Colloidal Silver and Coronavirus/FIP

[radicalapical]

Hello all! 

A while ago my then-kitten Cleo was diagnosed with the coronavirus, the precursor to FIP. The vet told me there was nothing I could do, and that this ailment is the bane of her existence. I should just "sit and wait" and hope for Cleo not to develop FIP, but it was inevitable. She just turned 1 this summer and is an otherwise very healthy cat other than her extremely sensitive tummy, but the coronavirus threatens to take her health away at any moment. This is why I need discussion. 

I want to know if any of you have any experience with giving your kitties colloidal silver internally. I know this is a controversial holistic method for me to try, but I want to boost Cleo's immune system and **potentially** ward off the coronavirus as there's no known medical cure for the virus. It's possible for the cat to eventually fight it off and stop shedding it, but picking up the virus from its own litter box is extremely easy, so the coronavirus is considered a lifelong threat. 

A friend of mine has a kitten a bit younger than Cleo, and she was having similar problems: not gaining weight, sickly, but still playful. She took her kitten to the same vet as mine, the best cat vet in the area, and said her kitten had FIP and basically told her she was already dying. Having access to colloidal silver because her mom owns a generator, she figured she had nothing to lose and gave her kitten some that night. It's been months now and her kitten is still healthy and thriving with daily silver supplementation. I told her about Cleo and she is making me a batch of 10ppm silver, and I already bought a small jar from the store of 10ppm colloidal silver. 

I'm not saying this is an end-all-be-all cure for FIP, but I think this may be a valuable avenue for pet owners to explore and if anyone has any experience with colloidal silver, good or bad, or any advice for Cleo I would love to her it! 

Thank you! 

 

[jennyr]

I do not understand your vet at all, he is scaring you for no reason. In fact up to 80% of cats, especially those in colonies, shelters or multi-cat households have the coronavirus that can mutate into FIP. In the vast majority of cases this does not happen, or cats would be dying of FIP all over the place. No-one has yet identified why the virus mutates into FIP, but certainly a weak immune system plays a part. There is some evidence that if a cat is exposed to the active virus in another cat then it may be more likely to develop it, which explains how FIP can run through a litter. Contamination with body fluids like mother's milk, blood or urine may play a part, also stress factors. But no-one knows for sure. I lost three (foster) cats to FIP within a few months, but eight other cats living with those three have been healthy for four years now, though all test positive for the virus. For several months after it happened I gave them Transfer Factor, a supplement made from cow colostrum that boosts immunity, but I do not know if that helped or not - it certainly did no harm.

What I am saying is do not panic. Your friend's cat may be a different case, being already sick. But if your cat is healthy then there is no need to be frightened for her health. Colloidal silver or Transfer Factor or other immune boosters may help, but personally I would not go that route unless you know she has been exposed to the active virus. I am getting dangerously close to giving out medical advice which is forbidden, but really, the best thing to do would be to ask for a second vet opinion and meanwhile do not think your cat will have a necessarily short lifespan.

 

[jcat]

It might be best to find another vet that is better informed or better able to explain diseases properly, because there's nothing "inevitable" about Cleo getting FIP. These links underline what Jenny already posted:
Feline infectious peritonitis

Coronavirus is ubiquitous among cats and infection with the virus is particularly common where large numbers of cats are kept together. It is estimated that 25 to 40 per cent of household pet cats are infected. This infection rate increases to 80 to 100 per cent of cats kept in multi-cat households, rescue and breeding colonies. The virus is spread by the faecal-oral route, that is, the virus is shed in faeces into the environment and cats become infected following ingestion when grooming or eating. Most infected cats shed the virus in faeces for a variable period of time and then stop. The cat can then become re-infected from another cat and start shedding virus again. In contrast, some cats shed virus continuously.

Although coronavirus is the cause of FIP, infection with coronavirus does not mean that the cat will go on to develop FIP. In comparison to the number of cats infected with the virus, the number that develop FIP is very small. It is only when the virus mutates that FIP may develop.

Overview of Feline Infectious Peritonitis

Coronavirus-specific antibodies are present in up to 90% of cats in catteries and in up to 50% of those in single-cat households. However, only about 5% of FCoV-infected cats develop FIP in a cattery environment.

 

[maewkaew]

 I agree with jennyranson.    I don't know why your vet is terrifying people like this.    MOST cats have been exposed to the feline coronavirus,  and in most cases it is just  sort of like us having a rather mild case of the flu.  It's only a very small percent of cats who test positive for feline coronavirus that have it mutate in them to the deadly FIP form of the virus.   

Things that help strengthen the immune system may help in general.       but I don't know about using colloidal silver internally in cats -- what strength might be safe and over what period.     

  but I would recommend you talk to a holistic vet who is very knowledgeable about FIP.   

and I wouldn't do anything drastic just because your cat has been exposed to FCoV .  

 Unfortunately there seem to still be a lot of vets who are abysmally uninformed about it and tell people misinformation which has even led people to euthanize cats that probably would have been fine. 

The reason it can run through litters is probably a combination of genetics and exposure to the same sort stressors,   not just exposure to FCoV.  

 

[kittkatt]

I agree with the others: I think you should seek another vet's opinion.

I'm certainly no expert when it comes to many cat diseases, etc., but I can tell you that I have 5 cats right now that have the dry form of FIP and they are all being treated with Interferon and are all doing well on it. I also put L-Lysine in their water to help boost their immune system. I don't know anything about Colloidal Silver so I can't help you there, but I would suggest contacting another vet who knows more about the whole FIP thing.

 

[white shadow]

Hi radicalapical and welcome to TCS!

I have two suggestions for you:

1. Get yourself 'hooked up' to the specialized online FIP info/support group - the best answers to treatment questions are sure to come from people who have been focusing on this issue for the past 11 years. It's a private group that uses email as its operating platform - I advise getting a new separate email address (Yahoo) first - that will make info management easier for you. You will find the group here: FIP Cat Support * Support and Info for Owners of FIP Cats
2. Find yourself a competent feline Vet ASAP! Here's a suggestion on that: the online group may well have lists of Vets who have demonstrated knowledge, interest and passion in the treatment of these kitties - many similarly-single-focused groups do just that, so finding one of those in your area should probably be one of your first questions to the group. Failing that, a feline-only practice or a Vet who is a member of the AAFP would be a good starting point - AAFP members can be found here: Find a Feline Practitioner (don't check the "Show me only Cat Friendly Practices" box)

IF there has been evidence that Colloidal Silver has some benefit - or risk - these people will certainly know. I wouldn't be using it before first putting the question to them.

There is much ongoing research into FIP - ten days ago news about some of that appeared here in this thread: Good News Regarding FIP Research

Hope that helps!

 

[dewitch]

I have no idea why some members are "warning you against" the use of colloidal silver.  
I have been putting put a little bit in the water dishes of my pups and my kitties a few times a week for a few years now, also take it myself and I am never ill.  
It certainly can't hurt them and very well may protect them from harmful things they might come in contact with.  
Colloidal silver is one of the ONLY things that can actually cure the dreaded MRSA.

Best plan is to read up on it and a site called The Silver Edge has much helpful and interesting info.

 

[mosimom]

I give my cat colloidal silver daily. Totally safe! It tastes like distiller water. I have given a teaspoon at a time 3 times a day to my cat. It has cleared up lung inflammation faster than antibiotics. As a daily routine, i spray it in my hand and my cat licks it off. She has the whitest teeth!
The blue man prepared his homemade colloidal silver with a salt and drank a quart a day at least...thus the blue tinge.
There are no side effects unless you have a silver allergy ( which is rare).
I use Utopia silver and home brewed silver bought from etsy. I will always stock it in my home.

 

[denice]

I just skimmed through this old thread.  What I got wasn't so much a warning about colloidal silver but more questioning the vet's knowledge about FIP.  It is true that FIP is a mutation of the Coronavirus so a kitty that has never been exposed to the Coronavirus can't have FIP.  The coronavirus is very common,  many kitties have had it or been exposed and the vast majority will not develop FIP.

 

[dewitch]

I took these as possible warnings against the use of Colloidal Silver - 
"Colloidal silver or Transfer Factor or other immune boosters may help, but personally I would not go that route unless you know she has been exposed to the active virus"
"IF there has been evidence that Colloidal Silver has some benefit - or risk - these people will certainly know. I wouldn't be using it before first putting the question to them."
My dogs and cats have been dosed with it a few times a week (more often when needed) for a few years now and they are healthy and fine.  I take it myself everyday.
Have used it to cure nail fungus, use it in their ears if they get itchy or smelly, use it for runny eyes.  I use it in my own eyes when they are irritated.  
I have not had one cold or other illness since I started taking it.
I would never warn people not to use it but people who know nothing about it or don't bother to check it out just might do that..