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FIP and Abby

post #1 of 25
3/18/11 at 9:16pm
Thread Starter 
Well, I am about to cry again. I thought I could do this without tearing up. Our Abby has only been with us since October, but she is my lovey baby! Last week I was getting her bed ready when we made eye contact. She has the sweetest little face and looks at me with love. Well, this time I noticed that one of her eyes was darker, foggy, and the pupil was just a slit. Of course it was late at night when I noticed this. So off to the vet the next day. She was concerned when she saw Abby's eye. We took blood to check for FeLV, FIV, toxoplasmosis and FIP. The first three came back negative, but her titer for corona virus was high and her gamma globulins were very high. Yesterday her eye swelled up within a couple of hours. Off to the vet again. Secondary glaucoma is what it turned out to be. Also not a good sign for FIP. She is on prednisolone tablets and eye drops and also some drops to reduce the pressure in her eye.

The vet thinks it is the dry form and is trying to get her into a drug trial going on in California. Please wish us luck. Pray for my little thumbed baby! Any advice? She is still eating, just not as much as she was. And she isn't playing at all (she is 8 months old) since her eye got weird. How long does she have? I am just so, so sad.
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post #2 of 25
3/18/11 at 9:58pm
Oh Kas...
I don't have any advice to give - but I do want to send both you & Abby my prayers & love.

and of course, vibes for your little girl.
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post #3 of 25
3/18/11 at 10:15pm
I know what it's like to have a sick kitty. for you and Abby!!
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post #4 of 25
3/19/11 at 4:02am
I am so sorry. I will pray for you and your little girl to get into the program.

She is young, and stronger than an older cat. That could work in her favor.

We have all been there and you are not alone. We are always here.
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post #5 of 25
3/19/11 at 4:42am
I'm so sorry you and Abby are going through this

I have my fingers crossed that she gets into the drug trial, I'll keep you guys in my thougts
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post #6 of 25
3/19/11 at 6:40am
I hope the program is able to help Abby!
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post #7 of 25
3/19/11 at 6:41am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kas View Post
Well, I am about to cry again. I thought I could do this without tearing up. Our Abby has only been with us since October, but she is my lovey baby! Last week I was getting her bed ready when we made eye contact. She has the sweetest little face and looks at me with love. Well, this time I noticed that one of her eyes was darker, foggy, and the pupil was just a slit. Of course it was late at night when I noticed this. So off to the vet the next day. She was concerned when she saw Abby's eye. We took blood to check for FeLV, FIV, toxoplasmosis and FIP. The first three came back negative, but her titer for corona virus was high and her gamma globulins were very high. Yesterday her eye swelled up within a couple of hours. Off to the vet again. Secondary glaucoma is what it turned out to be. Also not a good sign for FIP. She is on prednisolone tablets and eye drops and also some drops to reduce the pressure in her eye.

The vet thinks it is the dry form and is trying to get her into a drug trial going on in California. Please wish us luck. Pray for my little thumbed baby! Any advice? She is still eating, just not as much as she was. And she isn't playing at all (she is 8 months old) since her eye got weird. How long does she have? I am just so, so sad.
Oh no! I went through this with my Ramsey. I brought him home from a reputable cat rescue and it was obvious that he was not well when I got him home. He had a high fever, was listless, wouldn't eat etc. I called the rescue group and they put him on antibiotics. Didn't help. The vet thought it was pretty certain he had the dry form of FIP! The same tests were done that you have had done. FIP is hard to diagnose and usually can only be diagnosed through an autopsy (at least back then). I started doing research. I did a LOT of research. I can't tell you how distressed I was at the number of cats put down only to find they did not have FIP at all. Anyway as a last restort I read about a woman that had good luck using the human antibiotic Zithromax. I made the vet give me a script for a kitty dose of Zithromax. He was on it for 27 days. He did really well on it. About 2 months after he completed the antibiotic cycle, he got sick again. We decided to put him on a second round of Zithromax. Well, it worked. He is a fat, healthy cat today. He either beat FIP (which some of them do) or had some odd virus that did not show up in testing. He was tested every week for months and months. Ramsey did not have the eye problems you have described. I sure hope your kitty gets better. You might talk to your vet about the Zithromax. I dunno, it was a long shot for me but I tried it anyway. I was lucky enough that it worked. My best vibes being sent to your meezer.
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post #8 of 25
3/19/11 at 8:01am
Kas, while I have not been faced with discovering FIP, I have had a similar experience with another very difficult viral disease.

If it happened to me today, I'd like someone to tell me about a group of people whose sole focus is the management of their FIP kitty's health...you'll find such a group right here
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post #9 of 25
3/19/11 at 10:10am
Thread Starter 
Thank you, everyone. She seems perkier today. I am praying it isn't really FIP. We won't put her down until the end is obvious. I still haven't heard any more about the drug trial. I am willing to try anything. I will ask for some Zithromax to see if that will help. She has the uveitis and the glaucoma in her eye which is what made the vet think she might have FIP in the first place. I read in Cat Fancy where there is another experimental drug called IP or something that cured a dry form cat in 3 years. I am not sure if this is the same trial my vet is looking at or not. Is anyone here a member of the yahoo FIP group? I am a little leary of joining those types of things, but I might have to, in this case.
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post #10 of 25
3/19/11 at 11:24am
It is so darn hard when our babies get sick. I am so sorry and sure hope it is not FIP. Poor baby, hope the meds help her eye. Please keep us updated.
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post #11 of 25
3/19/11 at 1:29pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by White Shadow View Post
Kas, while I have not been faced with discovering FIP, I have had a similar experience with another very difficult viral disease.

If it happened to me today, I'd like someone to tell me about a group of people whose sole focus is the management of their FIP kitty's health...you'll find such a group right here
What a great group Kas. Thanks for sharing that link with the rest of us. Wish I'd known about that group 4 years ago when I was going through it.
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post #12 of 25
3/19/11 at 1:31pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by NutroMike View Post
What a great group Kas. Thanks for sharing that link with the rest of us. Wish I'd known about that group 4 years ago when I was going through it.
**Correction - Sorry White Shadow, I meant what a great site for "Kas". But thanks again White Shadow for the info.
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post #13 of 25
3/19/11 at 1:48pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by NutroMike View Post
...Wish I'd known about that group 4 years ago when I was going through it.
And I only wish I would have known about the Leukemia group back then for my baby. Oh the regrets..........

But, you're welcome!
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post #14 of 25
3/19/11 at 4:35pm
for you both - and strength for you to stay calm and strong as you love your baby and work to give her every chance.
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post #15 of 25
3/20/11 at 11:43am
in some ways you are blessed in my view. the effussive "wet form" is most difficult to treat with any positive outcome, in my opinion.
call Dr. Legende at univ of Kentucky, he has the polyprenly PI study for dry FIP, the drug is also made by AgriLabs, I am told. and Immulan. you can also read try: http://www.azpetvet.com/Feline_Infec...Peritonit.html,
and read blog here: http://healingheartscats.wordpress.com/ I dont know whether it is same that legende has or not but I think it to be an LTCI,
i have all kinds of info my website: fipcatchatter.blogspot.com with the sole intent to save one life and for no other reason. I am no fidicuiary interest in anything we have there.

hope this helps
Marianne
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post #16 of 25
3/20/11 at 12:58pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by BAHAMASYACHT View Post
in some ways you are blessed in my view. the effussive "wet form" is most difficult to treat with any positive outcome, in my opinion.
call Dr. Legende at univ of Kentucky, he has the polyprenly PI study for dry FIP, the drug is also made by AgriLabs, I am told. and Immulan. you can also read try: http://www.azpetvet.com/Feline_Infec...Peritonit.html,
and read blog here: http://healingheartscats.wordpress.com/ I dont know whether it is same that legende has or not but I think it to be an LTCI,
i have all kinds of info my website: fipcatchatter.blogspot.com with the sole intent to save one life and for no other reason. I am no fidicuiary interest in anything we have there.

hope this helps
Marianne
Thanks, Marianne! I will check those links. I have gotten Dr. Legendre's email to give to my doctor. I am going to email, too, but I don't know all the technical jargon and I don't have copies of Abby's test results. It looks like your vet has to request the study for you. I am going to pursue this since the other study in CA seems to be for another drug that hasn't shown results like the PI has. Of course, I am still hoping the diagnosis is wrong. Her fur is still sleek and shiney and she is eating well, though that could be because of the prednisolone and she isn't gaining weight. Her hipbones are prominant and you can really feel her backbone. Ugh. My poor sweetie! She is such a lover and has to be on my chest. It makes it hard to sit up straight!
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post #17 of 25
3/21/11 at 3:37am
-hugs- I'm so so sorry to hear about this. Mackerel just died from Wet Form FIP, or the kidney failure related to it. She was in Acute Renal Failure when I took her to the vet at the end of January, and that was.. maybe four to six weeks after she started losing weight (I should have taken her sooner, but I thought she was pining about my ex-housemate's cat moving out. -sigh-).

Obviously that's completely different from your situation, wet-form V dry-form and different symptoms etc etc etc. The thing that I learned about FIP is that you can't predict what it will hit or what symptoms will show, when. It doesn't seem like there's a predictable progression. My vet said that Mackerel could have potentially lasted for months if it weren't for her particular set of complications.

He told me a story about a young cat he looked after once who was diagnosed with FIP. The cat lasted for four years, because the virus wasn't very active in him, and his owners were vigilante and took good care of him. My vet made sure I understood that that's the anomaly... but I thought it wouldn't hurt to pass it along.

You could have loads of time with her, you could have less time than you'd wish. Just spend the time loving her, making sure that you do everything you can for her, and keep us in the loop- we're here to support you through this and answer your questions and do everything we can to help.
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post #18 of 25
3/21/11 at 6:36am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kas View Post
Thanks, Marianne! I will check those links. I have gotten Dr. Legendre's email to give to my doctor. I am going to email, too, but I don't know all the technical jargon and I don't have copies of Abby's test results. It looks like your vet has to request the study for you. I am going to pursue this since the other study in CA seems to be for another drug that hasn't shown results like the PI has. Of course, I am still hoping the diagnosis is wrong. Her fur is still sleek and shiney and she is eating well, though that could be because of the prednisolone and she isn't gaining weight. Her hipbones are prominant and you can really feel her backbone. Ugh. My poor sweetie! She is such a lover and has to be on my chest. It makes it hard to sit up straight!
A lot of really good information to be found in this thread. I sure hope you are successful with this Kas. Have you checked out the Zythromax with your vet yet? I think when the vet told me Ramsey probably had it was the most frustrating time I've ever had with any of my animals. I am really hopeful and sending you all my best vibes.
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post #19 of 25
3/21/11 at 10:18am
Thread Starter 
Ok. Talked to the vet just a minute ago. She got a reply back from Dr. Legendre. He will be out of town until the 30th and won't be taking new test subjects until he gets back, so she is going to email again on the 30th. I am picking up som clavomax (however you spell it) this afternoon to see if that helps her eye. If we don't see improvement, we will move up to zithromax.
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post #20 of 25
3/22/11 at 7:04am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kas View Post
Ok. Talked to the vet just a minute ago. She got a reply back from Dr. Legendre. He will be out of town until the 30th and won't be taking new test subjects until he gets back, so she is going to email again on the 30th. I am picking up som clavomax (however you spell it) this afternoon to see if that helps her eye. If we don't see improvement, we will move up to zithromax.
Good Luck with the clavomax. I think I tried it on Ramsey without the results we were looking for. Hopefully it will help your kitty out. The eye problem is certainly a concern. Still sending the vibes your way.
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post #21 of 25
3/22/11 at 11:21pm
Thread Starter 
It was $40 for a teeny bottle. I wonder what the zithromycin will cost. I tried to talk her into going with the big guns to start, but she wouldn't.
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post #22 of 25
3/24/11 at 7:13am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kas View Post
It was $40 for a teeny bottle. I wonder what the zithromycin will cost. I tried to talk her into going with the big guns to start, but she wouldn't.
Your vet is probably trying to see if the kitty will respond to it before moving forward. We did try a couple of others before I insisted upon the Zithro. If I recall, the other antibiotics were 10 day doses. For the life of me I can't recall what the other antibiotics were but clavomax does sound familiar. The Zithro was really pricey as well. I believe back then it was in the $50 range but it was a 27 day dose so it does not seem as costly as the 10 day doses. Keeping Ramsey hydrated was my biggest challenge. His chronic high fever really dehydrated him and he had no appetite. I resorted to those nursing bottles to get liquid and nutrients into him. Chin up Kas. It can get better!
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post #23 of 25
3/24/11 at 2:05pm
Thread Starter 
Well, at least Abby is eating and drinking. We went to the vet for a recheck on her glaucoma. The good news is the pressure went from an average of 52 to an average of 34. Doc wants it in the 20's, but we are seeing some improvement there. On the downside, she saw some spots in Abby's left eye! Aaarrrgghhh! So now we are doing the prednisolone drops in that eye, as well. She has gotten all the paperwork ready to go to Dr. Legendre if he accepts Abby as a test subject. The PI will be free, but the monitoring tests are not going to be fun for Abbs! Bloodwork every month at about $250. But if it works, she will hopefully get to be an old lady!
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post #24 of 25
4/2/11 at 4:56pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kas View Post
Well, at least Abby is eating and drinking. We went to the vet for a recheck on her glaucoma. The good news is the pressure went from an average of 52 to an average of 34. Doc wants it in the 20's, but we are seeing some improvement there. On the downside, she saw some spots in Abby's left eye! Aaarrrgghhh! So now we are doing the prednisolone drops in that eye, as well. She has gotten all the paperwork ready to go to Dr. Legendre if he accepts Abby as a test subject. The PI will be free, but the monitoring tests are not going to be fun for Abbs! Bloodwork every month at about $250. But if it works, she will hopefully get to be an old lady!
She is loved Hope it is working out for you.
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post #25 of 25
4/3/11 at 11:30am
Thread Starter 
Well, Mike,

Abby is almost totally blind now. She feels her way up the stairs with her nose. She can see light and shadow, I think, and big shapes. She is still able to find her cat bed, her food dish, the litter box (thank God!) and her cat tower. We are still waiting for a response from the UTK lab on whether she has made it into the study. I almost think they are waiting until she is bad off to see if it will reverse the symptoms. They can't really be doing that, but I am sad and angry and feeling like lashing out right now. Every day she seems a little worse to me. She is still eating, but not as much as last week and now her fur is starting to look a tad greasy. Not much, but it wasn't greasy at all last week. Argh.
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