Calicivirus, Worried Sick

[Sister midnight]

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I have just rehomed the most beautiful little boy approx 3 years of age from the RSPCA. His previous owner sadly had to go into a home. I tried to choose a cat with no dental problems at present as i lost my beloved Elmo in May after having dentistry. I took Luca for full check up and he has gingivitis .My heart dropped and i phoned the vet that he was with at RSPCA and he had it then and a scale and polish was done..so that was only 4 month ago. He has just had tests for calicivirus and two vets and RSPCA asked will i want to return him if its positive!! Omg..i love this little guy and although RSPCA may help out with bills i am in bits. Luca pooed in his carrier on way to vets as so nervous, its traumatic to keep taking him. Vet said she had seen 3 cases, 2 had continual treatment other had a mouth so badly ulcerated even after full tooth extraction so had to be pts at young age. Please anyone had similar or positive slant as worried sick

 

[silkenpaw]

I’m confused. Does your cat have calicivirus, too, in addition to the gingivitis? If so, I imagine the gingivitis will go away once the cat gets over the virus.

I am sure there are all sorts of causes for gingivitis that doesn’t go away with cleaning. Talk to the vet to find out the work up recommended. In the meanwhile, maybe you can start getting Luca used to getting his teeth brushed.

 

[Sister midnight]

Apparently calicivirus is often the cause in cats who have healthy teeth but gingivitis. Vet told me about the 3 cases she had seen, and the vet he saw when with RSPCA also said it was suspect and that's why they have paid for the test. He won't let me near his teeth so give him logic gel to lick and he won't drink water with dental additive sadly. Only had him just over a fortnight

 

[neely]

Welcome to TCS although I'm sorry Luca is having health problems concerning the possibility of calicivirus. I thought this thread might give you some additional information about it:
Question Over Calicivirus.

And this Article which discusses gingivitis in cats may also be helpful:
Gingivitis And Stomatitis In Cats

Thank you for rescuing Luca and trying to place him in a new home. Fingers crossed for him, please keep us updated on his progress.

 

[Sister midnight]

Thank you. I'm just wondering if anyone has personal experience with this in a cat with mouth problems

 

[MissMoxieFoxie]

Thank you. I'm just wondering if anyone has personal experience with this in a cat with mouth problems

I am having the same issue with my cat Luca, too! I would love to keep in contact and bounce ideas with each other. Luca may or may not have had the calivirius as well. He had ulcers in his mouth and throat. 6 months later ulcers are gone but teeth issues remain.

 

[Sister midnight]

Oh really! Can't believe they have the same name .
How old is he, and what did you use to treat the ulcers? Were the vets optimistic? Yes we need to keep in contact

 

[Sister midnight]

Just read your post with more detail on. Well if this vet is a dental specialist saying Luca only has gingivitis can't be right when he has sores and past ulcers. If his lymph glands are that big he's fighting something else surely? I'm a massive worrier and dont trust vets. Are you in US, im in the UK?

 

[MissMoxieFoxie]

Oh really! Can't believe they have the same name .
How old is he, and what did you use to treat the ulcers? Were the vets optimistic? Yes we need to keep in contact

When I read that they shared the same name with the same problem I could hardly believe it. My Luca Lou is 2 years old. My vet prescribed Mirtazpine 15mg. I was told it would help coat his ulcers and stimulate his appetite. It worked he started eating and seemed more comfortable. We gave it to him 2 a day for almost 2 months. He was also given a Depo-medrol shot and a convenia shot. This all took place from January to mid May. It took him months to recover. He appears to no longer have ulcers but now his chin is swollen and full of sores. I have seen 3 vets now but no gives me a defiant answer.

 

[MissMoxieFoxie]

Just read your post with more detail on. Well if this vet is a dental specialist saying Luca only has gingivitis can't be right when he has sores and past ulcers. If his lymph glands are that big he's fighting something else surely? I'm a massive worrier and dont trust vets. Are you in US, im in the UK?

I'm located in the US. That's how I feel! I feel like something wrong but no one has answers. I'm hoping once the dental cleaning done he will start feeling better.

 

[Sister midnight]

Yes hopefully. If not I'd try contact a feline specialist. I have no faith in vets sadly. I get lucas results in 7 to 10 days. They also did gingivitis swab.

 

[MissMoxieFoxie]

How frustrating, hang in there. How's Luca doing?

They didn't even do a swab for my Luca. I'm going to ask now. :/

 

[CJM]

Hi, one of my cats (now aged 11) has been dealing with FCV for 5 years. It's a very difficult thing to treat but we've persevered with various treatments and finally his mouth is showing a huge improvement. First of all he had most of his teeth removed from the affected gum areas, but that didn't help. So then we moved on to Interferon which didn't help either. Then we moved on to steroids but those didn't suit him at all and changed his personality. I did some internet research and discovered that the drug Cyclosporine (branded Atopica here in the UK) could also be used as an FCV treatment and my vet agreed to try it. It's mainly used for dermatitis but after a year of a daily dose and 2 years of a 3 x weekly dose, his gums are now almost back to normal. Hope this info helps you and Luca.

 

[Sister midnight]

How did it start in your cat start with it. My luca has no symptoms, vet noticed gingivitid on routine check. I guess if fvc is present it just gets worse? This is his mouth now.

 

[Sister midnight]

Ps sorry about the spelling i was on the bus. It's meant to say how did it start when your cat got fcv

 

[Sister midnight]

How frustrating, hang in there. How's Luca doing?

They didn't even do a swab for my Luca. I'm going to ask now. :/

 

[Sister midnight]

Luca shows no symptoms..just seen at vets. Have you managed to get swabs done?

 

[MissMoxieFoxie]

How did it start in your cat start with it. My luca has no symptoms, vet noticed gingivitid on routine check. I guess if fvc is present it just gets worse? This is his mouth now.View attachment 241261

Honestly, it was because he stopped talking to me... I thought was strange and noticed him sleeping more than usual and his furr looked pleated. Prior too, there had been a lot of half chewed food and he wasn't finishing his meals. It was hard to notice at the time because our other cat is a glutton. He drank tons of water too. We have 72oz pet fountain and it was becoming half empty on the daily. The vet thought the chill water must have soothed his throat. When he finally did meow we knew something was very wrong. He sound like he had a deep crackly meow which very unusual because his meow are rolling and high pitched.

Current picture of my Luca's mouth. His bottom lip/chin are very sore and swollen but that red line goes all the way back top and bottom.

 

[Sister midnight]

Funny but lucas fur looks pleated at times. Mouths look similar? We think luca may have some siamese in him with his pointy snout and big ears

 

[MissMoxieFoxie]

Aw can I see a pic?

Got some more news from the vet. He is concerned that his lymph nodes haven't gone down from the Clindrops so he switching to clavamax to see if it helps. He moved his apointment for teeth cleaning up to next week and now wants to take a lymph node sample... with his lymph nodes still swollen they are concerned about cancer. I'll keep you updated. It disheartening but I'm going to stay optimistic. We are switching food bowls to see if it helps and hoping it just allergies.