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| FIP: Tips what
you can do |
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The program for cattery rescue
was developed together with the University for veterinary
medicine in Vienna. |
Index
There will be no talk about, what FIP is, because that you can
read better in every literature. For information, what FIP is and how it develops by
mutation of corona viruses, the following sites present very useful information:
This is a questions which is raised very often.
As it is known, up to now there is no reliable test, which can be done in before hand like the
tests for FeLV or FIV. The so called anti-body titer tests only test for the presence of feline corona viruses FCoV and have been and are still widely and irrationally used as tests
against FIP.
Corona viruses are always present in every cat, and their amount is higher if the cat has any
inflammation or had a problem with diarrhoea.
Anti-body titer tests might be only useful if the veterinarian wants to proof his diagnosis that a
cat is already ill from FIP.
When reading about the anti-body titer tests in the above mentioned articles, it
turns out pretty soon, that it does not make any sense to use the anti-body titer test to
test a cat against FIP which does not show any signs being suspecious of FIP.
So do not spend money unnecessarily
with the anti-body titer test.
Great hope is still laid on the so called Polymerase Chain
Reaction test, shortly called PCR test, which tests the presence of the
virus itself. But this test mostly has to be done by a VetMed university.
What can be done to rescue a cattery from FIP ?
If a cat died from FIP there is no reason
to give up, but a lot of patience to wait will be needed.
As it is common knowledge, the virus causing FIP
dicreases over the time. The estimated time is between 18 months and 35 months,
until FIP has disappeared completely.
 | Build groups by separating the positive from the
negative cats.
If it is possible to have the PCR test done by the university, all the cats
should be tested in the first run and
groups should be built by separating the positive from the negative cats.
If there is only the anti-body titer test available, never the less, make use of
it to separate the seropositive from the seronegative cats. |
| One test series is not enough,
the test should be repeated every 6-8 weeks. |
| Keep the negative tested cats strictly separated
from the positive tested cats. |
| All cats which are one time negative and on the
second test positive should be seperated into a separated group. |
| Keep only twice tested positive cats together in
one group and do the same with the twice tested negative cats. The rest,
which is once positive and then negative tested are kept in a
separate group. |
When this grouping of cats is done, three groups are built, and
the test series is repeated every 6-8 weeks.
And sooner or later all the cats will be negative over the time, because the
virus dicreases by itself. You must be only a little bit patient and wait.
Kitten get the necessary protection through the
milk they suck from their mom. But the protection and immunity against diseases will be
only in the first 4-5 weeks. After this time the kitten will not be fully immune against diseases.
Therefore the kitten have to be separated latest with 5
weeks age, best with 4 weeks age to be on the safe side. They have to be reared isolated in a
separate room.
With this method you will get 100% FIP free kitten and the whole cattery can be
rescued over the
time, if this procedure is repeated with all the litters within the next 2 - 2,5 years.
When the cats are separated and groups are built, their dishes and their litter boxes
must be kept strictly separated from each other.
The virus causing FIP cannot survive very long outside of its host, the virus
dies within minutes. The virus can be killed easily by using any normal disinfectant
which one can buy in any pharmacy.
| So before the dishes are put into your dish washer
they shall be disinfected. |
| Disinfectants shall be used when cleaning the floors. |
| Disinfectants shall be used when cleaning the litter boxes. |
| Litter boxes must be cleaned every day. |
| Disinfect your hands and shoes after touching cats
of the "positive" group. The veterinarian does simply the same, he disinfects his hands
every time after each animal he has treated, otherwise a lot of cats would be already
infected with FIP. |
| Visits to other people's home who have
animals, shall be avoided whenever possible. When coming home, the cloths
shall be changed and shall be put into the
washing machine, disinfectant shall be used for rinsing, shoes and hands must
be disinfected. |
This is the most important thing one can do.
Researches done on FIP have found out, the lower the stress level is the faster the virus
level decreases.
Every death of a cat increases the virus level and it will take longer to decrease the
virus level.
Avoid any stress for the cattery:
| NO NEW ANIMALS shall be introduced into the
cattery, every new animal increases the stress for the other cats
and increases the virus level. |
| All the males shall be neutered, if they are
not really needed for
breeding, only very few might be not neutered. Unneutered males shall be kept separated from each other,
every fight increases the stress level and the virus level. |
| NO BREEDING. Every pregnancy and delivery is an
enormous stress for the cats and multiplies the virus level in the cattery.
Thus
the queens shall be calmed down, a hormone shot shall be
administered when they come into heat. Even there might remain the risk
that a queen will not be able to breed any longer after the hormone shots, what is more
important "breeding or living" ? If the lives of the cats can be
saved, the risks of hormone treatments must be taken. |
| NO SHOWS for any cat. Every show is a stress
for the cats and increases the virus level. Besides, it would be
very unfair to all the other cats in a show which could be
infected by your cat. |
| The amount of cats shall be reduced. It is not
easy to place cats and give them away, which one loves and on
which one has spent so much time and money. But, a new home where
the cat is single, might save the life of this cat and all the
other cats remaining at home. |
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