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Cat Forum / Health and Behavior / December 2003Just got the bad news: Feline Leukemia
I took home a stray from my job last Thursday. He was underweight and did not eat or drink much after we brought him home. He also vomited several times and slept a lot . We took him to the vet today and a blood test was taken. Not more than a hour later the vet's office called to inform us he tested positive for feline leukemia. My wife and I are heartbroken. It is amazing how attached you can become to a cat after less than a week. The vet told us to call him on Thursday to discuss our situation. Can anyone tell us what he might tell us or what our future may hold in store. By the way kitty's name is Oscar. Thanks in advance for any help. Ed and Maritza Dear Ed and Maritza, I'm so sorry to hear about Oscar. What a nice thing you did taking him in! The most important thing is that no other cats be exposed to him - you probably already know that, but just in case you have other cats. I don't have any personal experience with FLV, but at least Oscar has you to help him through whatever comes next, and he's not alone out on the streets. That's the most important thing. Meghan > I took home a stray from my job last Thursday. He was underweight and > did not eat or drink much after we brought him home. He also vomited [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > Ed and Maritza >Can anyone tell us what he might tell us or >what our future may hold in store. By the way kitty's name is Oscar. >Thanks in advance for any help Some vets automatically recommend euthanasia. Better informed vets do not. As per a Cat Fancy article the cat has a 1/3 chance of testing positive for life but living normally, 1/3 chance he can clear the virus from his system with a good diet and loving home and 1/3 chance that he may succumb to the disease and die within two years. You should keep his separate from your other cats for now. Get your other cats vaccinated for FLV. Give the new kitty lots of good food, love and a stress free indoor home. You can retest when he is healthy and he may be virus free. You can also give him interferon to help his immune system. >I took home a stray from my job last Thursday. He was underweight and >did not eat or drink much after we brought him home. He also vomited [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] >what our future may hold in store. By the way kitty's name is Oscar. >Thanks in advance for any help. > Ed and Maritza Feline Leukemia is a horrible disease, but a positive test isn't an immediate death sentence. If the cat isn't symptomatic, and you don't have other cats in the house that can be infected, please consider keeping him. My vet tells of a FeLV+ cat she had that lived 8 healthy years before showing symptoms.Also, ask for another test, just to be sure. Sherry > I took home a stray from my job last Thursday. He was underweight and > did not eat or drink much after we brought him home. He also vomited [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > Ed and Maritza You'll have to talk to the vet to find out what kind of condition kitty is in, but FeLV cats, can have a shorter but decent life. If you are willing to take care of a special needs kitty and his condition is such that he can recover by treating the symptoms, you may be able to give this kitty a happy time while he is on this earth. I hope that you let us know what happens. Karen > I took home a stray from my job last Thursday. He was underweight and > did not eat or drink much after we brought him home. He also vomited [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > what our future may hold in store. By the way kitty's name is Oscar. > Thanks in advance for any help. Please do not make any irreversible decisions based on an in-house Snap test. Have your cat retested with the IFA (immunofluorescent antibody) assay. In-house ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) Snap positives are often false and also can't distinguish transient infections from persistent infections. Only about 30% of infected cats develop persistent infections and FeLV-related diseases. Please do not make any life or death decisions in the event your cat tests positive by IFA. Many vets are quick to recommend euthanasia based on a single IFA-positive. Many cats persistently infected with FeLV remain healthy and asymptomatic for *years* while others die within a year or so. No one can make an accurate prediction of the outcome without highly specialized tests - which *still* can't predict the outcome with any reasonable accuracy. We've had FeLV-cats that lived otherwise normal lives for as long as 6 years. Keep the faith! Phil My vet told me that once a cat gets Leukemia vaccine, they will always test positive & he won't give the shots without microchip--not sure how accurate that is but if it is--could it be he had gotten shots? don't know how to tell > I took home a stray from my job last Thursday. He was underweight and > did not eat or drink much after we brought him home. He also vomited [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > Ed and Maritza Well, I doubt there is a way to tell, unless there is a higher level test. I know there is a bone marrow test that I think would determine it. Phil or Cheryl might know this. It does not sound like you have other kitties. How is kitty doing now? I would say, if you have no other kitties, I would ask the doctor to treat the symptoms and take kitty home. This is the course my vet takes with FeLV cats. Karen > My vet told me that once a cat gets Leukemia vaccine, they will always test > positive & he won't give the shots without microchip--not sure how accurate [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > > > > Ed and Maritza Thanks very much for all your kindness and help. Oscar seems to be doing better today. He is eating a bit more and is more animated. We will be talking to the vet tomorrow. Hope to have some encouraging news to post tomorrow. >My vet told me that once a cat gets Leukemia vaccine, they will always test >positive & he won't give the shots without microchip--not sure how accurate >that is but if it is--could it be he had gotten shots? don't know how to >tell No, that's not true. The feline leukemia vaccine will not make a cat test positive for feline leukemia. Your vet may be thinking of the new FIV vaccine instead. > My vet told me that once a cat gets Leukemia vaccine, they will always test > positive That's not true. *Please* find another vet! I am sorry to hear this about the cat. There is a bit of good news though. With lots of love and treatment a cat with FELV can live a long life. Just make sure that you do not mix this cat with healthy ones but you can have the cat amongst others with the illness. You were so good to take this cat in and give him a loving home. Special needs cats always need a good and loving home.  SignaturePanther TEK: Staying On Top Of All Your Computer Needs! www.members.cox.net/catprotector/panthertek Cat Galaxy: All Cats, All The Time! www.catgalaxymedia.com > I took home a stray from my job last Thursday. He was underweight and > did not eat or drink much after we brought him home. He also vomited [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > Ed and Maritza My wife talked to the vet today about Oscar. Oscar has feline leaukemia. He basically told us we had to make the decision on his future. We are at wits end what to do. We want what is best for the cat. Should we have further tests? Should we just care for him and see how his health progresses? We are very confused about what to do next. You people have been great. I did not realise how caring the cat community was. Thank you for your concern. Ed and Maritza I would get a second opinion just to be sure. Make sure the vet doing it is competent and has a good rep. If the cat still comes up positive for FELV then make sure the cat gets treated on a regular basis and gets lots of love. With the right treatment a cat can live a long life. SignaturePanther TEK: Staying On Top Of All Your Computer Needs! www.members.cox.net/catprotector/panthertek Cat Galaxy: All Cats, All The Time! www.catgalaxymedia.com > My wife talked to the vet today about Oscar. Oscar has feline > leaukemia. He basically told us we had to make the decision on his [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > Ed > and Maritza << Should we have further tests? Should we just care for him and see how his health progresses? >> Is your vet very experienced in this? If not, I would get a new one. Your cat could possibly be treated with interferon. There are things you can do to get him over this. He can get rid of the virus or live with it. He doesn't have to die from it. He can be on vitamins and other things to get his immune system pumped up. Please talk to your vet or another vet about treatment for him. Candace (take the litter out before replying by e-mail) See my cats: http://photos.yahoo.com/maccandace "One does not meet oneself until one catches the reflection from an eye other than human." (Loren Eisely) > My wife talked to the vet today about Oscar. Oscar has feline > leaukemia. He basically told us we had to make the decision on his [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > Ed > and Maritza Please do not be pressed to euthanize if he is getting better. You can care for him and help him live longer if he is not in a big crisis. You might contact a feline specialist if your town has one. It sounds like you care about him and would take care of him. It totally depends on if kitty is just sick because suseptible to things with this disease or in full blown FeLV. I think you might find some useful information to help you here: http://www.vetinfo.com/cfeleuk.html#Feline%20Leukemia%20and%20feral%20cats Karen in article d7d2195b.0312111537.295d8a8f@posting.google.com, ed farr at edfarr@pipeline.com wrote on 12/11/03 5:37 PM: >> My wife talked to the vet today about Oscar. Oscar has feline >> leaukemia. He basically told us we had to make the decision on his [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >> cat community was. >> Thank you for your concern. Last winter was the first real season change since my cat contracted FeLV (blood transfusion). He also has IBD so I believe the FeLV makes his IBD worse and an inability to "heal" the diarrhea. Anyway, last winter I thought his time was up because he started having difficulty with what I thought was breathing. He made awful noises, but he also had complications from something else which damaged his throat which was all part of what precipitated the tainted blood transfusion. He coughed a lot. I bought a warm mist humidifier and kept my house "moist". He got over the loud breathing and is still doing pretty well. Other than IBD (which he had any ways) he is a happy cat. And even with his other problems, his vets have been amazed at what he's been through and still doing well. My point is that cats are amazing creatures and until you see signs of loss of quality of life that isn't turning around, I don't think its fair to take it away from them. Shadow fought hard to live through so much (he wasn't ready to go, he made that clear!) So far this season he hasn't sounded like he did last year so maybe his body is toughening up. Another fighter sign! Good luck with what you decide to do. You'll know. SignatureCheryl Do you have other cats? If not, go for it--Oscar sounds like a great cat & why deal with life & death decisions unless he is suffering. If you do have other cats (or are thinking about getting), I would think they could get immunized but someone in the group would be more knowlegeable about that than I. Vets sometimes can present gloomy picture as they don't want people to have unrealistic expectations but with good care--Oscar may surprise you! > My wife talked to the vet today about Oscar. Oscar has feline > leaukemia. He basically told us we had to make the decision on his [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > Ed > and Maritza on 11 Dec 2003: > Vets sometimes can present gloomy picture as they don't want > people to have unrealistic expectations It's funny you say that because with Shadow, I'm the one thinking doom and gloom, and his vet tells me that cats who are FeLV+ can live a healthy life for a while with it. SignatureCheryl "I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something. I will not refuse to do the something I can do." - Helen Keller Worldwide Candle Lighting in Memory of all Children, Dec 14, 2003 7pm in all time zones http://thecompassionatefriends.org/2003_WWCL/2003_wcl.htm http://thecompassionatefriends.org/2003_WWCL/senres.htm -this in memory of my Eric- I don't think immunizing will do much good although on the other side of the coin a cat that has gotten the shot has a better chance of fighting the disease but the shots are not 100% effective as there is no cure for the illness. Pretty much a double standard so if you have healthy cats it is a good idea not to have one with FELV amongst them as the others can get the illness. If Oscar is the only cat and his humans want to get another then they'll have to make sure that cat also has FELV. Besides with the proper treatment an FELV positive cat can live a long life. SignaturePanther TEK: Staying On Top Of All Your Computer Needs! www.members.cox.net/catprotector/panthertek Cat Galaxy: All Cats, All The Time! www.catgalaxymedia.com > Do you have other cats? If not, go for it--Oscar sounds like a great cat & > why deal with life & death decisions unless he is suffering. If you do have [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > > Ed > > and Maritza circa Thu, 11 Dec 2003 22:38:26 -0700, in rec.pets.cats.health+behav, Cat Protector (catprotector@cox.net) said, > I don't think immunizing will do much good although on the other side of the > coin a cat that has gotten the shot has a better chance of fighting the [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > they'll have to make sure that cat also has FELV. Besides with the proper > treatment an FELV positive cat can live a long life. Do you just pull this stuff out of your butt? From the aforementioned link (just one of many examples contradicting your statements): "Although adult cats can be infected with FeLV, it is hard to infect an adult cat with feline leukemia virus. It usually takes immunosuppression for some reason, such as the use of corticosteroids, concurrent feline immunodeficiency virus infection or severe illness to overcome the natural resistance to this virus which most adult cats have. I think that once yearly vaccination with feline leukemia virus vaccine is probably more than adequate. Due to the link between feline leukemia vaccination and the vaccine associated sarcomas, I really think that the risk of vaccinating too frequently outweighs the risk of infection with the virus in an adult cat." Laura SignatureI am not young enough to know everything. -Oscar Wilde |
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