Around 8,000 clinical FIP cases this year in Cyprus, veterinary association says

Around 8,000 clinical cases of feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) were recorded from January until the first fortnight of July 2023, the pancyprian veterinary association (PVA) said on Tuesday, describing statements about 300,000 cat deaths reported by foreign and local media, as “baseless” and not a reflection of reality.

The PVA added that it has been monitoring the situation of FIP from the beginning and notes that this particular condition concerns only felines and is not transmitted to humans.

It said that, the first “significant spike” in cases was recorded in January 2023 and that cases continued to rise until April 2023, while since then, there has been a stabilising trend.

Specifically, in a questionnaire they prepared for the purpose of a second recording of cases (the first was for the first quarter of 2023), which concerned the period between January and the first fortnight of July 2023, and in which 32 veterinary clinics participated all over Cyprus, 1,500 clinical cases of FIP were recorded, “which, based on the total number of veterinary clinics in all of Cyprus, translates into approximately 8,000 clinical cases of FIP from January to the first fortnight of July 2023”.

This number, says the PVA, was indeed increased compared to previous years, noting that around 2,800 clinical cases were recorded in 2022, and 1,350 in 2021.

Based on the above, it said, statements about 300,000 cat deaths, reported by foreign and local media, were “baseless, based on speculation and do not represent reality”. The association called on all stakeholders, when making statements that could significantly impact Cyprus’ image abroad, “to be doubly careful and, in any case, to be able, beyond any reasonable doubt, to back what they say”.

The PVA also expressed hope that through close cooperation with the state veterinary services and the agriculture ministry, it will be possible to find additional treatment solutions to deal with the disease.