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HealthQuiet 9d · day 12

Investigation traces the black market that saved cats dying of FIP

Reveal and Mother Jones detail how cat owners built an underground drug pipeline for a fatal feline disease before advocates pushed for legal access.

newest coverage 9d agosummary written 10d ago5 pieces206 likes & upvotes2 comments NewswiresMastodonBluesky

What to know

  • Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) is described as a disease that kills nearly all cats that contract it once symptomatic.
  • An effective drug existed but was not legally available, pushing desperate owners toward an underground, internationally coordinated black market, often organized via Facebook groups.
  • Veterinarians reportedly steered owners toward these illegal sources informally, since clinics could offer no approved treatment.
  • The investigation, from Reveal and the Hyperfixed podcast via Mother Jones, also covers advocacy efforts by cat owners to secure legal access and make the black market unnecessary.

Marlena Arjo Cat owner featured in the investigationReveal (Center for Investigative Reporting) Producer of the investigation, with Hyperfixed podcastMother JonesMother Jones Publishing partner

Investigation traces the black market that saved cats dying of FIP
motherjones.com

How it unfolded 2 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlesposts

Peak 2 pieces in 3h at Sep 12, 2 AM; 5 pieces over 12 days (1 article · 4 posts) Sep 12, 2 AM — 2 pieces · 1 article · 1 post — Newswires 1, Mastodon 1Sep 12, 5 AM — quietSep 12, 8 AM — quietSep 12, 11 AM — quietSep 12, 2 PM — quietSep 12, 5 PM — quietSep 12, 8 PM — quietSep 12, 11 PM — quietSep 13, 2 AM — quietSep 13, 5 AM — quietSep 13, 8 AM — quietSep 13, 11 AM — quietSep 13, 2 PM — quietSep 13, 5 PM — 2 pieces · 2 posts — Bluesky 1, Mastodon 1Sep 13, 8 PM — quietSep 13, 11 PM — quietSep 14, 2 AM — quietSep 14, 5 AM — quietSep 14, 8 AM — quietSep 14, 11 AM — quietSep 14, 2 PM — quietSep 14, 5 PM — quietSep 14, 8 PM — quietSep 14, 11 PM — quietSep 15, 2 AM — quietSep 15, 5 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Sep 15, 8 AM — quietSep 15, 11 AM — quietSep 15, 2 PM — quietSep 15, 5 PM — quietSep 15, 8 PM — quietSep 15, 11 PM — quietSep 16, 2 AM — quietSep 16, 5 AM — quietSep 16, 8 AM — quietSep 16, 11 AM — quietSep 16, 2 PM — quietSep 16, 5 PM — quietSep 16, 8 PM — quietSep 16, 11 PM — quietSep 17, 2 AM — quietSep 17, 5 AM — quietSep 17, 8 AM — quietSep 17, 11 AM — quietSep 17, 2 PM — quietSep 17, 5 PM — quietSep 17, 8 PM — quietSep 17, 11 PM — quietSep 18, 2 AM — quietSep 18, 5 AM — quietSep 18, 8 AM — quietSep 18, 11 AM — quietSep 18, 2 PM — quietSep 18, 5 PM — quietSep 18, 8 PM — quietSep 18, 11 PM — quietSep 19, 2 AM — quietSep 19, 5 AM — quietSep 19, 8 AM — quietSep 19, 11 AM — quietSep 19, 2 PM — quietSep 19, 5 PM — quietSep 19, 8 PM — quietSep 19, 11 PM — quietSep 20, 2 AM — quietSep 20, 5 AM — quietSep 20, 8 AM — quietSep 20, 11 AM — quietSep 20, 2 PM — quietSep 20, 5 PM — quietSep 20, 8 PM — quietSep 20, 11 PM — quietSep 21, 2 AM — quietSep 21, 5 AM — quietSep 21, 8 AM — quietSep 21, 11 AM — quietSep 21, 2 PM — quietSep 21, 5 PM — quietSep 21, 8 PM — quietSep 21, 11 PM — quietSep 22, 2 AM — quietSep 22, 5 AM — quietSep 22, 8 AM — quietSep 22, 11 AM — quietSep 22, 2 PM — quietSep 22, 5 PM — quietSep 22, 8 PM — quietSep 22, 11 PM — quietYesterday, 2 AM — quietYesterday, 5 AM — quietYesterday, 8 AM — quietYesterday, 11 AM — quietYesterday, 2 PM — quietYesterday, 5 PM — quietYesterday, 8 PM — quietYesterday, 11 PM — quietToday, 2 AM — quietToday, 5 AM — quiet 12
Sep 13Sep 14Sep 15Sep 16Sep 17Sep 18Sep 19Sep 20Sep 21Sep 22now · 7:48 AM ET
  1. 2

    Mother Jones resurfaces the investigation on social platforms

    Mother Jones reshared the Reveal/Hyperfixed investigation on Bluesky and Threads, framing it as reporting from "friends at" Reveal News.

    “A fatal cat disease was finally cured, but the treatment wasn’t legally available. So a group of cat lovers created an international black market.”
    — Mother Jones, Publisher · source
    • motherjones.com

      A fatal cat disease was finally cured, but the treatment wasn’t legally available. So a group of cat lovers created an international black market. The latest from our friends at @revealnews.org:

      motherjones.comBluesky10d ago206▲view on Bluesky ↗
    1 more of the top 2 · 3 posts in this stretch

    • In their latest episode, our friends at Reveal tell the story of a cat drug black market, why it was even necessary, and how cat lovers fought for big changes to make the black market obsolete. Listen now:

      motherjonesmag@threads.netMastodon9d agoview on Mastodon ↗
    all of them →
  2. 1 day quiet
  3. 1

    Reveal and Mother Jones publish the black-market investigation

    Reveal, in partnership with the Hyperfixed podcast, published "The Black Market for a Lifesaving Cat Drug," detailing why the market emerged and how cat owners later pushed for changes to make it obsolete.

    1. 1 outlet The Black Market for a Lifesaving Cat Drug

      first by Mother Jones, 12d ago

  4. background

    Vet quietly points Arjo to an underground drug source — A veterinarian told Arjo, off the record, that an effective treatment existed but was not legally available, directing her to a Facebook group instead.

  5. background

    Otto is diagnosed with fatal feline disease FIP — Months after adoption, Otto stopped eating and was diagnosed with feline infectious peritonitis, a disease that kills nearly all cats that contract it; the clinic said it could not treat him.

  6. background

    Marlena Arjo adopts kitten Otto — Arjo adopted a one-eyed kitten she named Otto, who developed a destructive, chaotic personality over his first eight months.

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