Prayers Please - Dying Baby Zeke - FIP

[nfaerie]

I haven't lost a cat to FIP. I am so sorry and am praying for your kitties. I have had the personal experience of watching a beloved pet die from an illness that cannot be helped. It was about 2 months of heart break. It is the most heart-wrenching experience. I have not had another pet since then for a few years. Just know you are doing the best you can for them. Just let him know you love him very much and it will help ease him. Many prayers and hugs

 

[NinaGato]

I am very sorry for the impending loss of your family member. As with any pet I really urge people to be sensitive and really listen to your pet. They will tell you when it is time. It is very hard and I really feel your you all. The loss is hard on the humans but I think sometimes it is just as hard on the other cats. Make sure you watch Normand for signs of depression. As I always say love em until you cant anymore.

 

[ZiggyStardust]

I am so sorry to hear you are going through this horrible disease. That is also a poor reaction from your breeder. I certainly hope she is not consistently producing FIP cats, but do know that just because a breeder has one FIP cat does not mean they all have it or will get it as the corona virus only mutates in a small number of cats (though with her attitude it doesn't sound promising). As Megan (Caloci) said, your other cat should be fine. The corona virus is contagious but FIP is not, so once Zeke developed FIP he was no longer contagious. Personally, I would let them have comfort with each other, but that's just me and I can understand your fear. It's hard with any ill baby to figure out when the best time to let go is because you never want to let go. I'm upset with myself because I waited to long to let Squeaks go (not FIP) and she ended up passing on her own - horrible to find. Susi is right, though: with wet FIP the fluid will start pressing against the diaphragm making it hard to breathe. You can have fluid drawn off to delay this, but is that best for him or you? He'll let you know when he's too tired. Thoughts and prayers are with you at this difficult time. ::HUGS::

 

[Hairless Blessing]

I just can't hardly stand it when I see these post. it's all I can do to read them.
But, I want the person this is happening to to have my prayers and show my respect.
Because our animals whatever they may be is our family. I would want other people
to send up prayers for me or mine and know their there for me also. So, I can't just let these post
go and not read them because of it breaking my heart. I have to think of the person or
persons going through it and their heartache. My heart is broken for Zeke, you, Normand and
your roommate. I pray, if it's God's will, he will heal Zeke and if not, to take him on quick, so, he won't suffer. I pray for comfort that only he can give. Bless you.

 

[admin]

So sorry to hear of this. You will know when the time is right. I truly hope your other kitty is ok.

 

[Franksmom]

So sorry!!!

 

[PrimateLove]

So sorry....

 

[2Knights]

So very very sorry to hear all you and your babies are going through.
I have only seen on young cat with FIP and no it is not a nice disease process at all. So very heartbreaking for you all.

I also stand by the prefering to end their suffering earlier rathern than later. My saying is I prefer a day to early than a day to late.

Hugs from us to all of you. Such a hard and painful road you are traveling

 

[L_Grazi]

I am so sorry to hear you are going through this horrible disease. That is also a poor reaction from your breeder. I certainly hope she is not consistently producing FIP cats, but do know that just because a breeder has one FIP cat does not mean they all have it or will get it as the corona virus only mutates in a small number of cats (though with her attitude it doesn't sound promising). As Megan (Caloci) said, your other cat should be fine. The corona virus is contagious but FIP is not, so once Zeke developed FIP he was no longer contagious. Personally, I would let them have comfort with each other, but that's just me and I can understand your fear. It's hard with any ill baby to figure out when the best time to let go is because you never want to let go. I'm upset with myself because I waited to long to let Squeaks go (not FIP) and she ended up passing on her own - horrible to find. Susi is right, though: with wet FIP the fluid will start pressing against the diaphragm making it hard to breathe. You can have fluid drawn off to delay this, but is that best for him or you? He'll let you know when he's too tired. Thoughts and prayers are with you at this difficult time. ::HUGS::

Thank you for your thoughts! I have been thinking this whole time that I want to put Normand and Zeke together...The Vet suggested they be separate simply because they just don't have that much information on the virus but I have been feeling like I want to let them be together. If what you are saying is true, that Zeke's FIP is not contagious to Normand as FIP that would just make me feel so happy that I could let them be together. Again, thank you so much for your kindness.

 

[L_Grazi]

::UPDATE:: Thank you SO SO much everyone for your outpouring of support to us during this difficult time. We have read each and every one of your messages and are overwhelmed by all of the kind and heartfelt messages. We were feeling very isolated and alone in this whole process and all of your kind words have helped us tremendously. For any of you that have private messaged me, I apologize for not being able to get back to you, it will not allow me to "PM" until I have at least 10 posts...I am still a "newbie" around here so if you do not get a private message back from me, please know that I read them and that they mean so much to us. We are very grateful to be apart of a community like this. Zeke had a very good night last night, we more active than he has been in the past month or so, keeping his head up, eyes open, snuggly, and had a big appetite. We keep praying for a miracle. We are just loving him every second that we can and trusting that we will know when it is time. Thank you all again.

 

[Graddydani]

My heart goes out to you and your boys and your roomate. I am so sorry for what you're going through and glad that your last update saw Zeke in a better light. Sending you so much love, peace and positive thoughts. Many hugs and wishes

 

[lucylue]

I have found many complaints on this breeder if I were you I would write one, to make sure she can not do this to another family.

 

[sciumi]

I'm glad our support is helping I know I've received so much help from this community.

Do let me know if you find anything out about the experimental medication "P.I."

 

[Calicocious]

So sorry to hear of your devastating news. All of us here understand just how hard it is and how special the bond is between these amazing cats and their humans. Wishing you comfort and peace in this difficult time. Your in my thoughts.

 

[SarahLovee82]

My heart breaks for you it truly does. I lost my Oliver to FIP its a horrible terrible disease. I read on facebook that there are some treatments to prolong symptoms but as we all know, there is no cure.

 

[Dallassummer]

I'm so so sorry for your lose. I can't even imagine what you're going through but you're in my thoughts and prayers. To add on to what others said about a cure. I read this thread a few weeks ago by ZiggyStardust. It's very helpful and enlightening.
http://www.sphynxlair.com/f33/fip-important-exciting-news-21800/

 

[Spoon&Sphynx]

Thank you to each and every one of you for your kind and heartfelt words. It has been so hard because we are just so devastated and it feels like no one quite understands how horrible it is...I knew if I reached out on here that someone would understand. We are overwhelmed by all of your kind words and they help to make us feel not so "alone." Zeke was adopted at 2 months old from a family that got him from a cattery called "Sleekats Cattery." When the vet told us that Zeke has FIP and that FIP commonly originates from catteries and shelters, that we should contact the breeder to make her aware of the situation. When we reached out to her we told her how devastated we are to learn of this news and the breeder became very hostile and defensive...suggesting that the cat probably does NOT have FIP but that we probably poisoned our cat with the food we were feeding him....though we were feeding him top of the line all natural, grain free, organic food...before switching to RAW diet. She still has not offered a single comforting word or advice. I am truly afraid because if she is breeding cats that are carriers of FIP and she is not properly screening her cats, then the chances of someone else having to go through what we are going through is high....I would never wish this to happen to anyone not even my worst enemy. It is unfair. We are truly losing a family member. As of this morning he is still eating and purring when we cuddle him...I am dreading the day (soon) that he no longer wants either of these things...it is so so hard. I just pray that he is comfortable until his passing and that he knows and feels how loved he is. Thank you again everyone for your comforting words. It means so much to us.

I am so sorry to hear about your baby! Losing a pet is devistating.

I, too, have had issues with this cattery. She has been bullying me into doing things "her" way, and purchasing medications from her. I would not recommend her to anyone.

I do wish you the best of luck, and Zeke the happiest of days <3

 

[lizziepickle]

I am so sorry . Praying for your family

 

[lizziepickle]

I deal with death of a pet almost every day. It is the down fall of working at a vets office. Send him to the rainbow bridge when he is suffering don't keep him going for you. I hear from a lot of my clients that they feel horrible for keeping their pet going when they should have done it sooner. It doesn't make it any easier. :-(

 

[Spoon&Sphynx]

I have found many complaints on this breeder if I were you I would write one, to make sure she can not do this to another family.

Where can we make complaints? I've also had issues with this breeder, and don't wish it upon anybody else.

 

[lechatdedanse]

I am literally sobbing and SO sorry to hear the news. I just signed up to lair so this is why I am responding now. It is so awful to go through the loss of a beloved pet and whatever the status I hope you have stayed strong. I am so sorry that the breeder acted so ignorant. She is way worse in my book after reading this. ( my 1 year old peterbald was purchased directly from her.) My heart goes out to you Normandy and your roommate. At least you had the wonderful opportunity to be able to spend the time that you did have with Zeke. I hope you find the strength to make it through this very dark time.

 

[kariella]

Firstly, THANK YOU everyone for your overwhelming support and prayers for Zeke, it has been such a heartbreaking experience and we were so appreciative for all of you! We just finished writing up a review/complaint about this breeder, and I wanted to encourage everyone who has had a bad experience with Donna to share Zeke's story along with your own experiences anywhere her name comes up. I plan on sharing Zeke's story EVERYWHERE I can!!! The more people that speak up the better! Maybe we can all make enough noise so she would actually get shut down. Here is the conclusion to Zeke's story.

AVOID THIS SPHYNX CAT BREEDER

I am sharing my experience and Zeke's story in hopes that it may save someone else the heartache and pain myself and my family went through with the painful loss of baby Zeke.

I got Zeke at the end of November 2012, because I fell in love with my brother and his girlfriends' canadian sphynx, Normand. We were all roommates, and thought it would be great for Normand to have a buddy. Zeke was such a sweet little kitten. He was so lively and playful, and always wanted to be around us, he was so loving. Around the end of June 2013, we started noticing Zeke wasn't quite as lively as usual, he had lost some weight, and he felt like he was running a fever. I took him to the vet and they put him on antibiotics, in hopes that it would clear everything up. After about a week being on the antibiotics, Zeke hadn't shown much improvement, and in addition, his belly started to swell up as he continued to lose weight. When I called the vet with these updates, they suggested I bring him in for an ultrasound of his belly. I dropped him off at the vet and received a call later on saying they thought a blood test would be a better option than the ultrasound. After two days, the vet called and delivered the bad news. Zeke had FIP, Feline Infectious peritonitis, which is a mutation of the coronavirus. Cats could have the dormant coronavirus and never get sick, or it could mutate to FIP. Usually mutates to FIP in kittens and older cats because their immune system is weaker than other cats. She informed me that it is fatal and that there are no treatments. She couldn't give me a time frame for how much longer we had with him, she said worst case, 2 weeks, best a few months. The vet kept him on antibiotics to help his immune system fight off any opportunistic infections, since his body was fighting this horrible virus. He had the wet version of the disease, which means that all of his organs were going to fill with fluid and shut down. This news was so devastating. He was such a joy for all of us, and we were all beyond heartbroken that this was happening to him. The vet informed us that it is usually genetic or a result of bad breeding practices, and is most common in catteries. She advised that we inform the breeder immediately as other cats or kittens may be infected, and if this was the case the breeder should cease breeding these cats to avoid another situation like Zeke's.

Zeke came from Sl**kats Cattery in Peabody MA, owned by Donna Di*******. I did not buy Zeke directly from her, but I had previously been in contact with Donna, and my experience with her then was just as frustrating. I wrote Donna an email, informing her what the vet had told me and how broken and upset we all were over this terrible news. Donna's response to my email was very upsetting on many different levels. Her first response to the original email was "I want you to take Zeke here and care for him, for I may be able to save his life" (keep in mind, no treatment, no cure, no progress in 20 years of research with this virus. Also highly contagious, and she wants me to bring him to her cattery) I responded with the information the vet provided about the virus, and asked her what she thought she could do for him that the vets wouldn't be able to. I also expressed that I wanted to spend every moment I could with him if he only had a short time left. We continued to email back and fourth, a total of 9 emails. She asked various questions about his condition and what I was feeding him. She used these correspondents as an opportunity to boast about what a great breeder she was, how knowledgeable she was and how vets and breeders all over the country call her for advice. She also insinuated that I poisoned him, by feeding him a diet with fish in it, as, according to her, cats absolutely can not eat fish. (I fed Zeke Orijen cat food, no grain, all natural, not outsourced, basically the best dry food you can buy) She also, in all 9 emails, did not ONCE say she was sorry, did not offer ONE comforting, or consoling word to me. I informed Donna the day I learned this bad news, July 5th 2013. After this series of emails, I did not hear from her ever again, to check in, to see how he was doing, to see if any of her suggestions worked. NOTHING, not ONE word.

In the following month and a half, I switched Zeke to a raw diet and he showed signs of improvement, his belly shrank down a little, he started to gain some weight back and he was more lively. It was short lived unfortunately, but we were grateful that even for a few weeks he could enjoy us as he used to before he was ill. In the weeks to follow, we watched Zeke deteriorate rapidly right before our eyes. It was the most heartbreaking experience I have ever had to go through. His belly swelled back up and he lost so much weight you could see every bone in his body. He didn't have much of an appetite and didn't really want to move around much. He was just a baby, and it is such a horrible virus and it just was not fair that he was taken from us. We love him so much and we are all so devastated.

Zeke was born on August 14, 2012. He was diagnosed with FIP July 5th 2013. The day after his first birthday, August 15th 2013, I had to have him put down, it broke my heart.

Donna also called and left me a voicemail in July, along with our exchange of emails. In which she was aloof and didn't seem to care at all. She informed me that this was the SECOND cat out of 113 litters to get FIP (The other one wasn't her fault either…) The general statistic for FIP is 1 in every 5,000 cats, Donna's statistic however... if you average 4-6 kitten per litter, lets say 5. So 5 X 113 = 565 kittens average, in her career as a breeder. Out of 565 TWO have had full blown FIP. 1 in every 282 of Donna's cats has FIP, in comparison to 1 in 5,000. WOW. I am writing this in hopes that no one else would every have to go through this horrible and painful experience. If this woman is breeding and selling FIP or coronavirus positive cats, she should be shut down. No one should have to experience what we went through with Zeke. Her cats could have the dormant version of the coronavirus, and when she breeds them, she's passing it down to the kittens, and Zeke's sad story could be a reality for someone else. Based on her behavior, it is quite clear, SHE DOES NOT CARE ABOUT THESE CATS, AND DOES NOT CARE ABOUT THE PEOPLE WHO BUY THEM. The only thing she is concerned about is the money in her bank account.

We posted Zeke's story on sphynxlair.com and the response was overwhelming. We are so appreciative for all the prayers and support. We also got a lot of interesting responses with people expressing their frustrations with their dealings with Donna as well. Many complained she was pushy, rude, unprofessional, condescending, and bullied them if they had any disagreement with her. Based on my interactions with Donna, I would definitely agree with every one of these. I would strongly suggest if you are buying a sphynx kitten, DO NOT BUY FROM THIS BREEDER. If you do, you should be prepared for a potentially horrible outcome with your new kitten, and also be prepared for the headache of dealing with her. If you have already purchased a kitten from Sleekats Cattery, I would suggest you educate yourself on FIP. If anyone has any questions I would be more than happy to answer them, I would also be happy to provide all of the email and voicemail correspondents with Donna, or pictures of Zeke to show the horrible reality of what this disease does. I am opening up my life and Zeke's story, in hopes to deter even one person from purchasing a kitten from this breeder. If she is breeding cats with the coronavirus, she should be shut down, period. I would not wish what we went through on anyone.

Please private message me for more information on this breeder, as I can not post full names and catteries.

 

[Graddydani]

I'm so sorry. I don't know what else to say. I feel you did the right thing with your review. I hope no one else has to go through what you went through. Huge hugs and warm thoughts.

 

[kariella]

Firstly, THANK YOU everyone for your overwhelming support and prayers for Zeke, it has been such a heartbreaking experience and we were so appreciative for all of you! We just finished writing up a review/complaint about this breeder, and I wanted to encourage everyone who has had a bad experience with Donna to share Zeke's story along with your own experiences anywhere her name comes up. I plan on sharing Zeke's story EVERYWHERE I can!!! The more people that speak up the better! Maybe we can all make enough noise so she would actually get shut down. Here is the conclusion to Zeke's story.

AVOID THIS SPHYNX CAT BREEDER

I am sharing my experience and Zeke's story in hopes that it may save someone else the heartache and pain myself and my family went through with the painful loss of baby Zeke.

I got Zeke at the end of November 2012, because I fell in love with my brother and his girlfriends' canadian sphynx, Normand. We were all roommates, and thought it would be great for Normand to have a buddy. Zeke was such a sweet little kitten. He was so lively and playful, and always wanted to be around us, he was so loving. Around the end of June 2013, we started noticing Zeke wasn't quite as lively as usual, he had lost some weight, and he felt like he was running a fever. I took him to the vet and they put him on antibiotics, in hopes that it would clear everything up. After about a week being on the antibiotics, Zeke hadn't shown much improvement, and in addition, his belly started to swell up as he continued to lose weight. When I called the vet with these updates, they suggested I bring him in for an ultrasound of his belly. I dropped him off at the vet and received a call later on saying they thought a blood test would be a better option than the ultrasound. After two days, the vet called and delivered the bad news. Zeke had FIP, Feline Infectious peritonitis, which is a mutation of the coronavirus. Cats could have the dormant coronavirus and never get sick, or it could mutate to FIP. Usually mutates to FIP in kittens and older cats because their immune system is weaker than other cats. She informed me that it is fatal and that there are no treatments. She couldn't give me a time frame for how much longer we had with him, she said worst case, 2 weeks, best a few months. The vet kept him on antibiotics to help his immune system fight off any opportunistic infections, since his body was fighting this horrible virus. He had the wet version of the disease, which means that all of his organs were going to fill with fluid and shut down. This news was so devastating. He was such a joy for all of us, and we were all beyond heartbroken that this was happening to him. The vet informed us that it is usually genetic or a result of bad breeding practices, and is most common in catteries. She advised that we inform the breeder immediately as other cats or kittens may be infected, and if this was the case the breeder should cease breeding these cats to avoid another situation like Zeke's.

Zeke came from Sl**kats Cattery in Peabody MA, owned by Donna Di********. I did not buy Zeke directly from her, but I had previously been in contact with Donna, and my experience with her then was just as frustrating. I wrote Donna an email, informing her what the vet had told me and how broken and upset we all were over this terrible news. Donna's response to my email was very upsetting on many different levels. Her first response to the original email was "I want you to take Zeke here and care for him, for I may be able to save his life" (keep in mind, no treatment, no cure, no progress in 20 years of research with this virus. Also highly contagious, and she wants me to bring him to her cattery) I responded with the information the vet provided about the virus, and asked her what she thought she could do for him that the vets wouldn't be able to. I also expressed that I wanted to spend every moment I could with him if he only had a short time left. We continued to email back and fourth, a total of 9 emails. She asked various questions about his condition and what I was feeding him. She used these correspondents as an opportunity to boast about what a great breeder she was, how knowledgeable she was and how vets and breeders all over the country call her for advice. She also insinuated that I poisoned him, by feeding him a diet with fish in it, as, according to her, cats absolutely can not eat fish. (I fed Zeke Orijen cat food, no grain, all natural, not outsourced, basically the best dry food you can buy) She also, in all 9 emails, did not ONCE say she was sorry, did not offer ONE comforting, or consoling word to me. I informed Donna the day I learned this bad news, July 5th 2013. After this series of emails, I did not hear from her ever again, to check in, to see how he was doing, to see if any of her suggestions worked. NOTHING, not ONE word.

In the following month and a half, I switched Zeke to a raw diet and he showed signs of improvement, his belly shrank down a little, he started to gain some weight back and he was more lively. It was short lived unfortunately, but we were grateful that even for a few weeks he could enjoy us as he used to before he was ill. In the weeks to follow, we watched Zeke deteriorate rapidly right before our eyes. It was the most heartbreaking experience I have ever had to go through. His belly swelled back up and he lost so much weight you could see every bone in his body. He didn't have much of an appetite and didn't really want to move around much. He was just a baby, and it is such a horrible virus and it just was not fair that he was taken from us. We love him so much and we are all so devastated.

Zeke was born on August 14, 2012. He was diagnosed with FIP July 5th 2013. The day after his first birthday, August 15th 2013, I had to have him put down, it broke my heart.

Donna also called and left me a voicemail in July, along with our exchange of emails. In which she was aloof and didn't seem to care at all. She informed me that this was the SECOND cat out of 113 litters to get FIP (The other one wasn't her fault either…) The general statistic for FIP is 1 in every 5,000 cats, Donna's statistic however... if you average 4-6 kitten per litter, lets say 5. So 5 X 113 = 565 kittens average, in her career as a breeder. Out of 565 TWO have had full blown FIP. 1 in every 282 of Donna's cats has FIP, in comparison to 1 in 5,000. WOW. I am writing this in hopes that no one else would every have to go through this horrible and painful experience. If this woman is breeding and selling FIP or coronavirus positive cats, she should be shut down. No one should have to experience what we went through with Zeke. Her cats could have the dormant version of the coronavirus, and when she breeds them, she's passing it down to the kittens, and Zeke's sad story could be a reality for someone else. Based on her behavior, it is quite clear, SHE DOES NOT CARE ABOUT THESE CATS, AND DOES NOT CARE ABOUT THE PEOPLE WHO BUY THEM. The only thing she is concerned about is the money in her bank account.

We posted Zeke's story on sphynxlair.com and the response was overwhelming. We are so appreciative for all the prayers and support. We also got a lot of interesting responses with people expressing their frustrations with their dealings with Donna as well. Many complained she was pushy, rude, unprofessional, condescending, and bullied them if they had any disagreement with her. Based on my interactions with Donna, I would definitely agree with every one of these. I would strongly suggest if you are buying a sphynx kitten, DO NOT BUY FROM THIS BREEDER. If you do, you should be prepared for a potentially horrible outcome with your new kitten, and also be prepared for the headache of dealing with her. If you have already purchased a kitten from Sleekats Cattery, I would suggest you educate yourself on FIP. If anyone has any questions I would be more than happy to answer them, I would also be happy to provide all of the email and voicemail correspondents with Donna, or pictures of Zeke to show the horrible reality of what this disease does. I am opening up my life and Zeke's story, in hopes to deter even one person from purchasing a kitten from this breeder. If she is breeding cats with the coronavirus, she should be shut down, period. I would not wish what we went through on anyone.

Please private message me for the more information on this breeder, as I can not post full names and catteries.

 

[Emily0404]

So so sorry for your loss. FIP is a cruel disease, my beautiful Nala (a British blue shorthair) was cruelly taken aged 1yr and 1 week old. It is devastating! My breeder was just as aloof when I told her (and we found that at least 2 other kittens she had FIP!) and was insisting it was caught at our home - never mind that all my other cats have always remained absolutely fine and she was a totally indoor cat!
I'm sorry you're going through this big hugs to you