Belinda wrote: FeLV IS NOT AS CONTAGIOUS AS SOME VETS TRY TO SCARE YOU INTO BELIEVING.� You can believe and do with your pets as you please but please don't post information you find on the internet as the absolute truth.� Anytime I hear that a negative has turned positive from exposure I can promise you almost all the time the cat was not vaccinated or tested a false negative and was positive all along.� A healthy vaccinated adult cat has virtually 0 chance of getting infected from a positive.� And if they did they would almost certainly fight it off.� The funny thing is - you sound as if you are trying to say that you know my situation. You; just another uninformed person on the internet...(remember, you are the one who said "not all the information you find on the internet is accurate".) Have you ever heard of a library, Belinda? Or a veterinarian? Perhaps those are sources you would like to consider, although I am sure that in your opinion, they are not accurate either. I have done TONS of independent research and I also speak from personal experience. Since you obviously do NOT know my situation, let me tell you about it. Armond came to me at 4 weeks old - FeLV negative and always immunized. He was still negative at age 8 years when we moved to a new state and all of the animals were tested again before moving. At age 8 1/2, we brought a stray in; after 6 months she got sick and we discovered she was FeLV positive. Knowing that it is extremely contagious, our vet wanted Armond tested immediately. Sure enough, he was positive also. Coincidence? Every other test was a false negative? I hardly think so and I'm sure you will agree that it is highly doubtful that Armond just happened to be a carrier for his entire life with it just showing up after he lived with the FeLV kitty for 6 months. In the paragraph above (where I highlighted your ridiculous comment) I see where you are trying to justify putting your own cats at risk. Since you can "promise" that the cat was "positive all along" you relieve yourself of any responsibility for intentionally putting them at risk for infection. Shame on you. How dare you have the audacity to say that "FeLV IS NOT AS CONTAGIOUS AS SOME VETS TRY TO SCARE YOU INTO BELIEVING." ? What part of this situation do you not understand? And, how dare you pass this false information on to others? What a terrible disservice you have done to anyone who reads this. I am disgusted to think that people are listening to you and taking your advice. I would like to know where you attended veterinary school and what your gripe is with Cornell University? (One of the finest in the country, however you think that you are more knowledgable than their experts. Amazing...) I can assure you that I will not return to this "support group" again. I refuse to participate in a battle of wills with someone like you. Please do your homework about this before you feel the need to give any more possibly fatal advice. Belinda Sauro <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: All I'm saying is not all the information you find on the internet is accurate and if you think it is your in for a rude awakening. Your highlighted in yellow info is not correct.
I'm speaking from experience, mine and many others on the list. My vet was fully aware of my situation, Bailey was 5 months old when I found him, I had 3 cats at the time and Bailey was + the others all negative and vaccinated. He was separate because I had just been in a situation of having 5 cats, 4 positive. I lost 3, one turned negative and the 5th never had it, she had lived with all the at the time unknown positives from 6 weeks of age. This was back in the late 80's, early 90's before very much was known about FeLV and my then vet was very old and told me I didn't have to worry or vaccinate since my guys were all indoors. Well something I or he never thought about, they all had lives before me. I don't know who had it or if anyone gave it to anyone, I just know when I decided to see a different vet I had them all checked and 4 were positive. I lost 3 of them in 15 months, they were all older, 5, 7, and 9 years old. Teenye turned negative and lived to be 16, and Buddie was negative her whole life, unvaccinated and living together with the rest for years before I knew anyone had it. Once I found out, she was vaccinated regularly but not separated. Anyway back to Bailey, 3 vets told me to euthanize him, that he would be dead in 3 months and infect all my others. After finding out that Joey was sneaking under his door and playing with him while I was at work I decided to let him out and to keep him. He lived, ate with, played with, groomed, and on occasion had fights with all of his house mates, all who were negative and vaccinated. In 11 years nobody got it from him, he passed away in 2006 at age 11, so all the vets were wrong and my gut and experience were right. My now vet knew about and gave her blessing to our living arrangements. She tried desperately to save Bailey when he got sick but it wasn't to be. I would not do anything different if I were to do it over again. FeLV IS NOT AS CONTAGIOUS AS SOME VETS TRY TO SCARE YOU INTO BELIEVING. You can believe and do with your pets as you please but please don't post information you find on the internet as the absolute truth. Anytime I hear that a negative has turned positive from exposure I can promise you almost all the time the cat was not vaccinated or tested a false negative and was positive all along. A healthy vaccinated adult cat has virtually 0 chance of getting infected from a positive. And if they did they would almost certainly fight it off. Where did you find the quote below, it looks very familar. And as I said before, Cornells info is outdated they haven't updated that in 10 years at least, it is inaccurate. I truthfully have no idea which or how many of my original 5 had FeLV, several of them were sickly all their lives, several were related, 3 of the 5 were related. None were vaccinated because my very old vet obviously didn't know much about it and told me they were all OK and I didn't need to test or vaccinate. That was my wake call and when I started to learn more about it. I had no thought to have anymore positives when I found Bailey but that the way someone else planned it and we did the best we could in our situation. As I expect you are, I just don't want new people reading inaccurate info thinking it is correct. I visited Cornells website when I got a computer and their info hasn't changed. There is much more known about FeLV than there was 10 years ago but Cornell hasn't posted any of it so as far as I'm concerned their info is inaccurate. All this is my first hand exerpience and opinions, the best place to get accurate info is from a vet who is knowledgable about FeLV and goes to continued education seminars, not the internet. I'll take other people experiences over the internet anyday, but as with you the final decision is mine and mine alone. What can I do now to protect my cats?? The only method for protecting your cats is to remove any FELV-positive cat from other cats completely. You should also follow strict quarantine procedures including separate utensils, housing, litter pans for the FELV positive cat, and thoroughly washing your hands, clothing and shoes after handling and caring for the FELV positive cat. Do not breed an FELV positive queen!! If you lose a cat to FELV, it is recommended that you wait 30 days before bringing in a new cat, and then only after the area has been thoroughly scrubbed and disinfected with a solution containing 4 ounces of household bleach per gallon of water, rugs vacuumed completely, and all litter pans, food dishes, bedding, etc. have been replaced. -- Belinda happiness is being owned by cats ... Be-Mi-Kitties http://www.bemikitties.com HostDesign4U.com [affordable hosting & web design] http://www.hostdesign4u.com ForYouByUs.com [custom printing] http://www.foryoubyus.com --------------------------------- Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now.
