Help!!!...possible FIP

HI all,

             I took in a rescue kitten about 2 months ago. At the time, she was sneezing and she had some eye discharge, so I immediately took her to our vet. The vet diagnosed her with an upper respiratory infection and put her on an antibiotic course. We kept her away from our other cats, but as she improved and symptoms cleared, we allowed her to roam around. Then, most of the other cats started to develop the same symptoms...eye discharge and sneezing, but overall, it seemed pretty mild and everyone recovered...except for my male, Iggy. I noticed that he wasn't acting the same...somewhat lethargic, not eating as much as normal, and still had eye discharge, so I took him back to the vet to have them run more tests. The vet agreed to run an array of tests and today I got a call from the vet saying that his test for FIP came back inconclusive and that I should go to see a specialist and have more tests done. Needless to say, I am a mess! I have him isolated to one room at the moment because I wanted to monitor him. I am a total wreck over this. Not only am I scared to lose him, but I am also terrified that my other cats were exposed and I don't know what to do. Everyone on this site is so knowledgeable about all things concerning cats, so if you have any experience with this, I would love to hear what you have to say. Thank you in advance

My understanding is that there is no definitive test for FIP. Most cats will test positive for coronavirus, which in some cats turns into FIP (not really sure why). Is there anything else pointing to FIP besides the "test?" I would keep him isolated for now and discuss a different course of antibiotics in case it is a resistant URI.

Hi vball,

                The vet said that his symptoms ( weight loss, loss of appetite, URI) seem to be consistent with the diagnosis of FIP. He has been eating more and showing more energy over the last few days. I have taken his temp regularly and it's normal..101.3. I already made an appointment for him to see a specialist on Wed. I can only assume that they will want to do more tests at that point. I am praying it's something else! I'm a mess over this...

FIP is not that common. My understanding is that most cats get exposed to coronavirus at some stage in their lives. But in a small percentage (5% or less - not sure but you can research this number), this coronavirus can mutate and lead to FIP. So first of all, it is not really that common. In terms of being worried about your other cats, I would not worry about all of your cats getting FIP - that would be statistically really really unlikely given the low percentage (5% of thereabouts of cats exposed to coronavirus). From what I gather FIP is more common in kittens or cats compromised in other ways, although I could be wrong.

I also understood that there is no definitive test for FIP, that is why it is a frustrating disease. This coronavirus can be tested, but I hear it is kind of meaningless as almost every cat has been exposed to coronavirus and this alone does not mean the cat will get FIP - only a small percentage of kitties exposed to coronavirus will have things mutate to become FIP. I have no idea what tests your vet is talking about unless they want to ultrasound or do more general diagnostics - but that would not be a definitive "test" for FIP.

I ditto trying a different antibiotic in case it is a resistant URI. I would probably take my cat in somewhere for a second opinion etc. Were there any other symptoms that made the vet think FIP in particular??

Scarlett,

                  Love that name, btw It seems that my vet is leaning toward the diagnosis of FIP because of his symptoms. He has definitely perked up over the last 2 days, but he's still not eating as much as he used to. I thought for sure that it was a resistant URI and then I get THIS call from the vet...which has me all upset. They did a chest x-ray, thinking that maybe it was a lower respiratory infection, but that came back clear. I briefly read about FIP when I was looking up information about URIs, so I didn't know much about it except that it's deadly. Now that the vet called me with his blood results, I have been looking all over the web for more information. It's so much to take in I am definitely going for a second opinion. I made an appointment for Wednesday with a specialist...that was the earliest they could get me in or I would be there right now. I honestly don't know what they are going to suggest in terms of tests, cause as you mention, there really are none for FIP.

Most FIP cats have a fever 102.5 or greater.  The tests are not accurate as most cats have antibodies against the disease.  It normally starts out with diarrhea.  But the signs of lethargy, not eating/drinking do show up.  http://manhattancats.com/Articles/fip_testing.html   or this website: http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?A=681  How many different antibiotics has your cat been on?  For how long?  It could be that you are just dealing with an antibiotic resistant URI.  Does your kitty have fluid in it's abdomen?  Any bloating?  Does your cat look unkept?

I would try your best not to panic just now.

My story is this. I brought a new kitten into the house a few months back, and a few of my senior cats happened to be diagnosed with issues relatively soon afterwards. I panicked thinking that I had brought every deadly cat disease into my house. Well it turns out that the issues of my senior cats are unrelated to the arrival of the kitten, but I did scare myself silly about deadly cat diseases.

If you are going to the specialist for a 2nd opinion, then that ought to shed light on what is going on with Mr. Iggy. I know it is easy for me to say not to worry just yet, but try not to. You are not ignoring the situation and are being proactive getting into a vet specialist just to be certain. Fingers crossed that this is just a resistant URI or something else relatively simple.

cprcheetah,

                         My cat has only been on Clavamox. When he first became ill, he mainly had conjunctivitis and some sneezing. I have him the liquid form for about 5 days ( he should have been on it for 10 days), but he would bolt every time I went near him with it and it started to make him sick., so  I had to take him in for an antibiotic shot instead. That was about a month ago and since he was still acting weird, I took him back in for blood-work. He does not have any fluid in his abdomen nor does he have any bloating. He's been acting very alert and kind of like his old self..purring, rolling around ect, but his appetite is still not what it was before this and he's not drinking that much. Ah, I wish these little guys could talk

Scarlett,

                  Thank you for sharing your story I am doing my absolute best to remain somewhat calm. He's only 5 years old and the thought of losing him, well I don't even want to go there! My husband is going to be SO upset when he hears this. He loves Iggy as much as I do and I know he's going to freak out. I am dreading telling him when he comes home. Our pets are like our kids and I am sure you all feel the same way about your fur babies too.

I think it could well be a resistant URI since the antibiotic was switched before finishing the full course of clavamox.  I am not blaming you for that it's just what happened, kitties definitely have a mind of their own.  If she is beginning to improve I think it could well be a resistant URI.  The two week shot of antibiotic is also known for causing lethargy which takes quite a while to wear off because it stays in the system so long.

Denice,

                  I did not know that about the antibiotic shot, thank you for bringing it to my attention. I am really hoping that it is an URI and not FIP!

Hi all,

              I contacted a specialist and he wants to run additional tests: protein electrophoresis with a graph and a 7B FIP Elisa. Is anyone familiar with either of these tests? I am so confused because I was under the impression that there are no tests for FIP, but this specialist said that these 2 tests along with the complete metabolic panel that was already done will give us a much better idea as to what is going on. His blood work (full metabolic panel), according to my vet, was completely normal.......

If you research, there are a few bloodwork values that can sometimes/often high with FIP (although they could be high because of other things so not a conclusive thing to use to diagnose FIP) so if the blood panel was totally normal then I would be quite happy about that.

Everything I have read says there are not conclusive tests for FIP so unsure about those tests. Maybe they are tests that might suggest FIP without being conclusive (??), but unless the test is conclusive then to me that is dangerous territory to venture into - the last thing you want is a false positive test - and such things can happen when tests are not "conclusive". Try doing some research on these tests and see what you can learn in advance.

Ok, could not stop myself looking this up. The tests do not sound very conclusive to me, and could send you in a panic even though the cat might not even have FIP but some other chronic inflammatory issue.

From this article:

http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&A=232

"Serum protein electrophoresis has been recommended by some laboratories as a confirmatory test for FIP.1 Although protein electrophoresis can confirm the polyclonal nature of the globulin elevation, there is no FIP-specific pattern and any persistent immunologic stimulus can produce similar findings."

Discussion about the other test can be found on this web site if you just search for the name of the test. I think it might be a test for a certain strain of coronavirus (which is not a test for FIP as mentioned above).

Try not to panic. I have a three-year-old cat that passed away last year unexpectedly and they think that was what she had. She lost weight her appetite decreased and her fur start to looks kept, almost oily looking. I was a mesh as it was so unexpected and I loved her so. She had lived for a year and a half or so with another cat and they were very close. They ate out of the same dishes slept together same litter box etc. and the other cat was and still is fine. I understand how frustrating and painful it is because you can't get an exact answer from the vet, I went through thesame thing. Just try to keep yourself calm and take care of all the cats it's all that you can do. Good luck

There are no conclusive tests for FIP.  I am not familiar with those tests but I know there are tests that can tell you more what the chances are of it being FIP.   The closest to a conclusive test is analyzing fluid drawn from around the organs but your cat doesn't have fluid buildup.  

Here's what I would be asking the vet. Will the results of these tests help figure out treatment plans? Because if not, then I don't see the point.

vball91, I know, I am definitely going to ask. This whole thing is so nerve wracking because there is no real way to test for it. I'm just going to have to wait and see. On a positive note, Mr. Iggy was playing a lot last night and he ate very well today. It made me so happy! The vet gave me mirtazapine to stimulate his appetite, but I read some scary things about this stuff, so I have not given him any. I want to see what he's willing to eat on his own first. I am also thinking of going to the pet store to look for a high cal booster. Prior to all of this, he weighted a little over 12 lbs and now he's at 11.3 lbs. He was a little over what he should be for his size, but now with all of this going on, I am glad he had a little extra weight on him.

I think as long as he is eating, using the litter box, and playing I would wait and see.  That's really all a vet can do as well unless of course a kitty becomes gravely ill then humane steps need to be taken.

Yes, this is nerve wracking . Try not to panick. FIP is rather unlikely for a 5 year old cat that has not a compromised immune system/immunodeficiency disorder. Kittens and very old cats are more prone to develop FIP because their immune system is either not fully developed yet or in decline. 

Also if his blood test came back normal, this is a very good sign. If he is eating, his temperature is normal and eyes are clear, no fluids in the belly, no diarrhea and / or vomiting  etc. I really do not see why they would suspect FIP.  Unfortunately some vets still say "FIP" if they are confronted with a bunch of unspecific symptoms.

shaheena, thank you for replying. I am doing my best to stay calm. I'm just going to take it one day at a time. I am praying that this will turn out to be something completely treatable. I am SO happy that I found this site!  Many fellow cat lovers who know so much about so many different things. Thank you all for taking the time to reach out to me with your comments/advice. It really means a lot to me and it's been a major reason that I have been able to stop freaking out!