Yesterday after an ultrasound, the vet diagnosed (as much as they every diagnose anything) interstital nephritis in our wonderful, beautiful 6 yr. old Silver Maine Coon "Gus." He said it was fatal and since Gus had lost so much weight we had him put to sleep. We are beside ourselves to lose him at such a young age and keep looking for answers as to why this happened.

Gus was a perfectly happy, healthy cat until he developed a series of infections last year. First in July, then 2 following a dental cleaning in November. We brought a new MC kitten into the house a couple of weeks following the dental cleaning (from a reputable breeder, we believe) but Gus was never the same. He never wanted to bond with the kitten, was never as playful and began to vomit frequently (which he had never done before.) Eventually, (because he had no other symptoms) our vet put him on Paxil, an antidepressant, and he stopped vomiting and was about 90% his old self. Just 10 days ago we noticed his back legs "collapsed" out from under him and we took him to the emergency clinic where they ran a battery of tests all which were negative (including kidney function.) 2 more visits to vets (who postulated nothing but recommended the ultrasound) and now he is gone. Could this kidney problem have had its roots in the infections he suffered? Could he possibly have contacted FIP from the kitten?? He never had any fever and seemed to have a somewhat depressed immune system starting last July, long before the kitten arrived. The kitten (who is now 1) is extremely healthy and is, in fact, much bigger than Gus ever became already. (14 lbs. versus 11 for Gus.) Oddly enough, when I started calling around to find our 2nd Maine Coon (the kitten we got late last year) I found out that Gus' breeder was out of the business and some other breeders had some "veiled" negatives to say about her and the litters she had produced. Could Gus have had some problem from kittenhood that just surfaced now? Or, is it just one of those pieces of bad luck that sometimes happen and not related to anything that happened before.

I have had cats all of my life, but never one like Gus. He was an amazingly beautiful, sweet, smart animal who never ceased to delight us with his personality. He brought his toys to us all the time (even up 3 flights of steps!) and he was a constant joy. He was my first Maine Coon but now, after this experience, I am afraid to get another for fear the pedigreed cats are more prone to illness. (Or the breeder might hide some problem from me.) My other cats (from the shelter)lived to be 17 & 18 years. I'd like another Maine Coon but can't bear the thought that it may be less likely to be healthy than a "pound cat."

Any thoughts anyone might have would be helpful.

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2000