The Now News

Shelter cats quarantined

By Brooke Larsen - Staff Reporter

The City of Coquitlam's animal shelter has quarantined 45 cats after one tested positive for a lethal virus known as feline infectious peritonitis (FIP).

The disease, which does not affect humans, is fairly common, causing diarrhea, vomiting, fluid retention in the abdomen and, eventually, death in cats.

"It's something that's got to be done to ensure the safety of the cats," shelter manager Andrea McDonald said in an interview Monday.

The shelter's vet advised staff to quarantine the cats last week after a cat that tested positive for the disease was returned to the shelter by its new owner, McDonald said.

"We recommend that you take the cats to a veterinarian when you leave here. So I guess they did that, and it tested positive for FIP," she said.

The quarantined felines are confined to small kennels inside a trailer and in the shelter's adoption room. Under normal conditions the shelter, well-known for its unique outdoor cat enclosure, allows cats to roam freely, McDonald said.

"It's really hard for them to be in individual cages for long periods of time. It's really stressful for cats."

The quarantine has also proved costly, since blood tests performed on the cats last week cost $100 each, McDonald said.

"Even just the $100 per cat, that's $5,000 right there," McDonald said, adding that she has had to increase her staff from three to four to care for the cats.

"They all have to have their own individual kennels, so each one has a cat box that has to be cleaned. So it's definitely more time-consuming than having them in the communal room.

"We are going to try to have a fundraiser because, obviously, it's a fairly unexpected expense and we'd love to have support from the community."

McDonald said shelter staff are awaiting the blood test results, but added that the cats will be kept in quarantine until next month, regardless of the results, so that they can be re-tested.

Cats that are found to have the disease will either be euthanized or sent to a special care home for cats that have FIP, she said.

"It's not something we want to talk too much about. There are some places in the Lower Mainland that have FIP cat houses, so hopefully we'll try and find them spaces there," she said, adding that the shelter has many healthy cats up for adoption.

The outlook is "hopeless" for cats that test positive for the disease, said Coquitlam veterinarian Dr. Andy Forsyth, one of the vets who has been working with the shelter.

"By the time we recognize clinical signs, the cat has gone down that pathway of disease formation that is usually hopeless," he said.

FIP belongs to a large family of viruses known as coronaviruses, which also includes severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).

Forsyth said that while less than 10 per cent of cats exposed to the virus develop FIP, the mortality rate is close to 100 per cent for cats that do develop it. It's also fairly hard to diagnose, since it can manifest itself in a myriad of ways.

"It can be all over the map because it hits such a wide variety of systems," he said. "You can get all sorts of things. It can hit the respiratory tract, it can hit the nervous system, it can hit the kidneys, the intestines, the abdominal lymph nodes."

Forsyth said the disease is often spread between carrier mothers and their kittens, and that cats adopted from a shelter should always be checked out by a veterinarian.

He also said he's impressed by the shelter's handling of the situation, saying, "they're a good shelter to work with. They do things right."

The shelter will hold a car trunk sale fundraiser on Saturday, Sept. 16 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Vendor spots will be available for $12 each - fees go directly to the shelter.

To register, call 604-927-3555, e-mail signmeup@coquitlam.ca or visit any city parks and recreation facility.

To make a donation to the shelter, drop by 500 Mariner Way.

published on 08/23/2006