Feline Leukemia Test

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PipeDown - 20 Jul 2005 21:48 GMT

Recently I had my cat to the vet for the rabies booster and other
vaccinations. Naturally the vet wanted to give him the feline leukemia
vaccine at $16 which I want also but first I was supposed to submit my cat
to a test for the disease priced at $60 just to make sure he didn't already
have it. Justification was; If he had it I wouldn't need the vaccination

Now tell me, Is the test just an excuse to make more money? Really, if the
cat were sick , it would show symptoms eventually. Do I really want to know
what's coming?

I asked if this disease were even prevalent in my area (suburban San Jose
CA) and the answer came back "well, before the vaccine was available, 40% of
all cats had it but now........." Well only now is relevant and it seems no
cats have been diagnosed for some time (no hard data given from my vet but
she reluctantly agreed to my characterization). The only real risk is if
someone brings in a feral cat from out of the area.

I'm all for regular and proper veterinary care but does this extend to
unnecessary tests or am I being naive or cheap?

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MarAzul - 20 Jul 2005 22:02 GMT

> Recently I had my cat to the vet for the rabies booster and other
> vaccinations. Naturally the vet wanted to give him the feline leukemia
[quoted text clipped - 16 lines]
> I'm all for regular and proper veterinary care but does this extend to
> unnecessary tests or am I being naive or cheap?

If I don't know the history of a cat, from birth to entering my house, I've
gotten them tested, or made sure they were tested by the rescue group. All
of my cats are vaccinated against it as well, but I've taken in 2 strays and
each had a test done before they set foot in the house.
It's also not advisable to give a vaccination if the cat is already
infected. From the vaccine manufacturer's standpoint - if you gave the
vaccine but didn't test first and your cat gets sick, then they're not
liable. For all anyone knows, it could have been a pre-existing infection.

Mar
---------
VTIT

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Michael Rhino - 21 Jul 2005 03:49 GMT

> Recently I had my cat to the vet for the rabies booster and other
> vaccinations. Naturally the vet wanted to give him the feline leukemia
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> the cat were sick , it would show symptoms eventually. Do I really want
> to know what's coming?

I asked for the test after I had had the cat for a month. I was curious.
My previously stray cat passed the test. Other people, such as pet hotel
people, want to know if your cat is healthy.

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