broke my heart (and still does, to this day), but I had to euthanize my Little Man at 4 months old! Like you, I knew that it was the best thing for him & I was able to be with him for the procedure, but it was at that point one of the hardest things I have ever done.

Losing my Little Man & caring for the other animals abandoned at the vet clinic inspired me to go on to a career in animal rescue. I am now an adoption counselor at an animal shelter & I get to help change the lives of abandoned & unwanted animals on a daily basis. I do it for myself, but also in memory of my Little Man and the other beloved fosters I was unable to save along the way. I have learned that I cannot save every animal, but that I can provide care & comfort to all those that I come across. Sometimes, making a very sick animal feel valued & loved in their last days on this earth is the only (& best) gift I can give them. You may not have had a long time to spend with your Kitty Girl, but please know that taking an abandoned kitten & giving her love, a home & a feeling of of worthiness is an amazing gift and one that your girl surely felt lucky to have. Without you her life would have been entirely different and may have ended much earlier than at 11 months if someone had not found her at 1 week old.

You will always miss her & wish that the two of you had more time together, but maybe knowing that you did everything that you could for her & gave her everything she ever needed will help you in the long run. I am so sorry for your loss & wish there were more I could do.
 

stephenq

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FIP is a terrible illness. There is no real test, essentially no treatment, and the vaccine is close to worthless or worthless. The wet form of the disease usually comes on very quickly, and most cats either die or or euthanized within 1-2 weeks. Euthanasia for the wet form is usually indicated.

I'm very sorry for you and your cat!
 

lnbandcats

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Laurie, I am so sorry to hear about your Kitty Girl. I, too lost my little guy Oliver from FIP 0n 1/4/07. I had adopted him and he sure appeared healthy, but within 4 days I had him at the vets. He eventually was diagnosed with dry FIP - I made the decision to have him euthanized on 1/4/7. It broke my heart. Everyone who has had an FIP kitten says the same thing - that there is something that is extraordinarily loving about them. Oliver was happiest when he was tucked away on my shoulder - usually with his little nose buried in my ear purring away. I will always treasure that special boy. Please know that somehow Kitty Girl found the right person to share her short life with. I am sure that she is happy and healthy and playing with all the other FIP kittens who have all ready crossed over The Rainbow Bridge. Treasure the time you had with her - and thank you for being such a caring Mom.
 

catsarebetter

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I've lost two to FIP, although, honestly, I don't know whether it was wet or dry, and actually didn't know there was a difference. The two I had were both originally barn kitties, from the same litter. They had to be put down the same day... The vet told me that FIP attacks the nervous system.. and basically their motor functions stop working right. At first they just had a slight balance loss, and then they lost control of their bodily functions including peeing and pooing. I took them to the vet when they pottied on me when I picked them up and realized that truly something was wrong. They were two extremely loving little creatures.

I have to say, though, any time I've ever gotten a kitty that started it's life in a barn, I've lost them to some sort of disease.


I'm so sorry to hear about your baby. It's so hard to lose them. They're just so precious.
 

mzjazz2u

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I'm so sorry you and your kitty had to go through that. As far as I know it does come on that fast and can kill just as fast. They usually go downhill very fast. At least that's my understanding from the vets I talked to. They thought my Jake had it back in October but he got better. He didn't have the respiratory symptoms like your kitty did. Thank God!
 

katiemae1277

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Originally Posted by beandip

Feline Infectious Peritonitis

It's a very ugly disease.
that's a good link beandip
basically what the others have said, FIP is almost always fatal, so there really wasn't nothing else you vould have done, please don't feel bad about losing your Kitty Girl, not your fault at all


alot of cats can carry the corona virus and never develop FIP, its basically a crap shoot
 

catsarebetter

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I have heard, though, that the vaccine can occasionally cause the virus, and that since there are so many strains of FIP, vaccinating against it is basically useless. I know several of my vets won't vaccinate for FIP because the risk of it causing FIP is greater than the possibility of preventing it.
 

beandip

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Originally Posted by CatsAreBetter

I have heard, though, that the vaccine can occasionally cause the virus, and that since there are so many strains of FIP, vaccinating against it is basically useless. I know several of my vets won't vaccinate for FIP because the risk of it causing FIP is greater than the possibility of preventing it.
And this is the case with my vet too...she won't vaccinate for it.
 

momofmany

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I lost my 18 month old Boris in the same fashion many years ago. FIP took him in about a week. It's simply not easy to lose them so young. Many cats are exposed to the virus and as my vet has told me, some cats are simply predisposed to turning that exposure to full blown FIP. There isn't a rhyme or reason to it.

I'm so sorry that you lost Kitty Girl. Only time will heal.
 

booktigger

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I am so sorry you have lost a cat to FIP, I hate those three words, and it was a long time after I lost my cat to it that I could bear to read anything about it - I had her for 2 weeks after she started acting odd - and with her, it was just miaowing in pain when I picked her up that made me take her to the vets. IT all seems to depend on how the cats immune system reacts to the mutated virus sadly. As far as I know, we dont have the FIP vaccine in teh UK, but I wouldn't use it anyway with what I have read on here. RIP little one, but at least she had some good time with somone who loved her.
 
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laurie314

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Thankyou for all the information and the kind posts...I Just want to share a little story about the day we found Kitty Girl...(my closure) My son was filling in for the animal warden in our city..He called me and said.."Ma..Hurry come outside I need a favor" I rush outside and there he is in my drive way with this little tiny ball of tan fur in the palm of his hand. he says "can you keep her for a few hours , I will pick her back up later on...A lady called and she was under a shed crying for a few days" Of course I held her and said OK with every intention of hanging on to her until he got off of work. She was so dirty and hungry...it was a warm May day..I knew she was to little to eat kitten food, so I took her to the nearby Petsmart and got KMR and a bottle.
She was hot and panting...I knew she was very thirsty...so as sick as this sounds I did not know what to do..I spit on my finger and she lapped it right up..but i was worried about dehydration and she was so tiny...So, we got home and I fed her from the bottle..she was starving...she ate and then I cleaned her up..she had fleas, earmites, The couple of hours that I was suppose to take care of her turned into a couple of days and then I broke the news to my son that he had no shot in claiming her..I had been up every 2-3 hours bottle-feeding this little baby..rubbing her belly to help her pee and poop...we had a bond..she went everywhere with me..I never left her for the first few weeks. She would get antsy in the car and want to climb..so to calm her down I would sing in her ear..."you are my sunshine,my only sunshine........please don't take my sunshine away...On Feb, 14th my sunshine was taken away. Everyone in my family would say it was crazy but she would cuddle up to me and put her ear to my mouth and I would sing that tune to her everyday.. she slept with me each and every night..
I would let the dogs out to go potty and she always had to sit in my arms and go with me..just to watch them do there business and come inside..if I did not take her out with me she would climb the door and cry so loud that I left her. I love my other cats but there will nevr be a bond like I had with Kitty Girl....Be happy Sunshine..over the Rainbow Bridge..I love you Baby Girl
 

momofmany

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I didn't realize that Kitty Girl was your orphaned bottle fed baby! Oh the extra bond you make with those babies. I am so, so, so very sorry.

Hugs from my entire clan go to you and your family.
 

booktigger

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Aww, what a heartwarming story - it is bound to be harder as you bottle fed her, but this kitten had 11 wonderful months thanks to you, she might not have had that if anyone else had taken her.
 
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