I had posted several times with concerns over our newly adopted kitten, Animal. I wanted to thank everyone who tried to help me and give an update. Unfortunately, we opted to end Animal's suffering on November 1, 2016. He wasn't even 6 months old. We had him for almost exactly 3 months. FIP is a vicious disease that runs its course with lightning speed. I want others to know what to look for so that Animal's death is not in vain.
We adopted Animal on July 31, 2016. His estimated birth date was May 8, 2016. We think he was a Maine Coon mix. He appeared to be a healthy, rambunctious, happy kitten when we brought him home. His stools were a little loose but, I didn't worry much as he was set to see the vet on August 10, 2016 for an initial exam and booster shots. I took a stool sample with me and the vet wasn't concerned at all. They didn't see anything in the sample but, did another round of giardia meds just to be sure. (The shelter had treated him.)
Animal showed great improvement but, I did notice he wasn't nearly as active as he had been. However, I thought it was probably stress from administering medications. After the last of the medication, he never went back to playing like he had before but, he did act like he was teething so I thought that could be why.
That was until the loose stools came back. I tried pumpkin and goat milk which helped for a while. Then it progressively got worse. At this point I was really concerned with his lack of energy. I was also having health problems and sleeping a lot though so, I figured he was just sleeping a lot because I was.
On October 11, 2016 Animal was very lethargic, felt like he had a temperature and had explosive bowel movements. We took him back to the vet with another stool sample. It again tested negative for any parasites, etc.. The vet did an xray and everything checked out as normal with the exception of having a lot of gas. The vet recommended we try a different food and diagnosed Animal with an intestinal infection. The vet did mention FIP but said Animal didn't display any of the other typical symptoms. We were sent home with antibiotics and anti-diarrhea medication. We were also told to monitor his temperature.
A few days later his temperature had gone down and his bowel movements were somewhat better. I was in touch with the vet, who told me to continue the meds and monitor his progress. With our vets approval, I also continued the goat milk and pumpkin as well.
Once all the medication was gone, the consistency of his stools improved but it was short lived. Animal had not been gaining any weight. The entire time we had him he was between 3.5 and 4.2 pounds. His third eye lids also started to show on a regular basis. Since his temperature stayed down and his stool had a good consistency I was hopeful that he would slowly improve. He didn't.
Instead he became obsessed with sitting in my lap and purring while suckling on a blanket. I noticed he began to cry about jumping over a baby gate that he had done without issue previously. I knew something wasn't quite right but, he didn't have any obvious symptoms of a life threatening illness. Or so I thought anyways.
On Halloween night my worry increased drastically when Animal suddenly urinated on our kitchen floor. He had always gone in the litter box. I figured he must have a urinary tract infection and planned to call the vet the next morning.
I woke up late on November 1st. I got up and went to the kitchen as I usually do and when I walked into the hallway to feed Animal he jumped down from our bed and nearly fell over. I thought he was groggy. Then he started walking and was stumbling on his own feet and swaying. I knew something was terribly wrong. I picked him up and put him on the scratching post and kneeled in front of him. I immediately noticed that his eyes were not dilating and he was not focusing on me. I then tried to get him to look at a toy. He acted like he was blind! Then he jumped off the post, squatted and urinated right next to me. I also noticed his belly looked swollen. I tried calling to him to see if he responded and nothing. I called the vet frantically and the only appointment they had was a drop off one for emergencies. We dropped him off right away.
Several hours later I got a call and could tell from the tone that it wasn't good news. The vet explained that they had done a full blood panel, xrays, an ultrasound, and various other tests. He noted a complete loss of cognitive function and balance. Then he explained that Animal had an enlarged liver, very large for a kitten. He also had fluid in his abdomen, the blood test results all pointed to FIP. I can't remember what they were exactly, I know one was globulin ratio or something like that. The vet also said he suspected either lesions on the brain or brain swelling. He told me he had a lot of experience with FIP and although there's no test that's 100% accurate to definitively say a cat has it, he was 99% certain that Animal did. He explained that there is a treatment that hasn't been used for very long that's shown a little hope but, he said Animal already had irreversible brain damage. He recommended euthanasia. I cried and cried, called my husband and we met at the vet hospital to say our goodbyes.
My husband and I have been heart broken. We thought we would get to see Animal grow and age with us but, he was stolen from us. He never had a real chance. We are trying to figure out how we can use our horrible experience to spread awareness and maybe push to help find a cure.
In memory of an adorable, innocent kitten who's life ended far too soon:
Animal -aka- Little Man
May 8, 2016 — November 1, 2016
We adopted Animal on July 31, 2016. His estimated birth date was May 8, 2016. We think he was a Maine Coon mix. He appeared to be a healthy, rambunctious, happy kitten when we brought him home. His stools were a little loose but, I didn't worry much as he was set to see the vet on August 10, 2016 for an initial exam and booster shots. I took a stool sample with me and the vet wasn't concerned at all. They didn't see anything in the sample but, did another round of giardia meds just to be sure. (The shelter had treated him.)
Animal showed great improvement but, I did notice he wasn't nearly as active as he had been. However, I thought it was probably stress from administering medications. After the last of the medication, he never went back to playing like he had before but, he did act like he was teething so I thought that could be why.
That was until the loose stools came back. I tried pumpkin and goat milk which helped for a while. Then it progressively got worse. At this point I was really concerned with his lack of energy. I was also having health problems and sleeping a lot though so, I figured he was just sleeping a lot because I was.
On October 11, 2016 Animal was very lethargic, felt like he had a temperature and had explosive bowel movements. We took him back to the vet with another stool sample. It again tested negative for any parasites, etc.. The vet did an xray and everything checked out as normal with the exception of having a lot of gas. The vet recommended we try a different food and diagnosed Animal with an intestinal infection. The vet did mention FIP but said Animal didn't display any of the other typical symptoms. We were sent home with antibiotics and anti-diarrhea medication. We were also told to monitor his temperature.
A few days later his temperature had gone down and his bowel movements were somewhat better. I was in touch with the vet, who told me to continue the meds and monitor his progress. With our vets approval, I also continued the goat milk and pumpkin as well.
Once all the medication was gone, the consistency of his stools improved but it was short lived. Animal had not been gaining any weight. The entire time we had him he was between 3.5 and 4.2 pounds. His third eye lids also started to show on a regular basis. Since his temperature stayed down and his stool had a good consistency I was hopeful that he would slowly improve. He didn't.
Instead he became obsessed with sitting in my lap and purring while suckling on a blanket. I noticed he began to cry about jumping over a baby gate that he had done without issue previously. I knew something wasn't quite right but, he didn't have any obvious symptoms of a life threatening illness. Or so I thought anyways.
On Halloween night my worry increased drastically when Animal suddenly urinated on our kitchen floor. He had always gone in the litter box. I figured he must have a urinary tract infection and planned to call the vet the next morning.
I woke up late on November 1st. I got up and went to the kitchen as I usually do and when I walked into the hallway to feed Animal he jumped down from our bed and nearly fell over. I thought he was groggy. Then he started walking and was stumbling on his own feet and swaying. I knew something was terribly wrong. I picked him up and put him on the scratching post and kneeled in front of him. I immediately noticed that his eyes were not dilating and he was not focusing on me. I then tried to get him to look at a toy. He acted like he was blind! Then he jumped off the post, squatted and urinated right next to me. I also noticed his belly looked swollen. I tried calling to him to see if he responded and nothing. I called the vet frantically and the only appointment they had was a drop off one for emergencies. We dropped him off right away.
Several hours later I got a call and could tell from the tone that it wasn't good news. The vet explained that they had done a full blood panel, xrays, an ultrasound, and various other tests. He noted a complete loss of cognitive function and balance. Then he explained that Animal had an enlarged liver, very large for a kitten. He also had fluid in his abdomen, the blood test results all pointed to FIP. I can't remember what they were exactly, I know one was globulin ratio or something like that. The vet also said he suspected either lesions on the brain or brain swelling. He told me he had a lot of experience with FIP and although there's no test that's 100% accurate to definitively say a cat has it, he was 99% certain that Animal did. He explained that there is a treatment that hasn't been used for very long that's shown a little hope but, he said Animal already had irreversible brain damage. He recommended euthanasia. I cried and cried, called my husband and we met at the vet hospital to say our goodbyes.
My husband and I have been heart broken. We thought we would get to see Animal grow and age with us but, he was stolen from us. He never had a real chance. We are trying to figure out how we can use our horrible experience to spread awareness and maybe push to help find a cure.
In memory of an adorable, innocent kitten who's life ended far too soon:
Animal -aka- Little Man
May 8, 2016 — November 1, 2016
Last edited:
