Unused CoronavirusThe officials of Cyprus announced that they will make human medication available for the treatment of cats in Cyprus. Thousands of cats have been dying from feline Covid.
The government approved this project in line with the recommendations of the Ministry of Agriculture.
A strain of coronavirus – feline infectious peritonitis (FIP), not transmittable to humans – has been wreaking havoc on the prolific cat population of the Mediterranean island.
Cabinet said that it could make available stocks of preparations which were previously used to treat cases of human coronavirus but are no longer needed.
The veterinary services will provide the medication as anti-Covid tablets.
Animal activists warned that Cyprus is turning into an “island of dead cats”, estimating the disease likely has killed a large portion of its 1 million strong population.
The island’s veterinary society says that the reports of 300,000 cat deaths are exaggerated, and the actual number is less than 10,000.
According to legend, Helena the Roman Empress brought cats first to Cyprus around 1,700 ago to fight poisonous serpents
Archaeological evidence of domesticated cats on the Island dates back 9,500 years at the Neolithic settlement of Shillourokambos. There, the remains of an animal and a person were deliberately buried together.
