Two years on from the outbreak of the rare illness, we find out what it was like owning a cat who got the disease.
In 2021, an outbreak of a rare disease was killing cats and causing fear among all owners. Pancytopenia sees cats have very low levels of white and red blood cells which can lead to anaemia and serious infections. The prognosis for cats diagnosed with the disease was bleak. Worst of all, no one knew what was causing the outbreak in cats.
Two years on and a recent investigation found that contaminated food was likely to have caused the outbreak. Over 350 cats are known to have died with a mortality rate of over 63 per cent. Here, we speak to an owner about what it was like having a cat who got pancytopenia — and thankfully beat it.
SIRI’S STRUGGLES
Sirius Black, affectionately known as Siri, owned by Jennifer Shields, was one of the cats being fed one of the foods thought to be affected. On the evening of 14 July, one of Jennifer’s daughters noticed that Siri’s eye was a bit cloudy but by the morning a bigger shock awaited them. His eyes were swollen like cherries and were full of blood. He lost the ability to see and was very unsteady and bumping into things.
He was rushed to The Village Vets in Hatfield where he saw vet Christina Frigast. Both his eyes were completely filled with blood so he was virtually blind. There was raised intraocular pressure in his eyes and he had a temperature. He was very weak as he was bleeding so much. He was admitted and put on a drip, although even inserting a catheter was a challenge in itself as his blood was not clotting due to low platelets. His veins were blowing and even subcutaneous injections caused hematoma formation.
Blood tests revealed his platelets were virtually non-existent, he was anaemic, and his white blood cells were high. Siri had an ultrasound as there was concern that there may be internal bleeding — thankfully, this was not the case but the scan would need to be repeated.
It was at this stage that pancytopenia was mentioned to Jennifer. There was no cure and even with vet care, the odds were stacked against a good outcome.
Jennifer said: “I could not believe what I was hearing. Siri hadn’t even reached his first birthday and now I didn’t know if he would make it.”
Christina recommended a referral to the Royal Veterinary College (RVC) to get the best prognosis but with limited insurance cover it was agreed that his local vet's would look after him during the day and run any tests and prescribe any medication that was required. Siri woul
