2.1. Samples collection
One hundred seventy-three samples were collected from cats under one
year of age from 15 catteries and six veterinary hospitals in southwest
China from 2017 to 2020, of which 93 samples were from catteries, and 80
samples were from veterinary hospitals. Of the 173 samples, 150 fecal
samples were obtained from cats with diarrhea, and 23 samples of ascetic
fluid were obtained from FIP-suspected cats. The cattery samples were
collected from pet breeding centers and stray animal shelters in
southwest China, both considered multi-cat environments. The samples
collected at the veterinary hospital were individual, home-owned pets
considered to come from single-cat environments. The cat
breeds
included British Shorthair, Nulla luctus felis, Ragdoll, Garfield, and
Persian. The samples were shipped on
drikold
and stored at –80 °C.