2023-07-21 19:50:27
According to specialists, the feline population, made up for the most part of stray cats, would exceed the number of inhabitants on the island, estimated at just over a million.
Cyprus and cats is an old story: the bones of one of these animals discovered near human remains in a burial site more than 9,000 years old are the oldest proof of its domestication in the world.
Dinos Ayiomamitis, president of ‘Cats PAWS Cyprus’ and vice-president of ‘Cyprus voice for Animals’ (CVA), estimates that at least 300,000 cats have already died of the disease in six months.
“The colony is doing well, but we are worried, because if only one is infected, the others will be too”
For twenty-five years, he has been feeding around sixty felines in a cemetery in Nicosia. “The colony is doing well, but we are worried, because if only one is infected, the others will be too”confides this 70-year-old retiree, near cats that hop on the marble of the tombs.
FIP affects several major cities in Cyprus, a member country of the European Union which has been divided since the invasion of the northern part by Turkey in 1974.
This epizootic would also affect neighboring countries such as Lebanon, Israel and Turkey, but for lack of studies, ” Nothing can confirm it “says Demetris Epaminondas, vice-president of the Panchypriot Veterinary Association, which brings together professionals in the sector on the island.
Officially, only 107 cases have been identified in the southern part of the island, Cypriot-Greek, according to the veterinary services of the Ministry of Agriculture. A number that does not reflect reality, with several practitioners testifying to the difficulty in diagnosing the disease and a lack of resources to do so.
Especially since when cats are sick, they usually isolate themselves and die alone. Several people feeding cats have confided that they disappear and that very few corpses are discovered.
To stem this epidemic, two options were considered: the use of a drug approved for human coronavirus in India, molnupiravir, and a veterinary antiviral drug approved in England, called “GS-441524”. Only the import of GS has been authorized in Cyprus, but it is subject to restrictions, not to mention the prohibitive price of the treatment which can vary from 3,000 to 7,000 euros per cat. Result: there is no stock of medicines on the island.
Some then have to resort to clandestine methods. “We buy our drugs on the black market online, or on Facebook groups. We keep our suppliers secret so that we can continue to care for our animals”says a Cypriot on condition of anonymity, fearing to have trouble.
For weeks, Mr. Epaminondas has been trying to obtain government authorization for molnupiravir, a treatment that would cost around 200 euros per cat.
The Ministry of Agriculture assured to examine “Possible ways to deal with the issue” via “various therapeutic preparations available on the European Union market”.
Vasiliki Mani, a 38-year-old Cypriot member of several animal rights associations, believes that animals in Cyprus are treated with “negligence and cruelty”. If the PIF continues to mutate, “Cat Island” will become “island of dead cats”she warns.
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