Hi, Maggie and Clark -- I'm so sorry you lost little Maybelline. It sounds like you were the best of foster parents to her. Gentle Bridge vibes to her.
In defense of Maybelline's former owners, really not a lot of people vaccinate for FeLV for no reason -- mostly it happens when they discover a kitty is FeLV+ and want to protect their other cats. So Maybelline's owners weren't necessarily negligent, at least as far as this is concerned. I think it's fine to open up the room. The virus doesn't live very long at all outside of the body -- a matter of minutes at most. Your cleaning and washing with bleach should have gotten rid of any lingering trace. Thanks for caring for this special baby. We all know how you're feeling -- the frustration and helplessness. Diane R. -----Original Message----- From: felvtalk-boun...@felineleukemia.org [mailto:felvtalk-boun...@felineleukemia.org] On Behalf Of margaret-sou...@comcast.net Sent: Monday, July 20, 2009 11:12 PM To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Subject: [Felvtalk] Have I done enough to open the room where our beautiful little FELV+ kitty died? I hope we can get some advice. Last Monday we had to have our beautiful little foster kitty euthanized. We belong to a rescue group that pulls and fosters cats at the local county shelter who are in danger of being put down. We found out about a week after pulling little Maybelline that she was FELV+. Our vet did complete blood work on her. Her pvc was only 20 (normal being 30-45), but she was eating and loved attention. We were so hopeful and of course adopted her immediately. Within ten days or so Maybelline became listless and wouldn't eat. Our vet rushed over. Total count was down to 8% and immediately we rushed Maybelline to the local vet hospital for a blood transfusion. She did really well; predisone was also described. Again we were hopeful. Our vet planned to check her count every week. At week one it was 15%, not great, but if she could maintain it and EAT, she could continue on. In only 5 days we noticed same ominous symptoms again. Vet rechecked Maybelline's blood. Count was down to 10% and her gums were terribly pale. In good conscience our vet said we simply couldn't transfuse every two weeks, it just wasn't fair to our little girl. I heard this news when in Boston visitng my aging (95.5 yrs) mother. My husband had been prepared that Maybelline might die over the weekend before I returned. My husband tried everything he knew to get her to eat, but nothing really worked. She was just too weak. Thankfully, little Maybelline lasted through the weekend. Sunday we tried to spend as much time as possible with her. Monday our vet euthanized her. Both of us were crying. I'm still having bad spells as it just seemed so preventable and unnecessary if only Maybelline's first owners had vaccinated her! Anyhow, we kept her completely separate from our other five kitties. We've cleaned the room thoroughly (soap and water on floors and walls she might have touched) and removed her litter box. I always kept her food dishes separate. The perch cover and blankets and sheets she touched or slept on have been washed with bleach. Only a few furniture surfaces like the legs on the bed or desk haven't been washed. Should they be? While we would take another FELV+ kitty in a heartbeat (just hope we'd have them a little longer!), we definitely don't want to jeopardize our other little ones who are 100% healthy and have had vaccinations against FELV. Can we open the room at this point? Our other five kitties used to play in it, but we heard no complaints when Maybelline occupied it! We'd appreciate any advice anyone can give on this topic. I'm sorry our story is so long-winded; we just wished we could have done more for our poor little girl! Sincerely, Maggie & Clark Souers I am so grateful _______________________________________________ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org _______________________________________________ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org
