Will all of the previously departed please welcome Glidden to the Rainbow Bridge?
Glidden, a shy, petite calico has crossed the bridge after a ten day battle with FIP. One of many of our rescue's babies, but like all of them, loved by us as if she were the only one.
May she be welcomed onto the bridge by all of the previously departed.
Until I see you again, sweetheart!
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My calico Harley is greeting her, I'm sure, and my grey mouser Lyle is probably showing her all the best fields to run through across that bridge.
I am so sorry this precious girl has left you. 
We had one we think died of FIP. It was the ugliest death we've experienced. Glidden's suffering is over. Peace to you and yours...
Tigger, Watson, Mozart, Kaylee, Alex, and Isaac will be there to welcome her.
He had been feeling a little "off" for about a month before things skyrocketed out of control. He started with some sneezing and a loss of appetite. His sneezing stopped, but his appetite never really returned throughout his ordeal. Shortly after the sneezing stopped, we noticed a broken blood vessel in his eye and we took him to the ER vet. They ran all kinds of tests and recommended we take him to an animal ophthalmologist. The ophthalmologist is the doctor that suspected FIP due to the uveitis. He developed it in both eyes and eventually went completely blind. She said uveitis was very common in cats who had the dry form of FIP.
The ER vet and the internist we saw at the ER facility had no clue. All they would say was that he had a "raging infection" due to the results of his blood work, and the internist wanted to run addition tests and procedures. When we asked why she wanted to run the additional tests, and what she was looking for, she couldn't really give us an answer. It was like she was grasping for straws and didn't know what else to do. Our regular vet looked at the results of his blood work and he ruled out a bacterial infection.
We were scheduled to have a urinalysis done on a Monday. We saw some improvement on that Sunday...he was hungry and eating! We were so happy and thought that maybe we'd turned the corner and he had actually made progress fighting whatever infection he had. Unfortunately, later that evening he came into the foyer and vomited four huge puddles of blood, mixed with some of the turkey he had eaten earlier that day. We knew it was time to let him go and immediately took him to the ER where we said good-bye before he was euthanized.
His death was by far the most painful one we've dealt with. He had such a sad life. He showed up on our doorstep one day right around Halloween. He came by almost every night for the next couple of weeks. We fed him, gave him fresh water and worked on earning his trust. He used to sit on our patio and listen to the coyotes off in the distance. We also saw him drink out of the pond behind our neighbors' house. When he finally got enough courage to come inside, we steered him into our basement. Once he was inside, we were able to look him over a little better. We discovered a couple of wounds, and that his two front paws were declawed. Poor guy was either lost or had been abandoned and he had no claws to defend himself.
We are still somewhat heartbroken over his story and his death. We loved him for the 2-1/2 years he graced our presence and we're certain he loved us, however, he was dealt a cruel hand in life and deserved better.
We never had confirmation that he had FIP because we chose not to do an autopsy, but whatever he had, it was horrible.
More research is definitely needed. Before Isaac passed away we had an appointment with a cat-only vet about 30 minutes from where we live. We faxed her the results of his blood work and had an appointment to see her the week after he died. When we called to cancel the appointment we talked to a member of her staff for a bit about what we had been through and what transpired the day Isaac died. A couple of weeks later we received notification in the mail from the University of Illinois Veterinary School that the doctor had made a donation in Isaac's name. We were so deeply touched by her kindness that I'm getting all
just typing about it.
Cherish your memories and your photos until you meet again...
I have four cats at the bridge, so far, and they will take Glidden under their paws.
I am grateful to have not heard of FIP before, and I hope that I don't find out what it is. It sounds horrible, and apparently is fatal. I have learned of too many cat problems already.
Keep the memories.
