Marnie, Your story is similar to mine. I also had a wonderful cat put down due to my own and other people's ignorance, and the guilt will always been with me. It is such a shame that the professionals are so uneducated. But when I found Abbey, I was given options and she has given me so much joy. I have 5 now, only Abbey is positive. I mix, but do not let them share food and luckily she does not groom the others. She was kept separated from the others for nearly a year. I commend you on your dedication to these cats...you have a great story. The FELV vax does not make them positive like FIV nor does it make them carriers. Most people just vax their negatives. Some even vax the positives and claim it helps...don't know if it really does help them though. I am leary of giving Abbey any vax at all for fear it may stress her. She is a 2 1/2 year old very healthy girl with no symptoms and gets Transfer factor and L-lysine daily and also is on a strictly raw food diet. Good luck with your sanctuary... what a wonderful thing you are doing! Tracey
On Wed, Jun 2, 2010 at 5:27 PM, Marnie Miszewski <[email protected]>wrote: > Just wanted to introduce myself, I've been reading the board for awhile.. > My > history with FELV cats started out not so good. I found a beautiful gray > kitty that I spent months feeding outdoors trying to coax her in. At last > she rewarded me for my patience and allowed me to pick her up and bring her > inside. She was very sweet and I kept her in a spare bedroom before > introducing her to my other cats. I took her to the vet and she tested > negative for FELV. The vet recommended to keep her in the bedroom for a few > more months to make sure she was okay and I did until it was time to have > her spayed. After I dropped her off, I received a phone call telling me she > was FELV positive and recommending that I put her down. I was distraught > and > asked if I could have some time to think about it. I called everyone I knew > and tried to get a crash course on FELV which wasn't easy with all the > misinformation out there. And misinformation is what I got. The vet told me > she wouldn't last long; that she was a danger to my other cats; and also > she > was a danger to my mother who has MS. That last piece of news sealed the > deal. I agreed to let them put her down. > > > > I still carry the guilt of that decision, especially now that I have met > and > rescued Thomas O'Malley. I found him outside of work begging for food and > in > awful condition. I immediately took the rest of the day off and drove him > to > a different vet. He tested positive immediately for FELV. When the vet > asked > me what I wanted to do, I was surprised she gave me a choice. She expressed > that of course I had a choice and that under the right conditions, FELV > cats > can lead long, happy lives. I was stunned, elated, filled with guilt, > shocked, overwhelmed and so much more. I knew only one thing. I could not > possibly live with the guilt of putting another FELV cat down. So after > they > treated Tom for every parasite imaginable, they loaned me a cage to keep > him > separated, and wished me luck. At first I kept him on my screened back > porch > and he accepted this gratefully. I quickly learned he was part Siamese, > because he loved to talk. I tried to keep distance between us at first > because I knew I had to find him another home and I didn't want to get > attached. > > > > Time passed and no one wanted him. He went from the cage, to dominion over > the entire porch. It got hot so he moved into my bathroom. He was > claustrophobic so he got the spare bedroom. All the while my 7 other > kitties > (yes 7, I managed to find and fix through the years) watched him > tentatively > through the windows. He was lonely and desperately wanted some furry > companionship. I bought him the cat sitter video. He loved it but got > bored. > I knew he was going to need a friend. It was then that I knew I wanted to > start a shelter for FELV positive kitties. As fate would have it, 2 weeks > later I was laid off from work and I was able to get started officially on > the project. Helping Paws Animal Sanctuary was formed and I'm currently in > the process of trying to find a location to put these animals. I have an > awesome Realtor who really seems to know about the required zoning. I'm > confident we will have a place very soon. When I do, I will let you all > know! I know a resource like this is desperately needed. > > > > Tom still lives in my spare bedroom, but his constant whining has earned > him > a roommate. I had one of my other less social kids vaccinated and she moved > in with him. He still isn't completely happy and it's difficult for me to > refuse him anything, which is why I would like some advice from all of you. > I'm still pretty confused about the vaccine. If I give the others the > vaccine, will they test positive for FELV without really having it like > FIV? > Is it at all dangerous (I have some older and diabetic cats)? If they are > vaccinated for FELV are they carriers for the disease and dangerous to > other > cats? Are there any down sides to the vaccine? I guess I just want to make > sure to cover all my bases before I take the step of letting him out of his > bedroom. He really wants to come out and play with kitten I rescued! > > > > Thank you for any help and sorry about the long post! I feel like I know > some of you and wanted to introduce myself! > > Marnie > > www.helpingpawsanimalsanctuary.com > <http://www.helpingpawsanimalsanctuary.com/> > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > Felvtalk mailing list > [email protected] > http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org > _______________________________________________ Felvtalk mailing list [email protected] http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org
