INJECTIONS vs PILLS: Which is better for my cat's FIP treatment?

When choosing FIP treatment using GS-441524 antiviral you may encounter 2 options: subcutaneous injections or oral capsules or pills. So how do you correctly choose which one is right for your cat? In this article we will talk about the pros and cons of each treatment option, as well as when and how to choose the right option for your cat’s FIP treatment.

For the oral treatment, normally it comes in pill type. This type of GS is administered orally. As there are more types of treatment options available for cat owners, cat owners now can select the treatment type for their cat easily. In this article, we will discuss the difference between these 2 forms of GS-441524, and how to choose the right one for your cat's FIP treatment.

Curefip.com GS-441524 + B12 injection

Injection Treatment

First let’s talk about GS-441524 in liquid injection form. This type of GS is treatment ready. Not all liquid GS-441524 are created equal. The quality depends greatly on the manufacturer's production process and quality of chemicals used. Add to the confusion you will find that price varies greatly from one brand to another.

There are different types of concentration for the injection form of GS441524. Most common concentrations found on the market today are 15mg, 17mg and 20mg. CureFIP.com is the only brand that offers a 30mg concentration that provides for a comfortable injection experience for larger cats weighing above 4 kg or 9 lbs. Injection treatment is the most effective method of delivering GS-441524. The GS441524 injections delivers immediate antiviral treatment to your cat's bloodstream via subcutaneous injections. Injections also enable medical professionals to deliver a precise dosage according to your cat’s symptoms and body weight. Cats treated by injections often show visible improvements within as little as 1 ~ 4 days. Thus, injections are the correct and only reliable method of feline infectious peritonitis treatment for cats experiencing severe FIP symptoms. We recommend starting every FIP treatment with injections. Continue injections until your cat’s condition has stabilised and only after he/she is eating, defecating normally before considering switching to oral treatment.

To learn more about the appropriate dosage for your cat using the injection method, refer to our previous blog [What‘s the Correct Dosage to Treat My Cat's FIP]. Alternatively, you may use our dosage calculator to determine the exact amount of GS441524 to be given to your cat. Injection needs to be injected daily and some cats will struggle to avoid injections after a few days of treatment. Check out our video on how to avoid struggling while giving injections. That brings us to the topic of oral treatment method.

Oral Treatment

Oral treatment is a faster and easier way to administer FIP treatment compared to injections. Cat owners can administer oral treatment at home, saving daily trips to the clinic, and the cost of injections. Oral treatment comes in capsule or tablet forms. Generally it is easier for cats to consume capsules than tablets due to the capsule's smooth texture and lack of taste. Generally, we recommend using oral capsules or tablets during the latter phase of treatment, when your cat is out of the danger zone, ie, eating and pooping regularly, no longer experience intermittent fevers.

Now let’s talk about the cons of oral treatment. First and foremost oral treatment is slower acting than injections. GS441524 the antiviral drug within the oral treatment has to travel the entire digestive system before being delivered into the bloodstream. Second major problem with oral treatment is that we can not control dosage. Why? because we don’t know how much of the gs441524 is absorbed by your cat’s digestive system. Depending on your cat’s overall health and its digestive organs’ conditions, your cat may only absorb a portion of the antiviral drug delivered by the oral capsules. Cats suffering from feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) often have weakened digestive organs including stomach, kidneys and liver that will affect GS absorption rate.

Oral capsules and tablets are a riskier treatment option compared to injections. We recommend oral treatment only after 30 days of injection treatment or after your cat’s condition has stabilized.

A Comparison between Injection & Oral Treatment Let’s have a look at the table below to explore the differences of both injection and oral treatments.

Type of Treatment	INJECTION	ORAL
Form	liquid	capsules / tablets
Method	Subcutaneous Injection	Oral consumption​
Advantages	Rapid and precise delivery of antiviral drug Faster symptomatic improvements Longer product shelf life​	Easy to administer Cat experience no pain Cheaper to administer, no need for medical professionals​
Disadvantages	Need to learn subcutaneous injection method or bring cat to hospital for daily injections Injection liquid is acidic and can be painful for some, but not all cats Cats may develop skin irritation after repeated injections	Treatment cost is slightly higher compared to injections Imprecise dosage Slower symptomatic improvements Not suitable for severe FIP infections
Price	Affordable	Slightly more expensive

Which Method Should I Choose For My Cat?

We recommended starting every FIP treatment with injections. If your cat experiences acute pain or develops severe skin irritations from repeated injections, you may switching to oral capsules as soon as his/her condition stabilises. Generally it is safe to switch to oral treatment after 30 days of injection treatment. This is the most reliable way to ensure that sufficient amount of GS-441524 is provided throughout the course of the FIP treatment and lower probability of reinfection in the future.

Contact us if you need assistance deciding which treatment is right for your cat. Our experts will happily share their knowledge with you.

Published by: Curefip.com

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