Some good news--and thanks to Nina & Hideyo!!

[Kerry MacKenzie]

Here's some good news. But first, the background for those who don't know it: of the feral colony of 5 kittens (Caramel, Levi, Flavia, Snoball and Mickey) and I adult cat (Momcat) I took in in December 2003, 4 of the kittens ---Caramel, Levi, Flavia & Snoball--tested positive in Feb 2004 and all 5 kittens tested positive in July 2004. Momcat tested negative both times. All were quarantined in my 2nd bedroom, away from my 3 existing negative cats. The 4 kitties that tested pos twice succumbed between November 2004 and July 2005. That left 1 pos, Mickey, and 1 neg, Momcat, both of whom I continued to quarantine. They were buddies and it would have been cruel to separate them, particularly as Momcat appeared immune to FeLV. My dream has been that Mickey would revert to neg, and I could then integrate them both in my household. Hope springs eternal as they say-- I dreamed of that before, and it didn't come to pass. Nonetheless for about 10 months, I dreamed....and procrastinated over re-testing them for a variety of reasons, not least fear of Mickey testing pos again. Today I trapped Mickey, had him re-tested, and......he's NEGATIVE!!! Because I'm anal, I'm going to trap Momcat next weekend and have her tested. I fully expect her to have remained negative. But, if by some horrible twist of fate she is not (because she caught it from the pos kitties before they passed away) I plan ----at last----to vaccinate my negs and integrate them all anyway. There is a much better vaccination available now, and my vet has the special equipment to do it. This is such wonderful news on so many levels, not least because it demonstrates -- again---that FeLV is simply not as contagious as most people believe. Mickey lived with his siblings all his life, tested pos once, but has thrown it off. And Momcat, who also lived with them all, never got it in the first place. (And neither of them has ever been FeLV vaccinated!) It's also something I'm going to highlight in the letter to Paula F in my lobbying for the new Chicago PAWS shelter to have an FeLV annex. I had intended the letter to be (finally) mailed on Friday. But I'm glad that it wasn't! I now want to thank Nina for coming to my rescue when I called her at 11pm last night (1am my time) in a panic because Mickey walked into the trap way before I expected him to. How could I reasonably expect him to stay there all night? What was I going to do about his bodily needs?? Nina reassured me a) that she has had to do that too on occasion (so I stopped feeling like a monster) and b) advised me to elevate the trap and layer the floor with paper. Sure enough, everything fell through the wire mesh on to the paper so Mickey was not in the discomfort in which he would otherwise have been and he survived the night. And I have Hideyo to thank for the success of the next stage--I was gearing up for a chase & catch battle in transferring Mickey from the cage to a carrier to take to the vet (I don't have a car; so carrier is easier for standing in street hailing cab). But Hideyo has a great technique that she shared---uncover the cage the cat is in, and cover (or provide dark-colored) carrier you want to transfer the cat to. The principle being that they will always prefer the dark option. (Correct me if I'm wrong about the principle Hideyo) Sure enough--my little feral Mickey WALKED from the cage straight in to the carrier. No battle necessary!! So, today is a happy day at no 603, to say the least. Also, last but not least, I want to say, I'm sorry I continue to only post sporadically. I pray for all your sick kitties and send healing vibes. And my heart goes out to all those that have crossed the bridge. I hope that I will be in a position to post more regualarly when I get back from UK mid-June. (I go there mid May.) (I had a month's FMLA approved yesterday, to be with my dad, who has Stage 3 cancer.)  I *really* miss being part of the everyday list. This group is just the best EVER. love and hugs to all of you and your furballs.Kerry