Ed Marits · Animal Welfare
So here is my story.
4 Amiga/Amigos
About 3 months ago I received immediate post weaned kittens from a feral Mom in community. As they were under 35 days, it was reasonable, that they could be domesticated and socialized and then adopted out... 4 kittens, 3 brothers and 1 sister... My job was to get them to 3 months and then S/N, vaccinated and adopt in pairs... Well, first brother 1 died suddenly??? 2 hrs after symptoms appeared. Then 2 days later, #2 died and a week after that #3 brother died... All perished from FIPV, a feline form of HIV... Feline Infectious Peritonitis Virus. Fairly rare even in feral colonies.
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Each one was a crushing blow to us... Us is me and a 19 month 85lb Malamute rescue, who adopted the kittens... And they all played with him... and he was Mom to them... and they accepted him as Mom... About 40 times as big as the kittens...
Well, after the 1st 2, the female was still OK and so was the canine (Chance)... But when the 3rd brother died, the household took a turn dark ... Dog very depressed... Kitten was lost, wondering where her brothers had gone...
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And she is very high risk for having FIPV also... So, adoption is OUT... FIPV is not treatable and comes in 3 stages... The second stage is generally without any symptoms. The last stage is symptomatic and about 120 hrs to death...
Well, the female now had no one to turn to except 'Mom' the dog... So, they really became best buddies... They slept together and would seek each other out. The kitten managed to get the dog out of its depression (somehow) - which lasted 3 days... And so far, there are no symptoms for the kitten... So, I am hopeful... and worried that if this one goes, the dog will not take it too well... (understatement).
