Hi everyone,
I'm new to the forum but have read through some threads and found some great advice here. I'm planning on calling my vet on Monday when he's open to talk with him, but would appreciate input from people with more experience with cats (my only other cat before this one died of old age at 19 and never went to the vet her entire life for anything except immunizations).
About 3 weeks ago, my 5-year old fur baby Walden was diagnosed with dry FIP. I noticed way back in August that Walden was having trouble jumping up on things, and it got really bad about a month ago. He started pulling himself up on the couch or the bed with his front legs, and towards the end of the week started walking with a hunched back and stopped trying to get up on anything.
I took him to the vet on a Monday (Nov. 10) and the vet gave him an antibiotic shot and took blood. The vet noted his back leg muscles were extremely atrophied. In the week that followed, Walden got really sick. He had no energy, slept nearly all the time (a stark contrast to the energetic cat he's always been), didn't eat for several days, and didn't use the litter box in that time either. He also could barely walk more than a few feet without having to lie down and his tail was limp and could barely move. On Friday of that week (Nov. 14), I called the vet again and told him Walden wasn't doing well. He told me his blood work had come back and his antibody titer count was very high - Walden had FIP and needed to be put down. According to the vet, all the rest of the bloodwork was normal.
I said I wanted one more weekend with Walden and would make an appointment for PTS on Monday. Over the weekend Walden started to eat and drink again and be interested in the world. I decided I'd wait to see what happened and make the dreaded call if Walden stopped eating or appeared to be in pain. That weekend, I bought some kitten milk and kitten food to help with his appetite (which Walden loves) and some senior cat vitamins (which Walden won't touch, even mixed with food), but other than that haven't provided any treatment for FIP because the vet didn't think any were viable options.
Since then, Walden has improved significantly. He's not 100%, but he's got a decent appetite again (he's never been a big eater), runs up and down the stairs, is awake and alert for much of the day, chases after toys and his brother, and his tail has a full range of motion again. Today he started jumping up on (low) objects without using his front paws to claw himself up - the first time he's done this in at least a month.
Apologies for the long post but I wanted to give background for my questions. First, I was wondering if dry FIP can go into remission? If so, is there anything I can do to help keep it in remission? Unfortunately, I live in the US, so feline interferon is not a treatment option. Second, I was wondering about the possibility of a misdiagnosis? I'm trying not to hope too much, and to take every day that Walden is alive and happy with me as the miracle it is, but it's hard. After doing research on dry FIP, I don't disagree with the vet's diagnosis of it, but it also seems hard to diagnose. Has anyone had a cat mistakenly diagnosed with dry FIP? What happened?
Thanks in advance for any advice you all have.
I'm new to the forum but have read through some threads and found some great advice here. I'm planning on calling my vet on Monday when he's open to talk with him, but would appreciate input from people with more experience with cats (my only other cat before this one died of old age at 19 and never went to the vet her entire life for anything except immunizations).
About 3 weeks ago, my 5-year old fur baby Walden was diagnosed with dry FIP. I noticed way back in August that Walden was having trouble jumping up on things, and it got really bad about a month ago. He started pulling himself up on the couch or the bed with his front legs, and towards the end of the week started walking with a hunched back and stopped trying to get up on anything.
I took him to the vet on a Monday (Nov. 10) and the vet gave him an antibiotic shot and took blood. The vet noted his back leg muscles were extremely atrophied. In the week that followed, Walden got really sick. He had no energy, slept nearly all the time (a stark contrast to the energetic cat he's always been), didn't eat for several days, and didn't use the litter box in that time either. He also could barely walk more than a few feet without having to lie down and his tail was limp and could barely move. On Friday of that week (Nov. 14), I called the vet again and told him Walden wasn't doing well. He told me his blood work had come back and his antibody titer count was very high - Walden had FIP and needed to be put down. According to the vet, all the rest of the bloodwork was normal.
I said I wanted one more weekend with Walden and would make an appointment for PTS on Monday. Over the weekend Walden started to eat and drink again and be interested in the world. I decided I'd wait to see what happened and make the dreaded call if Walden stopped eating or appeared to be in pain. That weekend, I bought some kitten milk and kitten food to help with his appetite (which Walden loves) and some senior cat vitamins (which Walden won't touch, even mixed with food), but other than that haven't provided any treatment for FIP because the vet didn't think any were viable options.
Since then, Walden has improved significantly. He's not 100%, but he's got a decent appetite again (he's never been a big eater), runs up and down the stairs, is awake and alert for much of the day, chases after toys and his brother, and his tail has a full range of motion again. Today he started jumping up on (low) objects without using his front paws to claw himself up - the first time he's done this in at least a month.
Apologies for the long post but I wanted to give background for my questions. First, I was wondering if dry FIP can go into remission? If so, is there anything I can do to help keep it in remission? Unfortunately, I live in the US, so feline interferon is not a treatment option. Second, I was wondering about the possibility of a misdiagnosis? I'm trying not to hope too much, and to take every day that Walden is alive and happy with me as the miracle it is, but it's hard. After doing research on dry FIP, I don't disagree with the vet's diagnosis of it, but it also seems hard to diagnose. Has anyone had a cat mistakenly diagnosed with dry FIP? What happened?
Thanks in advance for any advice you all have.