if you go to the cornell vet school site, you'll find the research from last year about active virus being found in dried secretions up to a few days after having been, "expressed." this research is being used all over the country as yet another reason to kill FeLVs, tho the professionals i've spoken to affirmed my reading that it has no real meaning outside of a a trivia challenge: we have no clue how much virus is required to infect another cat, but for many years it's been recognized that it required, "persistent, prolonged contact." and i've yet to hear how some cat is supposed to go find a syringe, locate the active virus in some dried sample someplace, rehydrate it, and then inject it into another family cat's bloodstream. (i keep seeing an image of a big maine coon sneaking about at night, trying to do this with a polydactyl paw....)
the, "when it dries, it dies," was the standard for years, even tho it wasn't actually 100% true either--there was research showing the virus could IN RARE CASES exist up to a couple of hours after leaving the cat. what this shows, however, is the reality that even the most open-minded vet--ie, those who don't just treat FeLV with euthanasia--cannot possibly be up to date on everything affected every species. that's an impossibility--human docs can't keep up with one species, after all. those of us with a great investment, then, are often more up-to-date than veterinarians are about any rare condition. (and while FIV and FeLV may be the most common fatal feline illnesses, "most common" does not mean that they are actually common or prevalent.) so sharing knowledge goes both ways. On Sun, Aug 30, 2009 at 6:36 PM, <dlg...@windstream.net> wrote: > my vet said the virus dies when it is dry. just to be sure, wash down with > clorox. maybe not the scratching posts since they are usually not washable. > wash everything down with cclorox and set out in the sun to dry. > ---- doggone...@doggonefit.com wrote: > > Hello everyone, > > After many years of rescuing positives, we have been a "catless" home for > a few months and have made a difficult decision to adopt a healthy cat. Can > anyone help with decisions on what should stay and what shouldn't? For > example, scratching posts, cat carriers. I know there are many different > opinions on how long the virus lasts, how well disinfectant work, etc. I > would greatly appreciate any help! > > Thanks! > > Heidi > > ------Original Message------ > > From: dlg...@windstream.net > > Sender: felvtalk-boun...@felineleukemia.org > > To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org > > ReplyTo: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org > > Subject: [Felvtalk] spaying and neutering > > Sent: Jun 12, 2009 9:18 PM > > > > was just on one of my bead websites and someone had asked what colors of > Swarovski crystals to use to represent the different cancers (awareness > ribbons). i checked it out from curosity and found that the orange ribbon 2 > or 3 cancers plus CAT SPAYING AND NEUTERING. we have a ribbon to put on our > cars for our furbabies. dorlis > > > > _______________________________________________ > > Felvtalk mailing list > > Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org > > http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org > > > > > > Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T > > _______________________________________________ > > 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 > -- Spay & Neuter Your Neighbors! Maybe That'll Make The Difference.... MaryChristine Special-Needs Coordinator, Purebred Cat Breed Rescue (www.purebredcats.org) Member, SCAT (Special-Cat Action Team) _______________________________________________ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org