Why do cats get calicivirus? Feline calicivirus is a multiple respiratory infectious disease with high morbidity, but fortunately, the mortality rate of this disease is not high. The disease mainly presents with upper respiratory symptoms, namely depression, serous and mucous rhinorrhea, conjunctivitis, stomatitis, tracheitis, bronchitis, with biphasic fever.

Under natural conditions, only felines are susceptible, and it usually occurs in cats aged 6-84 days. The main source of infection of the disease is sick cats and cats with virus. The former can excrete a large amount of virus with secretions and excreta in the acute stage, contaminate utensils, floors and articles, and can also be directly transmitted to cats. The latter is generally transformed from acute cases. Although the clinical symptoms disappear, it can be detoxified for a long time and is the most important and dangerous source of infection.

Optimal management of feline calicivirus:

· Restoration of dehydration by infusion

· Electrolyte replenishment

· Nutritional support

· NSAID analgesia (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs)

· removal of secretions

· mucolytics if present Purulent secretions

· Interferon

· Oxygen if you have pneumonia

Cats infected with calicivirus are prone to Loss of appetite due to ulcers and nasal congestion can lead to sniffing. If you don't eat for more than 3 days, you may need to force-feed using a tube. In the case of severe stomatitis, broad-spectrum antibiotics, glucocorticoids, immunosuppressants, etc. can be used to prevent secondary infections.

Prevention of feline calicivirus infection

Because it is a non-packaging membrane virus, so it is resistant to disinfection and continues to survive in the environment for a long time. Thorough disinfection is necessary, especially in multi-breeding environments, and to inactivate the virus.

Vaccinations

Vaccines against feline calicivirus are listed as core vaccines for vaccination, regardless of the environment in which they were grown. Vaccines work by reducing symptoms when infected with the virus, never preventing the infection itself or controlling viral shedding after viral infection.

Scheduling of vaccinations

Transfer immunity to calicivirus from mother cats when kittens are born diminishes by about 15 days after birth Half. Although individual differences vary widely, antibody titers are estimated to persist up to 10 to 14 weeks after birth, making it necessary to vaccinate at a time when immunity declines and acquired immunity develops in the body. A common vaccination schedule is a first at 6 to 8 weeks of age, a second at 3 to 4 weeks apart, and a third at 16 to 20 weeks of age when transitional antibodies are sufficiently attenuated. Vaccination after one year.

Disinfection of viruses

Although feline calicivirus cannot survive a day in a dry environment at 37°C, it has been shown to be stable in a dry environment at room temperature. Maintain infection for 21 to 28 days in medium, or 60 days or more in a dry environment at 4°C. That's why it can cause viral respiratory infections as well as herpes virus type I in cold winters. Since the virus can be transmitted from cat to cat through contact with the medium to which the virus is attached, in a polycephalic environment, the virus must be robustly inactivated.

Boil-sterilized small items

To inactivate feline calicivirus with hot water, boil and sterilize at 70°C for 5 minutes and at 100 Sterilize at ℃ for 1 minute. Cats may put things in their mouths, such as cat utensils and toys, and it's best to use hot water instead of medication when sanitizing small things that can fit in a pot.

Facility Chemical Disinfection

An active ingredient must be used when disinfecting feline calicivirus with medication. The concentration should be well maintained to completely inactivate the virus.

Disinfecting clothing and textile products

Bleach containing bleach activators has been reported to have strong virucidal activity. In particular, those containing sodium oxybenzene sulfonate (OBS) and hydroxybenzoic acid (OBC) were found to be effective. Clothes with attached viruses should be washed with a bleach-based cleaner containing the above ingredients, not just water.

Hand sanitizer

If you try to stroke other cats with a virus attached to your fingers, the human will become the virus and spread the infection, so you have to be thorough disinfect. It has been reported that calicivirus can be washed with running water for 15 seconds, reducing the viral load to about 1/100 (0.64%). In addition, removal was increased when using a hand soap containing a surfactant component, and deactivation was facilitated when a hand soap containing an iodine compound (povidone-iodine) was used.

Repeated washing is said to further reduce the number of viruses, so using medicated soaps containing iodine compounds and repeated hand washing, along with rinsing with water, can prevent infection.

Feeding Stress

Cats infected with calicivirus often heal spontaneously and subsequently become carriers of the virus without symptoms. The virus is thought to be lurking in the tonsils, but it cannot be ruled out that it may be hidden by other tissues. It must be noted that the virus recurs due to stress, diseases that lead to immunodeficiency, use of immunosuppressants, aging, malnutrition, etc., and that it is excreted in ocular and nasal secretions and transferred to other cats. This is a little bit of a sometimes first, let's go through the complete indoor rearing. It's also important to improve your indoor environment and help your cat live a stress-free life. Once infected with the virus, cats can become carriers of the virus even if their symptoms disappear. As stress can lead to diseases that lead to immunodeficiency, immunosuppressant administration, aging and nutritional deficiencies, viruses can be rejected and excreted again in the environment.