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Cat Forum / Health and Behavior / November 2005Seeking books or info about Feline AIDS (FIV)
My cat was just diagnosed with Feline AIDS, and I can't seem to find any useful information. The vet clinic in my town had nothing to offer, so I'm searching the net. I know the disease is also called the Feline Immundeficiency Virus or FIV, but that's about all I've come up with so far. I'm hoping to find books or other useful info that will help me take care of my cat. Any replies appreciated. Michael Borgeson (a.k.a "The Cat Guy") Michael, I can relate to your situation. My five-year old cat Sammie was recently diagnosed with Feline AIDS, and the veterinarian at our local clinic was less than helpful. He said there is no treatment for this disease, and his only recommendation was euthanasia. Sammie is my best friend, and he's a beautiful cat. His only major symptom at the time of this appointment was a nagging upper respiratory infection. Putting him to sleep seemed entirely unreasonable, and I began searching for alternatives. My local library didn't have any books or articles about Feline AIDS, and clinics in neighboring communities had no useful suggestions. I started an online search and found a book at amazon.com entitled "Feline AIDS: A Pet Owner's Guide" by Thomas Hapka. I can't say enough about this book. It's user friendly and packed with information about effective treatments for Feline AIDS, derived from the author's personal experiences. There's also an entire chapter devoted to upper respiratory infections. I've been following the author's suggestions, and Sammie's health has greatly improved. His upper respiratory infection has cleared, his coat looks good, and he has a lot of energy. The outlook for Sammie is quite good. However, he would be dead if I had accepted my veterinarian's advice without searching for additional information. I shudder to think how many pet owners have needlessly euthanized beloved family pets, and I would encourage anyone confronted with an FIV+ cat to read "Feline AIDS: A Pet Owner's Guide" before making any final decisions. Steph > My cat was just diagnosed with Feline AIDS, and I can't seem to find > any useful information. I assume your cat was tested in your vet's office with a Snap test (ELISA)? If so, were the results confirmed by a Western Blot (immunoblot) assay? About 35% of FIV-ELISA Snap positives are false-positives, So, the results should be confirmed. The Western Blot must be run in a diagnostic lab. All your vet has to do is send a blood sample. The test costs about $30-$40. > The vet clinic in my town had nothing to offer, so I'm searching the > net. I know the disease is also called the Feline Immundeficiency [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > Any replies appreciated. Start with this: http://www.maxshouse.com/feline_immunodeficiency_virus.htm Then go to Google and type "feline immunodeficiency virus" in the search bar. You'll get thousands of hits. The most important thing is keep her indoors and away from cats with unknown medical histories. Feed her a good quality food and keep her litterbox clean- keep her as healthy and as stress-free as you can. You might want to think about putting her on interferon- 30 IU/day/orally. Its very inexpensive if you dilute the doses yourself. One 3 million unit syringe will last you a year and costs less than $50. If the confirmatory Western Blot comes back 'positive', it doesn't mean your cat is going to die. Most cats with FIV live virtually normal lifespan- So, don't think FIV is an automatic death sentence. Best of luck, Phil Many cats can't handle AZT or interferon. I learned that lesson the hard way with my own FIV+ cat, Gabrielle. These drugs were simply too harsh for her. Now she's receiving natural treatments and things are going well. > Many cats can't handle AZT or interferon. That absolutely nonsense! Cats handle interferon *extremely* well- much, much better than humans. There has not been a *single* adverse effect reported in cats that received interferon at the recommended doses. AZT is also well tolerated by most cats *at the recommended doses*. The problem with these drugs is the *people*. A lot of people think if a little of the drug stimulates the immune system, a lot will stimulate it more. This is an excerpt from the leading Veterinary Drug Handbook, 4th ed. "Interferon Alfa-2a When used orally in cats, adverse effects have apparently not yet been noted." "Studies in which cats were treated with AZT for 2 years demonstrated that AZT is well tolerated in most FIV-infected cats. Some cats developed a mild decrease in hematocrit initially in the first 3 weeks that resolved even if treatment was continued." (Hartmann, K., FIV and FIV-related diseases. In Ettinger SJ, Feldman EC, editors: Textbook of veterinary internal medicine, ed 6, Philadelphia, 2005, WB Saunders Co, p 662. The drugs to avoid in FIV- infected cats are unspecific immunomodulators such as Acemannan, Staphylococcus protein A (SPA), and Propionibacterium acnes, (a paramunity inducer). Nonspecific stimulation can lead to increased virus replication because they could activate any latently infected lymphocytes and macrophages-- which can *promote* FIV progression. Now she's receiving natural treatments and things are > going well. And what would that be, blessed water or a 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 dilution of the placenta from the virgin birth? Your cat is doing well because FIV-infected cats remain asymptomatic for many, many years- not because of your bottle of snake oil. FIV-infected cats live a virtually near normal lifespan if fed a healthy diet and routine hygiene is practiced and the cats are kept away from cats with unknown medical histories. Best of luck with your cat. Phil > > Many cats can't handle AZT or interferon. > [quoted text clipped - 47 lines] > > Phil damn! :) P H I L ! P H I L ! P H I L ! wooosh -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- From: "catguy262" <skatingmenace@yahoo.com> >My cat was just diagnosed with Feline AIDS, and I can't seem to find >any useful information. It's a start: http://www.maxshouse.com/feline_immunodeficiency_virus.htm I'm really happy for the people who have had success with interferon or AZT. It didn't work well for my cat, either. I've used the recipes in the book mentioned above and my FIV+ cat is doing great now. There is no substance in the world handled well by all living creatures. As someone with lots of allergies, I can tell you there is nothing out there that is fool-proof. It's important to find the options that work best for your pet. That's all. |
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