I do believe the vaccines are worth it. And as far as rabies............I've worked at shelters, with ferals, etc.... and even though there's a small chance I might get rabies I do it anyway............ and I have not gone and got the rabies shots like lots of animal workers do. (That's for my own happiness.... I hate shots!)
I think most of the people on this list who have a cat have very lucky cats.
t
Tad Burnett <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Tad Burnett <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Or is the real question...What if the risk from the vaccine is greater than the disease it self..
Like small pox...
Tad
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
In the spirit of acceptance and being able to share ideas - I, myself, mix FeVL+ and FeVL- cats. Are there risks? Yes. Knowledge is power, however, and that is why I vaccinate the ones who are negative and take additional precautions in keeping litterboxes extra clean - keeping food and water dishes extra clean - and pay more attention to frequently washing bedding and keeping shared areas disinfected. There is scientific evidence that the virus is contained in the saliva. Scientific evidence as recent as March 2006.Nobody I know has ever contracted rabies. I don't know of any pets personally who have gotten rabies either. I could probably let all my cats run free and they might never contract rabies. That, however, would be irresponsible - in my view - knowing the risk is there and not taking preventative measures. Ancedotal evidence indicates that my cats probably won't get rabies. I disagree, however, that veterinarians and expert websites should change their information to include this ancedotal information.Is ancedotal evidence important? Yes - it is...and it is extremely valuable. But there has to be a balance between scientific evidence and practical application. Both are valuable. It is also extremely important to recovery that the cats feel loved, safe, and unstressed. Diet is also very important. All of these things go toward making life better for all of us...not just the cats.I respect your opinion. I also respect your right to disagree and I appreciate the opportunity to contribute to the discussion.Elizabeth*Save the earth. It's the only planet with chocolate.*
-----Original Message-----
From: Nina <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org
Sent: Wed, 21 Jun 2006 01:46:57 -0700
Subject: Safety first? - On my soapbox again
If the only place you could be with your loved ones and not feel like a prisoner, was to stand in thunder storms, (even with a pole in your arms), I wonder how much more ready to risk it someone might be. I don't know how well this analogy works, but when you're talking about a pos being segregated away from family fur members and confined to one room "for each other's safety", there are other things to consider besides the "safest" course of action. There is some debate about just how social cats are, how necessary to their well being it is to interact with each other. I just know from personal experience that it is important to my guys. I don't know how I would have reacted if I'd had some warning about the status of my felv kids. They had already been mixed, and even though it did give me pause, there was really no decision to be made. I can only tell you how grateful I am that I didn't separate them from the rest of the household. Maybe I'm fortunate to not have had anyone else contract the disease, the majority of this list has had the same experience, but there are some that have not. I guess part of my decision making process always includes the aspect of what I consider quality of life. I've never been a proponent of quantity over quality. Cats need to interact in as "free" and stimulating an environment as possible. Of course it's important to keep them safe, but I wonder what their answer would be if we posed the question to them directly. We could always pole incarcerated humans and ask them if they'd rather take their chances standing free in a thunder storm. Maybe my view on this has to do with watching, loving and learning from my feral colonies. Perhaps it's just a rationalization to help me cope with not being able to fully protect the "wild" cats that I love, but I am convinced that they would not be living as full or as happy a life if they were forced to live in captivity.
So, as it's too late to not make this a long-winded response, I'll try to at least cut it short... Should the experts update their websites? You bet they should. Part of the problem is that the updating we are looking for is mostly from anequdotal evidence and the experts don't put a great deal of credence in what guardians like us have discovered. At the same time, no one seems willing to do the studies that might back up what we've learned here. There are still many vets that don't think shutting the pos away in it's own room is enough of a precaution. These are the vets that take it a step further and advocate euthanasia of asymptomatic cats, not only for the protection of the negs in the household, but for the pos as well! The owners unfortunate enough to put their faith in that kind of expert advice never get the chance to prove them wrong.
I know that this list and the history of it's members was a breath of fresh air to me when I was confused, distraught and at the end of my rope. I know that the advice I've received here has proven to be as reliable as any I could receive about this unpredictable and insidious disease. Would I take the advice of some of our members over that of a trained, licensed veterinarian? You bet I would, and I have.
Nina
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:Here's my take on it. The experts tell me that it is possible to be struck by lightening in a thunderstorm. Me - I've been outside countless times when it started storming - and I've never been struck and neither has anyone in my family or anyone I know. Do the weather experts need to update their websites and literature? I'm thinking it might be a good idea to think long and hard before standing out in the rain with a metal pole. Now - I don't know if it's easier to be struck by lightening than for casual contact FeVL contamination to occur - I simply do not know the odds...but if it's possible - I surely do want to know and take some precautions where appropriate.elizabethIn a message dated 6/20/2006 11:15:05 P.M. Central Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:This only tells me it's not nearly as hard to catch as they try and make people believe. And I still don't think it would be very easy to catch by grooming, I would watch Bailey and joey groom each other and they actually would groom and touch tongues and Joey still never got it!!
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