Contagious Disease It is totally safe to get a new kitten at this point. Once coronavirus turns into FIP, it no longer is contagious.
Checking cat health
Some experts recommend waiting six months before getting another cat; others recommend periodic blood tests to monitor antibodies against coronavirus and introducing a new cat only when the test is zero.
FIP prognosis is grave: over 90 percent of cats with FIP will die from the disease. Affected cats usually do not live more than a few weeks after diagnosis, so there is little possibility for long-term care.
Supportive care will prolong life, and some cats with FIP can live in a state of chronic disease for weeks, months, or, rarely, a year or more.
Except in rare cases, wet FIP is fatal within about five weeks of diagnosis. The dry form is equally deadly but affected cats may survive for a few months.
Relapses of FIP during the 12-week post-treatment observation period do occur and there is no simple blood test to predict when a cure has occurred, or a relapse is possible.
FIP can affect the liver, kidneys, pancreas, or other organ systems. Most cats will start showing symptoms of simply not feeling well—eating poorly, running a fever, or acting lethargic. Some animals will develop other diseases, depending on the type of the disease present.
The FIPV-DF2 isolate is a type 2 virus. Primucell FIP is licensed for intranasal administration, with two doses given 3–4 weeks apart in cats at least 16 weeks of age.
Treatment appears to be rapid, with most cats showing significant improvement within only a few days. Anecdotal evidence appears to result in 80-95% of cats being successfully treated. One of the most comprehensive studies involve 31 cats on long term treatment for FIP.
How much does it cost? Although FIP is now curable, the treatment is not inexpensive. Costs will depend on your cat's weight and other symptoms. Typically, costs vary from typically around $1,000 to $3,000 for the duration of treatment.
If you have lost a cat to FIP, remove any cat related items that you cannot wash or disinfect, such as a scratching post or soft toys. Clean and disinfect everything else in the environment that you can. Time will take care of the rest, because viruses of this type are not long-lived in the environment.
IS FIP CONTAGIOUS? Very simply, the answer is no. FIP stems from infection with the enteric coronavirus of cats but FIP is not contagious.
In cats that develop FIP, the first signs of illness may be very vague. Listlessness, lethargy, decreased or absent appetite, weight loss, and a fluctuating fever are commonly reported clinical signs.
Rare in solo, indoor-only house cats, this dreaded disease sends chills down the backs of kennel and cattery owners. Its feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) and its lethal and incurable. FIP is caused by common strains of coronavirus.
Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) is a disease of felids caused by the feline coronaviruses (FCoV).
Clinical signs of FIP include: Decreased appetite to complete loss of appetite. Chronic weight loss or weight gain (seen more with dry FIP) A pot-bellied appearance (from wet FIP) due to fluid accumulation in the abdomen; typically the fluid is a straw-colored, thick, high-protein fluid.
Cats with neurological FIP may be left with residual damage to brain and/or spinal cord and permanent disabilities. Disabilities include varying degrees of incoordination, behavioral changes, and dementia. The most troublesome disabilities result from involvement of the spinal cord.
Affected kittens may have stunted growth and fail to thrive. They will often be thin and have a rough, dull haircoat. Although there is significant overlap, a simplistic way to look at infection is that there are two different sub forms of FIP, a “wet” and a “dry” form.
There is no doubt that some cats are not cured even over 12 weeks and some evidence that some can be cured sooner (i.e, 8- 10 weeks). However, early cessation of treatment will always lead to a decrease in the proportion of cats that are cured, and the sooner you stop a treatment, the higher the relapse rate.
In the final stages of FIP, cats struggle to breathe and eat, often resulting in euthanasia. Other symptoms of FIP in cats include: Abdominal swelling, often described as a pot belly. Breathing difficulties (open-mouth panting, harsh breathing, extra effort needed to breathe, fast breathing)
Serotype I FIP virus strains predominate in the field and do not have cross-reactive neutralizing epitopes with serotype II strains. Therefore, as noted in the previous iteration of these guidelines,1,33 there remains insufficient evidence that this vaccine induces clinically relevant protection in the field.
It can take time for cats to show signs of FIP, from a few weeks to months. The first signs of FIP can range from depression to changes in appetite to fever. There are two forms of FIP: wet and dry.
FIP is often nicknamed the purring disease, because infected kittens will spend so much time snuggling and purring – perhaps because they are feverish and are struggling to stay warm. Even though scientists and veterinarians have known about FIP since the 1960s, there is still neither prevention nor cure.
What are the symptoms of FIP? Cats that have been initially exposed to FeCV usually show no obvious symptoms. Some cats may show mild upper respiratory symptoms such as sneezing, watery eyes, and nasal discharge, while others may experience mild gastrointestinal signs such as diarrhea.
Unfortunately, once symptoms of FIP have developed, it is considered to be incurable, rapidly progressive ( with an average life expectancy of 2 months or less from time of diagnosis ) and ultimately fatal disease.