Cat disease FIP

British Shorthair

When Lauri turned 18, she received the best birthday present you can imagine: a cat. It was a British Shorthair; she had never had a pedigree cat before, but after some research on the internet, she knew this breed is known for its gentle character and that they are generally very relaxed and loyal. Seeing photos of British Shorthair kittens won her over. "They looked exactly like little teddy bears, so cute and fluffy!" Lauri said.

And then there was her first British Shorthair, Balou. Unfortunately, Balou only lived to be 1.5 years old; he passed away due to the effects of HCM. "We never knew he was sick. He had a very nice, but far too short, lazy cat life with us. Because Balou died so young and I still had good contact with the cattery where Balou came from, I was allowed to choose a new kitten from the next litter, and this became Koda," Lauri continued. Koda is a beautiful British Shorthair with a lilac coat, now 7 years old. Besides Koda, Lauri has another cat, and a very cute one at that! Namely Lily... a black golden shaded British Shorthair of 2 years.

Note, the following photos may be perceived as too cute.

The cats with the bows

That Koda and Lily get along well together is evident from all the photos and videos of the two together. Fortunately, this has been the case from the very beginning; they love cuddling together. Lauri gladly shares this with their followers on Instagram, where she now has quite a few followers. The two British Shorthairs are very photogenic and shine in the photos and videos. The duo is also often pictured wearing a bow, which Lauri makes and sells herself!

Caregiver of Koda

At the beginning of 2022, Lauri noticed that Koda was not himself anymore; he was very tired and slept a lot. At first, Lauri was not worried because he was still eating and drinking normally and had normal stools. Unfortunately, this only got worse; the normally good eater Koda only licked the sauce off his wet food and soon only smelled the food. Lauri knew something was wrong and immediately made an appointment with the vet.

This was followed by a lot of tests, including blood tests that showed abnormal values, but no diagnosis yet. Eventually, they did an ultrasound. Lauri feared FIP (Feline Infectious Peritonitis) from the start, but also thought the chance was small given Koda's age. FIP mostly occurs in kittens. The vet suspected pancreatitis, and Koda tested positive for this. Later, it turned out to be a false positive result.

By the time of the diagnosis, Koda was already so sick that Lauri feared for his life. "Every morning I was afraid I wouldn\'t find him alive anymore. I had to force-feed Koda 6 times a day for weeks just to make sure he got enough calories. He really had no energy left to do anything himself. When Koda went to the litter box to do his business, I later found him lying in the litter box because he simply had no energy to walk back to his cushion," says Lauri, who was then acting as a caregiver for her cat and did everything she could. This period was incredibly hard for her, both mentally and physically. She was busy 24/7 caring for Koda and was extremely worried because Koda means everything to her.

The diagnosis FIP

On 07-03-2022, Koda was diagnosed with wet FIP, following an ultrasound that showed abdominal fluid. This abdominal fluid was aspirated and tested in the lab. This is the only way to definitively diagnose FIP; when a cat has no fluid in its abdomen, it may have neuro FIP or dry FIP. In such cases, FIP is a diagnosis of exclusion and a suspicion of FIP can be made based on blood test results, but it can never be said with certainty.         

Koda is now being treated with a black market medicine for 84 days. Lauri indicates that it looks promising and that as a result, many cats worldwide have been successfully treated and 'cured'. She explains how the treatment works: "For 84 days, Koda receives an injection every day at the same time. After these 84 days, there is an observation period of another 84 days to see if he relapses. Because this treatment comes from a recent study, it is difficult to say what the long-term effects are." The treatment is still relatively unknown, but more and more veterinarians are aware of it, even though it is not officially an approved medicine yet. Partly because of this, the treatment is very expensive, which is why Lauri started a GoFundMe.

Lauri is now more than halfway through the treatments, and it does her good to see Koda back to his old self. "I am incredibly grateful to everyone who has supported us. Starting the GoFundMe was a huge step for me, but it was received with so much love. This has made the treatment a bit more manageable for me. Moreover, all the love we received really pulled me through when I needed it the most," Lauri said.

We wish Lauri, Koda, and Lily all the best and also hope that Lauri's wish comes true.