By Amelie Fairweather, Lena Ingalls and Asher Davidson, Junior Reporters

“So what’s the story?” Amelie asks.

“We just moved into a new house in Charlotte from Brooklyn, New York, where we weren’t allowed to have pets. My parents got me a puppy and two kittens. I was really happy. And then one of my cats, Marmalade, got sick.” Ash says. “So, Mr. Marmalade was a really good kitten. We found out he had an infection, and so we gave him antibiotics and then we took him to the vet and we found out he had cat covid. Nothing like covid-19, but it’s a type of coronavirus,” Ash explains.

Here is Marmalade before cat covid. Courtesy photo.

“What are his symptoms?” Amelie questions.

“Low energy, hard to breathe, not eating enough…” Ash says. “He was and still is gloomy and sad, meowing, he tries to play with his brother Orion, but Orion was very energetic and was wrestling with him. And Marmalade didn’t like it, and because Orion is a very scared cat, all I had to do was shoo him off,” Ash adds.

“Is there a treatment?” Amelie asks.

“So, only a little bit ago there wasn’t a treatment, and if cats got it, they were normally dead. But luckily, now there is a treatment, the vet said there isn’t a cure legally in the U.S. but you can get the medicine in other countries. So my dad did that, believe it or not,” he explains.

“Are you worried?” Amelie wonders.

“Very, I feel very sad for him and can’t wait for him to be better,” Ash finishes.

Cat covid, also known as FIP (feline infectious peritonitis), is a worldwide disease commonly spread through domestic cats. It tends to attack the cells of the intestinal wall and can cause severe illness and most likely death. Symptoms include shortness of breath, lack of hunger, and depression, at worst, blindness, seizures and death.