FELINE DISTEMPER

Feline distemper, also called feline panleukopenia, cat plague, cat fever, feline agranulocytosis, and feline infectious enteritis, is an acute, highly infectious viral disease affecting members of the Felidae,Procyonidae and Mustelidae.

Transmission
Feline distemper virus is shed in all body secretions and excretions of affected animals. Recovered animals may shed virus for months.

Feline distemper virus affects all rapidly dividing cells including : 

• Cells of the intestinal mucosa
• Cells of bone marrow
• Cells of reticulo-endothelial system

The route of infection is : 

• Fleas and other insects, especially flies, may play a role in transmission of the disease.
• Either inhalation or ingestion of infective material by a susceptible host.

Clinical signs of feline distemper
Feline distemper usually begins suddenly with a high fever and is followed by : 

• Depression
• Vomiting
• Anorexia
• Diarrhea
• Profound leucopenia

In a wild animal, feline distemper may progress as described above or the disease may be characterized by an encephalitis syndrome with : 

• Central nervous system disturbances
• Convulsions
• Ataxia

These signs rapidly lead to severe dehydration and some animals may die peracutely at this stage with a minimum of gross lesions.

Pathologi 
The pathological lesions of feline distemper are found primarily in : 

• The bone marrow 
• Small intestine 

Necropsy findings include :

• An empty intestinal tract 
• Hemorrhagic small intestine 
• Hemorrhagic and edematous mesenteric lymph nodes 
• A fluid-like appearance of the bone marrow of the long bones 

Diagnosis

A presumptive diagnosis can be made based on :

• Necropsy findings and
• The demonstration of leukopenia with a marked absence of granulocytes on differential blood cell count.

Definitive diagnosis is based on :

Histological examination andLaboratory analysis of affected tissues.

Treatment and Control
No treatment other than supportive care and prevention of secondary bacterial infection exists for feline distemper. There is no means of control in wildlife populations other than the vaccination of susceptible domestic species to decrease the number of potential hosts. 

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