Thursday, March 18, 2010

a few thoughts and updates

It's been a long while since I wrote here, and truthfully I don't have much to add. But I know I do get emails still from some of you who went through the worst of the outbreak with me, and I thought maybe we'd just do a quick update now.

I was very worried about the stress of the move on the suspect FIP cats. And all the others. I am happy to report that 10 months after the move, the one of the two FIP cats has passed as expected (from dry FIP) The other cat is still isolated by herself in a bedroom and while she does have some bad days, she is still a good weight and enjoying her life.

None of the others at this time show real obvious signs.

I still continue my own homeopathic treatments as well as pulses of clindamycin for the gingivitis that many of them suffer from chronically.

I had hoped to have things set up to do my own labs by now, but my son's cancer has returned and my focus for now is on him.

I still see chronic obvious things with the cats/kittens that either were in the original rescue group, or were related to those who died from the FIP. These are the "indicators" in my personal observances.

I think that like all retroviruses within my own cat population, we've now seen a mutation from the very virulent strain to one that I have little doubt will in time still take some of my cat's lives, but does it in a slower more insidious way.

I also believe that there are still answers to be had out there, but I just don't see any of the current research ever producing either a vaccine or an effective treatment. I hope that changes in time.

My heart broke when Zilla died and I will when time permits continue to work on this on my own in the future. In her memory. In the memory of so many of you who have also lost precious furbabies to this abomination of a disease.

Will post again in a few months with another update. Blessed to all the furkins and their families.