Feline panleukopenia, also known as feline infectious enteritis or feline parvoviral disease, is an acute, severe and highly contagious disease primarily of kittens and unvaccinated older cats. Feline panleukopenia has also been referred to as feline distemper, although the causative organism is not related to the virus that causes distemper in dogs. FPL affects all body tissues containing rapidly dividing cells, especially those in the digestive tract. It is caused by the feline parvovirus and
At one time, parvoviral infection in companion cats was very common. With the development of effective vaccines, this disease is now fairly uncommon in the United States. Unfortunately, it still crops up in kittens and unvaccinated adult cats, especially those kept in crowded, unsanitary living conditions.Affected cats may show no clinical signs of infection. When present, signs of infection tend to be similar to those seen in dogs with “parvo” and develop roughly 2 to
Feline panleukopenia, also known as feline infectious enteritis or feline parvoviral disease, is not especially easy to diagnose. However, in most cases, information from physical examination, history, clinical signs and routine in-clinic blood tests can be used to arrive at a presumptive diagnosis.The feline parvovirus has a particular affinity for attacking a cat’s white blood cells (leukocytes), which are essential components of the immune system. As a result, blood samples from infected cats frequently show
Feline panleukopenia is a serious, highly contagious parvoviral infection of cats. There is no cure for FPL - that is, there is no way to effectively eliminate the virus from circulation once a cat is infected. However, supportive and management protocols are available to increase affected cats’ chances of survival and improve the quality of their lives. The primary effects of feline panleukopenia - vomiting, diarrhea, dehydration, depression and dangerous secondary bacterial infections - will