Anyone here have any experience with FIP (feline infectious peritonitis)?

[hedgehog]

I took out cat Siggy to the vet Friday because his eyes were getting bloody. The diagnosis is that he either has a treatable infection or else he has FIP. Either the antibiotic is going to cure him or he's liable to die within a few weeks. That's basically how you tell whether a cat has FIP. I'm crossing my fingers because his eyes are improving and he doesn't act sick.

Here's the wild part about this disease. Apparently it is associated with a fairly common corona virus that generally causes a few days of sneezing, if that. While the corona virus is contagious, FIP isn't. The corona virus behaves like the herpes simplex that causes chicken pox. Once exposed, the cat always carries it. Later on, a percentage of cats go on to develop FIP which is really a systematic vasculitis. While the corona virus is contagious, FIP isn't. There seems to be speculation that the virus mutates to cause the FIP, but also discussion of weakened immune systems in older cats and/or genetic factors. Now this is starting to sound like chicken pox/shingles. What really intrigues me though, is the resemblance to auto-immune diseases such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. Vasculitis can be an auto-immune disorder in humans. The problems diagnosing FIP resemble the problems diagnosing a lot of human auto-immune diseases.

[madinmaryland]

1. We had a young cat die of FIP. He was only a year old and died on Thanksgiving

night. We had another cat, who did test positive and she has exhibited no symptoms in the three years later. We adopted her from a DU'er (Flaxbee).

[hedgehog]

2. I think the cat can test positive for exposure to the corona virus and

never go on to develop FIP. It's one of those expensive blood tests that really doesn't tell you much.