Nibs is not long for this world :(

All signs are currently pointing to the fact that our cat Nibs has Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP). There is no known cure for FIP, and the mortality rate is 100% which means that Nibs will be dead in the next month or two :(

About a month ago, Nibs was having some diarrhea, so we took him to the Vet, to get some medication, which did the trick. His diarrhea went away, but then a few weeks later his energy level really started to drop. He no longer played with his toys, he stopped climbing on things and wouldn't run around the apartment any more. He mostly laid around and slept all day. I know that's what cats do... but not this much. At least not in a young cat like Nibs.

We took him back to the Vet and they did a bunch of tests, all of which were inconclusive. Nibs started hunching (like he is in the photo above) which I guess is an indication that he is in pain. He pretty much does this all the time now, and he has lost about a quarter of his body weight. He eats less and less of his food each day.

We took him to another Vet for one last-ditch attempt to find out what was wrong, by doing an ultrasound. They found a bunch of liquid in his stomach area, which I guess is one of the various indicators that point to FIP. They also ran some other tests which so far have all come back positive, so we're pretty sure that's what this is. After reading a bunch of articles on FIP, it seems like Nibs must have contracted it back when he was living on the street (or wherever he used to live), or when he was at the pound. He's had it all along, it's only reared its ugly head now.

It's difficult to know when is the right time to put him out of his misery, since he is essentially wasting away in front of us. With no hope for a cure, it's a pretty sad situation. :(

I'm not sure what else to say, except that it has been a hard year for Sanders-Longstreth pets! Claire and I both love Nibs a lot and we were hoping we'd have him in our lives for many years to come. He was a sweet, energetic, affectionate cat and it's sad to think that we won't even get to spend a year with him before he's gone. I guess this stuff happens...