https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/aug/10/cyprus-begins-treating-islands-sick-cats-with-anti-covid-pills
Vets receive medication originally meant for people amid virulent feline coronavirus that has killed thousands of cats
My cat had FIP and because the treatment isn't medically approved, my vet couldn't even really talk about it, let alone prescribe a treatment, since it could put her license at risk. But she gave me enough hints so that I could do my own research.
There are groups out there that help cats with FIP. I was able to get the needed medication and treat my cat. It's been 6 months now since he's been cured and I'm so happy I was able to save his life.
The medication is called GS-441524 and is similar to Remdesivir. Gilead refuses to get GS-44 certified for vet use because it's so close to Remdesivir that humans could use it to treat COVID at a lower cost. Fuck big pharma and their greed.
So good to hear that you could save your cat! I have also treated two cats for FIP with GS-441524: my own cat, who was diagnosed with dry FIP in September 2020 and who is now an almost 5 year old healthy cat and a stray cat that was diagnosed with neurological FIP in August 2021 and has also been healthy and happy for a long time :)
It's a shame that the treatment is still not approved due to the patent issues, but at least in the German-speaking world, an increasing number of vets have learned about the treatment and have a positive attitude about it. While they can't officially prescribe or administer the drug, mentioning the drug shouldn't be an issue because they could even refer to the ongoing studies at LMU Munich.
I'm glad that you were able to save those 2 cats! My little Potato was 7 months old when he was diagnosed and it was pretty bad. It was either I get him the treatment or he would need to get euthanized. I had just recently lost my 13 year old cat and could not go through another loss so soon. I'm really glad that I helped him.
Yes, each time I think about what the alternative outcome for the two kitties would have been, I become sentimental :')
I am happy that you could save your cat as well! While the success rate is not 100%, it seems to be somewhere around 80% under the less-than-optimal conditions with black market and some vets opposing the treatment (I used to do the statistics for one German group that has assisted the treatment of around 3000 cats since 2020, so if anyone's interested, I'm happy to share data!).
In my opinion, those odds mean that it's always definitely worth a shot! I personally would have even tried it for my own cats if the odds were 50/50 or lower. He was diagnosed just before his second birthday and I'm so glad that he's fully recovered and has led a completely normal life since.
All the best to you and your potato!
I don't know what it is about animal news, but now I feel supremely sad for all the cats. 😢
This is the best summary I could come up with:
Veterinary services in Cyprus have received a first batch of anti-Covid pills, from a stockpile originally meant for humans, as efforts intensify to stop the spread of a virulent strain of feline coronavirus that has killed thousands of cats.
The island’s health ministry began discharging the treatment on 8 August – long celebrated as International Cat Day – in what is hoped will be the beginning of the end of the disease that has struck the Mediterranean country’s feline population.
Experts at the university of Edinburgh, investigating the outbreak in collaboration with the PVA, found that within 12 weeks the number of FIP cases confirmed by PCR (polymerase chain reaction) tests rose 20-fold compared with the previous year.
Dr Charalampos Attipa, senior lecturer in veterinary clinical pathology, who is heading the University of Edinburgh team, said: “Our studies are very much focused on identifying the possible mutation that has led to this highly virulent FCoV strain.”
The island’s Cat Protection and Welfare Society (PAWS) recently made the dramatic claim that about 300,000 felines, both domesticated and stray, had perished as a result of galloping FIP transmission rates since January.
“It’s just not true that we are an island of dead cats, but what is happening is very serious,” said the PVA president, Nektaria Ioannou Arsenoglou, adding that afflicted animals could be nursed back to health in both the “wet” and “dry” forms of the illness if given the proper treatment.
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First time I read about a covid stain affecting cats, but what surprises me is that the anticovid pills designed for humans will well also on cats. Is that true for any animal?
Coronavirus is just a family of viruses. From what I understand, about 80-85% of cats have FeCov and most present mild symptoms like a runny nose. In about 0.5% of those infected, the virus will mutate and cause FIP. About 6 years ago, that would have been a death sentence as the death rate of FIP is 100%.
Gilead was working on a treatment and had one that was promising. They had started the process of getting it approved. But then the pandemic hit and they stopped all work. Since COVID is caused by a virus in the same family, they pivoted their research and eventually produced Remdesivir, which is an effective antiviral treatment for humans.
That also decided not to continue with the feline treatment because humans could technically use that instead of Remdesivir and Gilead would make less money.
Technically, it's not a Covid strain, but another strain of the coronavirus that is not transmissible to humans. As far as current medical knowledge goes, FIP is caused by a mutation of the feline coronavirus and is deadly if untreated. Besides cats, big cats (like lions) and also ferrets can actually also get FIP. Dogs, humans etc can't develop FIP. I actually know of one ferret in Germany that was successfully treated against FIP with GS-441524! :)