Good afternoon all

I'm the owner of a lovely snow bengal boy (Luca) about 8 months old and would appreciate any advice (thank you in advance!). It's quite a long post but just want to make sure i give all the background info!

When we picked the little one up from the breeder at 13 weeks he looked perfectly healthy and he had all his vaccines etc. About 9 weeks ago I noticed clear blood in his faeces, it was also very pungent and loose and mucusy. His appetite and energy levels were also down and he had lost weight. The vet gave him antibiotics and the stool sample confirmed the presence of Feline corona virus. After a week nothing improved and the vet suggested we do stool samples every week to determine whether he is shedding the virus or if he is a chronic carrier. We also changed his food to Royal Canin Gastrointestinal and cleaned his litter tray every time he went. After 6 stool sample tests almost all of them came back positive for the feline corona virus. His appetite has since improved, his energy levels is back to normal and this consistency of his stool looks normal (he goes twice a day) apart from it still showing blood every time and is mucus like. Every 3 weeks or so there will be day where he goes quite a few times and then it is very soft, but it usually only lasts 1 day.

The vet confirmed that it looks like he is a chronic carrier of the feline corona virus, which means that there is a chance of this developing into FIP. This is a house cat (with lots of space to roam in the house), he has never been in contact with any other cats apart from his mother and siblings. So I'm puzzled as to where he picked it up, I assume from his mother or possibly at the vet when he got his vaccinations?

The vet is now looking at what we can do to stop the bleeding and he also said we need to keep his stress levels down as stress can weaken his immune system and increase the chances of it mutating to FIP. We were planning to get him nuted around the same time the bleeding started, but couldn't as he was too ill, so he is long overdue judging by his howling at night ;-)

Does anyone have advice on what can potentially cause the bleeding in his intestines/stool and what can be done to stop it? From his energy levels, appearance and appetite he looks very healthy but it can't be good bleeding every day. I've read up on Dr Abby's website and all the info available on this forum on FIP and feline corona virus (many thanks for providing it!) but feel like there must be something more we can do? Would blood tests help? Do you think I should go for a second opinion at another vet? As he is a chronic carrier, does that increases his chances of getting FIP (above the 5-10%)? Is it ok to continue with neutering?

I will work out how to send a picture and will do so shortly, any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Have a good day!
Dani

Hi... The corona virus will be found in many Catteries and other places with multiple cats. It's very, very common. FIP is a mutation of this and it is thought now that only certain cats will/could ever mutate into FIP. So, not every cat who is corona positive has the capability of it mutating. It s thought to have a genetic link.

Anyway... Has your cats poo ever been tested or anything else? Just because he tested positive for corona does not mean the was causing the prolific diarrhoea. It is entirely possible and probable that there is something else. I would recommend testing for Tritrichomonas Foetus (TF). This us also quite common although vets do not seem to think of testing for it. Testing needs to be done by PCR or QPCR testing, anything else s NOT reliable. Sample runny, soft poo. Leave 2 weeks after giving any antibiotic or wormer. Sample several poo episodes since TF is shed intermittently. There is more info on this in the health section.

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Lollo

Dear Lollo,

Thank you so much for your advice and your cats are so beautiful!

We have been testing his poo on a weekly basis to see whether he is shedding the virus, I think it was something like a PCR test but I'm not sure if they tested for TF. I will definitely check this with vet and request that it is tested.

Thank you again very much for the help and have a good day!

PS - here is a picture of Luca (He looks massive but I couldn't get the pic smaller!)

Hi Dani

Lollo is very correct with what she has said re Corona - most vets will not want to even begin to try and decipher a PCR Corona test due to the fact they can never really get an accurate idea of whats going on - I have to say I'm a little dismayed with your vet for doing weekly tests as your cat most likely will not be free of it - a waste of your money.

Dr Addies site will give some litter recommendations - you might want to look - there is a litter at Tesco that kills the virus so can help the titre go down.

There are a number of questions I would also ask - time for your memory to be jogged :-

Your cat is 8 months - this has been going on approx 2months and he was approx 3 months old when you got him, therefore you had 3 months of no issues I assume?

So....has anything changed? Did you make any specific changes when he was 6 months old - Diet? introducing another cat, letting him outside, change of environment?
My advice would be a full poop panel - Idexx do a good one - it covers Parasites (I take it his worming is up to date? - if not do panacur him - 5 days covers Giadia also) Bacteria, Salmonella, E.Coli, Campylobacter - and also then tag a PCR/QPCR TF test onto that aswell.

Its really important if you can to look at a trigger point.

Your vet basing this solely on CV to me seems like it will just send you round in circles - if it was CV causing the issue I am sure the 'flare' would have decreased by 9 weeks of the issue and not keep causing an issues.

Good luck..........demand more.x

Agree with Lollo and Claire - no point in testing his CoV titre weekly. Whether it goes down or stays up then it is unlikely to be the problem.
CoV is very common and in most cats it is either a subclinical infection or causes mild diarrhoea and vomiting.
As for FIP, his weekly CoV titre is not going to pinpoint that, and in a cat that is obviously outwardly healthy I think FIP is highly unlikely.
The bleeding is probably due to inflammation of his bowel, a colitis, and, as has been said, it is more likely due to parasites or some ongoing inflammatory process (ie post infection, potentially stress) than due to Coronavirus.

Dear Lollo, Claire & Elaine

Thank you very much for your input, I greatly appreciate it and it is so helpful (wish I asked for help sooner )

Claire - to answer your questions:

- Yes there were 3 months of no issues
- We didn't make any major chances. Luca was not introduced to a new environment/outside, no other cats, no food change, no stressful situations like loud noise, lots of people etc.
- His up to date with worming etc.
- One thing to mention is that Luca does like eating almost everything! we try to keep things away as far as possible, however he still manages to eat weird stuff... the other day i found part of a string from one of his toys in his poo

I feel so much better after receiving your advice, I'm also planning to go for a 2nd opinion asap.

Thank you again and have a good day!

Dani :)

Thanks for all the information Dani - am wondering if he might have eaten something that has cause some sort of issue in his gut in that case - I wonder if a xray/ultrasound might be an idea - what do others think?

If he is eating strange things he could have PICA. U need 2 stop him eating stuff that csn hsrm him. Hes beautiful

Thank you to everyone for your advice, I will keep you updated!

Have a great week!

Hi dani I know you haven't been on these boards for a while I was really curious to know did your Luca eliminate Coronavirus ? And did you get him neutered if so when and did he still have the virus when you done this and what was his virus titre levels . My kitty has this virus and l really feel he needs to be neutered he's 10 mnths old now so I'm looking for some advice from people who have gone through this I really hope your Luca is well please reply if you can
Many thanks
Maryann

Hey Maryann. I know you are desperate for information. I doubt Dani has checked the board in years. There is a lot of good information in this old thread and it warmed my heart seeing so many great people helping -- unfortunately, they haven't been on the forum in some time.

Reading up is great ... but nobody knows what neutering will do or if the virus will eventually turn into full blown FIP. Relying on your vet is your best bet as they have examined your kitty and run the tests. I know you're worried and scared. But hang in there.

Thanks sherry I appreciate all your help, it's frustrating that sometimes people don't come back to give an update so others know how their situation turned out especially after getting so much advice and support from others I know that happens on all forum thanks again I will keep you updated.
Kind regards
Maryann