I don't know that I would test everyone right away. It depends on what you plan to do. If you can test everyone and then keep the negatives separate for 90 days (isn't it??) then retest the negatives again and if they're negative still then you could find them a home? If you can do all of that I would retest now.
That's a lot of money though, plus time spent separating, then finding homes for the (by then) adult negatives.
If you are thinking of keeping all of them I would find out if they were individually tested and I would only test the ones that had not been tested. If they have all been tested I would wait and retest again in 90 days and not waste the money doing it again now.
If you are working with a humane society or other organization they SHOULD test these kittens for you at least at cost. Last I recall a combo. test might have been around
$15 and just felv even less. When this happened to me a shelter employee who was a friend came to my house with the tests and we drew blood and tested right there. A vet will charge you more like $40 per test.
As far as costs in the future, I really wouldn't worry about that right now. "Typically" with felv, once cats get sick they go downhill pretty fast. Yes, you can spend a fortune and it 'might' help. But in general, when and even IF the felv ever really kicks in there is not a lot you can do.
I know you have lots of questions. I can just tell you that everyone goes through the shock and panic that you are going through right now when they first find out. It WILL work itself out. This list will be a great help to you.
tonya
Chris <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Chris <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
I would DITTO about the testing. They should all have ELISSA (which is the
in-house test) and IFA (which is blood work sent out to lab). There's an
assumption on the part of many vets that because one test pos, all must be
pos. The other thing, and somebody here can correct me if I'm wrong, but
for any that do show up pos, shouldn't they be retested at some point?
Chris
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
-----Original Message-----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Nina
Sent: Tuesday, February 07, 2006 11:58 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: New to list...kittens with FeLV
Karen, Danielle and Robert,
Oh man, my heart goes out to you! I've been in your place, confused,
grief stricken, hopeful, desperate... I too learned about felv through
rescuing a litter of kittens. Let me first say, after all the
heartache, all the uncertainty, it was an experience I wouldn't trade
for the world. Knowing and loving my sweet little Angels was a Godsend,
not a curse.
How do you know ALL the kittens are pos? Sometimes rescue groups and
organizations will test only one, or two and then figure the whole group
has to be pos. It's not necessarily so. Tim, one of the 6 kittens I
found at 2 1/2 weeks old, (almost certainly got it from his mom), tested
neg, another, Lucky, who has never been tested, has never been sick a
day in his life, (they are now close to 2 1/2 yrs old). Even being pos
is not an automatic death sentence, (even though many vets still seem to
think so). Don't despair, there are many things you can do to help
prolong their lives and keep them happy and healthy, many things that
don't take a great deal of money. Did the shelter tell you that they
wouldn't pay for the spay/neuters because of their status? Be careful
about the vaccines. Don't have them vaccinated at the same time they
are neutered. Sometimes stressful events, like neuter/vac can cause
their immune system to falter, you want to stretch out these things and
only when they seem perfectly healthy. There has been a great deal of
discussion on the list about vaccines, (you can check the archives on
just about anything). Personally, I never vac against rabies when I can
help it, there's certainly no reason to vac against felv, (although I do
remember some controversial dialog about that). See if you can vac with
single strain shots, rather than combos. You need to find yourself a
vet that is friendly to and/or familiar with felv if you can. I'd start
looking for a board certified Internist. You have to remember that
kitties don't get sick from felv itself, they get sick because their
immune response is poor and diseases that wouldn't necessarily take hold
in a neg cat may wreak havoc with them.
Everyone on this list has come to know that it's quality, not quantity
of life that matters. There's something very special about felv pos
kitties. We've discussed it many times. I'm sorry you had the need to
find us, but so glad you did. The folks here are very caring and
knowledgeable, you'll find information and support to help you through
whatever you have to face. I'm so glad you didn't listen to the folks
at the shelter! Thank you for following your heart and giving these
guys a chance at life and love.
The most important things you can do is create as stress free
environment as possible, feed good quality food and immune boosting
supplements, and keep a watchful eye on any symptoms that might occur.
You never want to take a 'wait and see' approach with felv kitties. You
didn't mention having any other cats... We have found that healthy
adult vaccinated cats don't seem to be in any danger of
contracting/succumbing to felv.
Give those little sweethearts a head bump from me! (Adorable names,
btw). Ask us anything, we're here to help,
Nina
clarissa- Floyd wrote:
> hi,
>
> i'm new to email groups and not sure about all of this.
>
> i just found out the 8 kittens ive been fostering are FeLV posative
> and would apreciate any information on what to expect with this
> illness if i choose to keep them. the vet and the humane society whom
> im fostering for want to put them down.
>
> the kittens are around 5 months old and from 3 different litters. 2
> were born from a FeLV+ mom and 2 of the others nursed with them. the
> other 4 have been in contact with them from about 4 weeks of age. we
> found out they were FeLV+ when the humane society finally got them in
> to be "fixed" last thursday. the vet did not fix them and taked to me
> about not keeping them. the woman from the humane society has yet to
> call me about this.
>
> right now the kittens are in good health and have wonderful
> personalities. i don't know what to expect in the near future w this
> illness. ive gone from crying the last 5 days to sounding cold about
> this. one of my concerns is not being able to aford medical care or
> medication in the future which would not be fair to the kittens. the
> cost of fixing them and initial shots is going to have to be borrowed.
> if anyone can let me know what to expect, what they have been
> through, any hope if we keep the angels we would apreciate it.
>
> Karen, Danielle (18), Robert (13)
>
> pogo, teddy, stitch, houdini, salem, bandit, boots, oreo
>
