Steve
Savannah Super Cat
As some of you know our pair of F2 siblings were having urinary problems. After several trips to the vet, the kittens were diagnosed with feline idiopathic cystitis. A fancy way of saying the cat has urinary problem and we don't know why.
The most perplexing thing was after doing tons of internet research we learned that FIC shows up in only 1% of cats and we had 2 out of 3 in the litter that were having issues.
At one point we were on the cusp of returning these kittens to the breeder on the recommendation of one of the vets citing probable genetic issues however after 2 weeks in our care we were willing to do a lot to keep our babies.
One of the leading theories of the cause of FIC is stress and the new environment. We dismissed this initially because of our isolation method, the fact that we kept the brothers together and they showed no external signs. It was then suggested by the breeders vet that they WERE stressed. That because we have so many other outside cats and we live in the country and we have dogs and goats and racoons come to the porch and probably a fox or 2. They were stressed about what they were smelling! This made more sense than anything else so on recommendation we put them back in isolation, one room with a Feliway device and after a week of total isolation, except for us bonding with them, we see a HUGE improvement! Definitely turned the corner!
The main thing with this post is to emphasize the fact that no matter how much we love our vets there is always another opinion and so many ideas out there that even experienced animal people like ourselves learn.
The most perplexing thing was after doing tons of internet research we learned that FIC shows up in only 1% of cats and we had 2 out of 3 in the litter that were having issues.
At one point we were on the cusp of returning these kittens to the breeder on the recommendation of one of the vets citing probable genetic issues however after 2 weeks in our care we were willing to do a lot to keep our babies.
One of the leading theories of the cause of FIC is stress and the new environment. We dismissed this initially because of our isolation method, the fact that we kept the brothers together and they showed no external signs. It was then suggested by the breeders vet that they WERE stressed. That because we have so many other outside cats and we live in the country and we have dogs and goats and racoons come to the porch and probably a fox or 2. They were stressed about what they were smelling! This made more sense than anything else so on recommendation we put them back in isolation, one room with a Feliway device and after a week of total isolation, except for us bonding with them, we see a HUGE improvement! Definitely turned the corner!
The main thing with this post is to emphasize the fact that no matter how much we love our vets there is always another opinion and so many ideas out there that even experienced animal people like ourselves learn.
