[Felvtalk] Foster mom devastated at a FELV positive test result
Hi! I am a foster mom for a high kill shelter in Philly. I am fostering my 3rd litter which was my first litter of bottle feeders. I've spent the past 24 hours researching like crazy online and trying to talk to others with experience but really getting a lot of contradicting information. The background: I pulled this litter from the shelter about 5 weeks ago as borderline bottle feeders. They were dumped on a doorstep in a box and brought to the shelter. Apparently there were 2 additional dropped off a day later that they assume was from the same litter but they were euthanized due to space/kitten season. When I brought them home they were all around .65lbs. Two of them were eating wet food and 1 refused it. I ended up having to bottle feed the 1 for 3 weeks before being able to wean him completely. All 3 have been active, healthy and playful. No signs of illness. Gaining weight steadily..actually faster than any of my previous litters. Today I dropped them off to be spayed and neutered. My biggest boy weighed 2.6lbs, girl 2.2lbs and than my smallest boy who was the bottle feeder the longest came in at just about 2lbs. I got a call this afternoon that the Feline Leukemia test came back positive. They only tested 1 at the time so I brought them right to the clinic when I picked them up and they tested a 2nd one who also tested positive. At this point they have been completely unhelpful in giving me any info or reassurance. The only good thing I got out of them was that they did tell me that they have a rescue that specifically pulls FIV/FELV+ cats and if my cats didnt flip they would be able to place them in the rescue. That rescue claims they have a 90-95% flip rate of FELV/FIV+ kittens they pull under the age of 12 weeks...but they are grouping FELV and FIV together and I honestly have no idea how many kittens they have pulled to create this statistic for themselves (it could be 2 litters or hundreds)...they claim I have a high chance of my kittens still flipping negative. I have/had adopters lined up for all 3 kittens. I have contacted them all. One is going to look for another kitten. Two have actually requested to wait..one is willing to wait as long as it takes to see if he will flip...even if it takes 6 months. For the past week I had given the kittens much more freedom in my house. I know for a fact they drank from my 2 resident cats water dishes. I also caught my 1 resident cat sneak into the kitten room and eating from their dish. So they have been exposed. My main questions really are about the possibility of them flipping. I cant seem to get any kind of consistent answer on this. I have tons of other foster parents that keep reassuring me that the chances of them flipping to negative and just that they tested positive bc they are too young to have an accurate test and than looking online or talking with some others make it sound like the chance is higher of a flip if it was FIV not FELV. So what are the chances of them flipping? Am I setting myself (and the potential adopters) up with false hope thinkng there could be a reasonable chance of them flipping to negative? Do I just keep testing every month for 6 months? They did the quick snap test. Should I continue to do that test or at what point should I request or bring to my own vet to have another type of test done? If they flip to negative- does that really mean they are in the clear and its safe for them to be adopted into a home with other cats? Someone is suggesting that I take my resident cats in and have them FELV vaccinated immediately even though they were already exposed...should I do this? I had called my vet and they told me to bring my cats in 2 months to be tested for FELV. So much mixed information has been given to me Im just so emotionally drained and confused on my next steps. I've grown to love these kittens very much but Im in no position to make them permanent resident cats here for long term. At the most I think I could consider hanging onto the boy Henry who has the adopter willing to wait for him for the 6 months to see if he flips negative if its worth waiting that long. I just dont know at what point to turn them over to the FELV rescue. I hate to dump them but I feel like if they truly are positive I cant provide them with what they need so the rescue specific for FELV is the best for them..but I dont want to put them there and have them placed in foster care with other FELV cats to have them just flip to negative but now be infected bc of exposure to other positive cats. I want to know they are truly positive before making that choice. Thanks again. I really appreciate any information or suggestions. Sadly the shelter is not offering me a lot of support or advice and at the clinic I felt the vet tech had no idea what she was talking about. -- Jamielynn Storch www.jlynnphotographyonline.com ___ Felvtalk mailing list
Re: [Felvtalk] Foster mom devastated at a FELV positive test result
I wish I could you give you something more definite - but the truth is you just don't know - I know of many people whose kittens became negative later on, but also know many who remained positive. I have one felk kitty, Ginger, I have had her since she was 6 months old - now she is 8 years old and doing very well - One suggestion, if you can afford it - I would recommend LTCI on the kittens as some of the users of LTCI, their kittens became negative - I can't be sure if it's because of it or just a coincidnece - but my Felk kittens did really well on LTCI - Date: Wed, 13 Jun 2012 15:07:50 -0400 From: jlsphotograp...@gmail.com To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Subject: [Felvtalk] Foster mom devastated at a FELV positive test result Hi! I am a foster mom for a high kill shelter in Philly. I am fostering my 3rd litter which was my first litter of bottle feeders. I've spent the past 24 hours researching like crazy online and trying to talk to others with experience but really getting a lot of contradicting information. The background: I pulled this litter from the shelter about 5 weeks ago as borderline bottle feeders. They were dumped on a doorstep in a box and brought to the shelter. Apparently there were 2 additional dropped off a day later that they assume was from the same litter but they were euthanized due to space/kitten season. When I brought them home they were all around .65lbs. Two of them were eating wet food and 1 refused it. I ended up having to bottle feed the 1 for 3 weeks before being able to wean him completely. All 3 have been active, healthy and playful. No signs of illness. Gaining weight steadily..actually faster than any of my previous litters. Today I dropped them off to be spayed and neutered. My biggest boy weighed 2.6lbs, girl 2.2lbs and than my smallest boy who was the bottle feeder the longest came in at just about 2lbs. I got a call this afternoon that the Feline Leukemia test came back positive. They only tested 1 at the time so I brought them right to the clinic when I picked them up and they tested a 2nd one who also tested positive. At this point they have been completely unhelpful in giving me any info or reassurance. The only good thing I got out of them was that they did tell me that they have a rescue that specifically pulls FIV/FELV+ cats and if my cats didnt flip they would be able to place them in the rescue. That rescue claims they have a 90-95% flip rate of FELV/FIV+ kittens they pull under the age of 12 weeks...but they are grouping FELV and FIV together and I honestly have no idea how many kittens they have pulled to create this statistic for themselves (it could be 2 litters or hundreds)...they claim I have a high chance of my kittens still flipping negative. I have/had adopters lined up for all 3 kittens. I have contacted them all. One is going to look for another kitten. Two have actually requested to wait..one is willing to wait as long as it takes to see if he will flip...even if it takes 6 months. For the past week I had given the kittens much more freedom in my house. I know for a fact they drank from my 2 resident cats water dishes. I also caught my 1 resident cat sneak into the kitten room and eating from their dish. So they have been exposed. My main questions really are about the possibility of them flipping. I cant seem to get any kind of consistent answer on this. I have tons of other foster parents that keep reassuring me that the chances of them flipping to negative and just that they tested positive bc they are too young to have an accurate test and than looking online or talking with some others make it sound like the chance is higher of a flip if it was FIV not FELV. So what are the chances of them flipping? Am I setting myself (and the potential adopters) up with false hope thinkng there could be a reasonable chance of them flipping to negative? Do I just keep testing every month for 6 months? They did the quick snap test. Should I continue to do that test or at what point should I request or bring to my own vet to have another type of test done? If they flip to negative- does that really mean they are in the clear and its safe for them to be adopted into a home with other cats? Someone is suggesting that I take my resident cats in and have them FELV vaccinated immediately even though they were already exposed...should I do this? I had called my vet and they told me to bring my cats in 2 months to be tested for FELV. So much mixed information has been given to me Im just so emotionally drained and confused on my next steps. I've grown to love these kittens very much but Im in no position to make them permanent resident cats here for long term. At the most I think I could consider hanging onto the boy Henry who has the adopter willing to wait for him for the 6 months to see if he flips negative if its worth waiting that long. I just
Re: [Felvtalk] Foster mom devastated at a FELV positive test result
Thanks so much for the quick reply. What is LTCI and where would I go to get it? I'm sure the shelter wouldnt cover it but I have a big network of supportive volunteer friends who I believe would step up and help out if I asked for help covering something financially that could help them. I want to do what is best for them but personally dont have the funds to cover it myself with 2 cats and 2 dogs of my own. But I think I could pull something together if its not completely outrageous and seems like something I should really give a shot. --- I wish I could you give you something more definite - but the truth is you just don't know - I know of many people whose kittens became negative later on, but also know many who remained positive. I have one felk kitty, Ginger, I have had her since she was 6 months old - now she is 8 years old and doing very well - One suggestion, if you can afford it - I would recommend LTCI on the kittens as some of the users of LTCI, their kittens became negative - I can't be sure if it's because of it or just a coincidnece - but my Felk kittens did really well on LTCI - On Wed, Jun 13, 2012 at 3:07 PM, Jamielynn Storch jlsphotograp...@gmail.com wrote: Hi! I am a foster mom for a high kill shelter in Philly. I am fostering my 3rd litter which was my first litter of bottle feeders. I've spent the past 24 hours researching like crazy online and trying to talk to others with experience but really getting a lot of contradicting information. The background: I pulled this litter from the shelter about 5 weeks ago as borderline bottle feeders. They were dumped on a doorstep in a box and brought to the shelter. Apparently there were 2 additional dropped off a day later that they assume was from the same litter but they were euthanized due to space/kitten season. When I brought them home they were all around .65lbs. Two of them were eating wet food and 1 refused it. I ended up having to bottle feed the 1 for 3 weeks before being able to wean him completely. All 3 have been active, healthy and playful. No signs of illness. Gaining weight steadily..actually faster than any of my previous litters. Today I dropped them off to be spayed and neutered. My biggest boy weighed 2.6lbs, girl 2.2lbs and than my smallest boy who was the bottle feeder the longest came in at just about 2lbs. I got a call this afternoon that the Feline Leukemia test came back positive. They only tested 1 at the time so I brought them right to the clinic when I picked them up and they tested a 2nd one who also tested positive. At this point they have been completely unhelpful in giving me any info or reassurance. The only good thing I got out of them was that they did tell me that they have a rescue that specifically pulls FIV/FELV+ cats and if my cats didnt flip they would be able to place them in the rescue. That rescue claims they have a 90-95% flip rate of FELV/FIV+ kittens they pull under the age of 12 weeks...but they are grouping FELV and FIV together and I honestly have no idea how many kittens they have pulled to create this statistic for themselves (it could be 2 litters or hundreds)...they claim I have a high chance of my kittens still flipping negative. I have/had adopters lined up for all 3 kittens. I have contacted them all. One is going to look for another kitten. Two have actually requested to wait..one is willing to wait as long as it takes to see if he will flip...even if it takes 6 months. For the past week I had given the kittens much more freedom in my house. I know for a fact they drank from my 2 resident cats water dishes. I also caught my 1 resident cat sneak into the kitten room and eating from their dish. So they have been exposed. My main questions really are about the possibility of them flipping. I cant seem to get any kind of consistent answer on this. I have tons of other foster parents that keep reassuring me that the chances of them flipping to negative and just that they tested positive bc they are too young to have an accurate test and than looking online or talking with some others make it sound like the chance is higher of a flip if it was FIV not FELV. So what are the chances of them flipping? Am I setting myself (and the potential adopters) up with false hope thinkng there could be a reasonable chance of them flipping to negative? Do I just keep testing every month for 6 months? They did the quick snap test. Should I continue to do that test or at what point should I request or bring to my own vet to have another type of test done? If they flip to negative- does that really mean they are in the clear and its safe for them to be adopted into a home with other cats? Someone is suggesting that I take my resident cats in and have them FELV vaccinated immediately even though they were already exposed...should I do this? I had called my vet and they told me to bring my cats
Re: [Felvtalk] Foster mom devastated at a FELV positive test result
PS- I dont know if this link will work but here is the album of photos of my sweet foster babies. Gerty, Jean and Henry. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.595079365376.2048530.135501135type=3 On Wed, Jun 13, 2012 at 3:07 PM, Jamielynn Storch jlsphotograp...@gmail.com wrote: Hi! I am a foster mom for a high kill shelter in Philly. I am fostering my 3rd litter which was my first litter of bottle feeders. I've spent the past 24 hours researching like crazy online and trying to talk to others with experience but really getting a lot of contradicting information. The background: I pulled this litter from the shelter about 5 weeks ago as borderline bottle feeders. They were dumped on a doorstep in a box and brought to the shelter. Apparently there were 2 additional dropped off a day later that they assume was from the same litter but they were euthanized due to space/kitten season. When I brought them home they were all around .65lbs. Two of them were eating wet food and 1 refused it. I ended up having to bottle feed the 1 for 3 weeks before being able to wean him completely. All 3 have been active, healthy and playful. No signs of illness. Gaining weight steadily..actually faster than any of my previous litters. Today I dropped them off to be spayed and neutered. My biggest boy weighed 2.6lbs, girl 2.2lbs and than my smallest boy who was the bottle feeder the longest came in at just about 2lbs. I got a call this afternoon that the Feline Leukemia test came back positive. They only tested 1 at the time so I brought them right to the clinic when I picked them up and they tested a 2nd one who also tested positive. At this point they have been completely unhelpful in giving me any info or reassurance. The only good thing I got out of them was that they did tell me that they have a rescue that specifically pulls FIV/FELV+ cats and if my cats didnt flip they would be able to place them in the rescue. That rescue claims they have a 90-95% flip rate of FELV/FIV+ kittens they pull under the age of 12 weeks...but they are grouping FELV and FIV together and I honestly have no idea how many kittens they have pulled to create this statistic for themselves (it could be 2 litters or hundreds)...they claim I have a high chance of my kittens still flipping negative. I have/had adopters lined up for all 3 kittens. I have contacted them all. One is going to look for another kitten. Two have actually requested to wait..one is willing to wait as long as it takes to see if he will flip...even if it takes 6 months. For the past week I had given the kittens much more freedom in my house. I know for a fact they drank from my 2 resident cats water dishes. I also caught my 1 resident cat sneak into the kitten room and eating from their dish. So they have been exposed. My main questions really are about the possibility of them flipping. I cant seem to get any kind of consistent answer on this. I have tons of other foster parents that keep reassuring me that the chances of them flipping to negative and just that they tested positive bc they are too young to have an accurate test and than looking online or talking with some others make it sound like the chance is higher of a flip if it was FIV not FELV. So what are the chances of them flipping? Am I setting myself (and the potential adopters) up with false hope thinkng there could be a reasonable chance of them flipping to negative? Do I just keep testing every month for 6 months? They did the quick snap test. Should I continue to do that test or at what point should I request or bring to my own vet to have another type of test done? If they flip to negative- does that really mean they are in the clear and its safe for them to be adopted into a home with other cats? Someone is suggesting that I take my resident cats in and have them FELV vaccinated immediately even though they were already exposed...should I do this? I had called my vet and they told me to bring my cats in 2 months to be tested for FELV. So much mixed information has been given to me Im just so emotionally drained and confused on my next steps. I've grown to love these kittens very much but Im in no position to make them permanent resident cats here for long term. At the most I think I could consider hanging onto the boy Henry who has the adopter willing to wait for him for the 6 months to see if he flips negative if its worth waiting that long. I just dont know at what point to turn them over to the FELV rescue. I hate to dump them but I feel like if they truly are positive I cant provide them with what they need so the rescue specific for FELV is the best for them..but I dont want to put them there and have them placed in foster care with other FELV cats to have them just flip to negative but now be infected bc of exposure to other positive cats. I want to know they are truly positive before making
Re: [Felvtalk] Foster mom devastated at a FELV positive test result
I had one kitten flip from FIV+ to no FIV. I had two adult cats flip from FeLv+ to no FeLv. Especially in kittens, it's very possible that in two months, when re-tested, they will be negative. As for your cats eating/drinking or being near the kittens, that shouldn't be an issue. It's not that easily transmitted, especially since the kittens are eating well, growing normally and gaining weight. They are not actually active for FeLv. From: Jamielynn Storch jlsphotograp...@gmail.com To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Sent: Wednesday, June 13, 2012 2:42 PM Subject: Re: [Felvtalk] Foster mom devastated at a FELV positive test result PS- I dont know if this link will work but here is the album of photos of my sweet foster babies. Gerty, Jean and Henry. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.595079365376.2048530.135501135type=3 On Wed, Jun 13, 2012 at 3:07 PM, Jamielynn Storch jlsphotograp...@gmail.com wrote: Hi! I am a foster mom for a high kill shelter in Philly. I am fostering my 3rd litter which was my first litter of bottle feeders. I've spent the past 24 hours researching like crazy online and trying to talk to others with experience but really getting a lot of contradicting information. The background: I pulled this litter from the shelter about 5 weeks ago as borderline bottle feeders. They were dumped on a doorstep in a box and brought to the shelter. Apparently there were 2 additional dropped off a day later that they assume was from the same litter but they were euthanized due to space/kitten season. When I brought them home they were all around .65lbs. Two of them were eating wet food and 1 refused it. I ended up having to bottle feed the 1 for 3 weeks before being able to wean him completely. All 3 have been active, healthy and playful. No signs of illness. Gaining weight steadily..actually faster than any of my previous litters. Today I dropped them off to be spayed and neutered. My biggest boy weighed 2.6lbs, girl 2.2lbs and than my smallest boy who was the bottle feeder the longest came in at just about 2lbs. I got a call this afternoon that the Feline Leukemia test came back positive. They only tested 1 at the time so I brought them right to the clinic when I picked them up and they tested a 2nd one who also tested positive. At this point they have been completely unhelpful in giving me any info or reassurance. The only good thing I got out of them was that they did tell me that they have a rescue that specifically pulls FIV/FELV+ cats and if my cats didnt flip they would be able to place them in the rescue. That rescue claims they have a 90-95% flip rate of FELV/FIV+ kittens they pull under the age of 12 weeks...but they are grouping FELV and FIV together and I honestly have no idea how many kittens they have pulled to create this statistic for themselves (it could be 2 litters or hundreds)...they claim I have a high chance of my kittens still flipping negative. I have/had adopters lined up for all 3 kittens. I have contacted them all. One is going to look for another kitten. Two have actually requested to wait..one is willing to wait as long as it takes to see if he will flip...even if it takes 6 months. For the past week I had given the kittens much more freedom in my house. I know for a fact they drank from my 2 resident cats water dishes. I also caught my 1 resident cat sneak into the kitten room and eating from their dish. So they have been exposed. My main questions really are about the possibility of them flipping. I cant seem to get any kind of consistent answer on this. I have tons of other foster parents that keep reassuring me that the chances of them flipping to negative and just that they tested positive bc they are too young to have an accurate test and than looking online or talking with some others make it sound like the chance is higher of a flip if it was FIV not FELV. So what are the chances of them flipping? Am I setting myself (and the potential adopters) up with false hope thinkng there could be a reasonable chance of them flipping to negative? Do I just keep testing every month for 6 months? They did the quick snap test. Should I continue to do that test or at what point should I request or bring to my own vet to have another type of test done? If they flip to negative- does that really mean they are in the clear and its safe for them to be adopted into a home with other cats? Someone is suggesting that I take my resident cats in and have them FELV vaccinated immediately even though they were already exposed...should I do this? I had called my vet and they told me to bring my cats in 2 months to be tested for FELV. So much mixed information has been given to me Im just so emotionally drained and confused on my next steps. I've grown to love these kittens very much but Im in no position to make them permanent
Re: [Felvtalk] Foster mom devastated at a FELV positive test result
Hi Jamielynn: I adopted a cat from ACCT last year without knowing they do not test unless requested by the adopter. My cat turned out to be FELV+ she was with my other cats for a week. My vet wanted me to put her to sleep but I couldn't. I contacted the Best Little Cat House near Pittsburg and they were very helpful with information. My cat has her own room away from the other cats and has been very happy. My other cats have not shown any signs of illness. April From: Jamielynn Storch jlsphotograp...@gmail.com To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Sent: Wednesday, June 13, 2012 3:42 PM Subject: Re: [Felvtalk] Foster mom devastated at a FELV positive test result PS- I dont know if this link will work but here is the album of photos of my sweet foster babies. Gerty, Jean and Henry. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.595079365376.2048530.135501135type=3 On Wed, Jun 13, 2012 at 3:07 PM, Jamielynn Storch jlsphotograp...@gmail.com wrote: Hi! I am a foster mom for a high kill shelter in Philly. I am fostering my 3rd litter which was my first litter of bottle feeders. I've spent the past 24 hours researching like crazy online and trying to talk to others with experience but really getting a lot of contradicting information. The background: I pulled this litter from the shelter about 5 weeks ago as borderline bottle feeders. They were dumped on a doorstep in a box and brought to the shelter. Apparently there were 2 additional dropped off a day later that they assume was from the same litter but they were euthanized due to space/kitten season. When I brought them home they were all around .65lbs. Two of them were eating wet food and 1 refused it. I ended up having to bottle feed the 1 for 3 weeks before being able to wean him completely. All 3 have been active, healthy and playful. No signs of illness. Gaining weight steadily..actually faster than any of my previous litters. Today I dropped them off to be spayed and neutered. My biggest boy weighed 2.6lbs, girl 2.2lbs and than my smallest boy who was the bottle feeder the longest came in at just about 2lbs. I got a call this afternoon that the Feline Leukemia test came back positive. They only tested 1 at the time so I brought them right to the clinic when I picked them up and they tested a 2nd one who also tested positive. At this point they have been completely unhelpful in giving me any info or reassurance. The only good thing I got out of them was that they did tell me that they have a rescue that specifically pulls FIV/FELV+ cats and if my cats didnt flip they would be able to place them in the rescue. That rescue claims they have a 90-95% flip rate of FELV/FIV+ kittens they pull under the age of 12 weeks...but they are grouping FELV and FIV together and I honestly have no idea how many kittens they have pulled to create this statistic for themselves (it could be 2 litters or hundreds)...they claim I have a high chance of my kittens still flipping negative. I have/had adopters lined up for all 3 kittens. I have contacted them all. One is going to look for another kitten. Two have actually requested to wait..one is willing to wait as long as it takes to see if he will flip...even if it takes 6 months. For the past week I had given the kittens much more freedom in my house. I know for a fact they drank from my 2 resident cats water dishes. I also caught my 1 resident cat sneak into the kitten room and eating from their dish. So they have been exposed. My main questions really are about the possibility of them flipping. I cant seem to get any kind of consistent answer on this. I have tons of other foster parents that keep reassuring me that the chances of them flipping to negative and just that they tested positive bc they are too young to have an accurate test and than looking online or talking with some others make it sound like the chance is higher of a flip if it was FIV not FELV. So what are the chances of them flipping? Am I setting myself (and the potential adopters) up with false hope thinkng there could be a reasonable chance of them flipping to negative? Do I just keep testing every month for 6 months? They did the quick snap test. Should I continue to do that test or at what point should I request or bring to my own vet to have another type of test done? If they flip to negative- does that really mean they are in the clear and its safe for them to be adopted into a home with other cats? Someone is suggesting that I take my resident cats in and have them FELV vaccinated immediately even though they were already exposed...should I do this? I had called my vet and they told me to bring my cats in 2 months to be tested for FELV. So much mixed information has been given to me Im just so emotionally drained and confused on my next steps. I've grown to love these kittens very much but Im in no position to make them permanent resident
[Felvtalk] Foster mom devastated at a FELV positive test result
April ACCT is exactly where I am fostering these guys for- so upsetting that they dont test. I as well assumed it was done. They will only test if requested by the foster home yet they dont educate the foster homes that its something they need to ask for. I understand as bottlefeeders the test is inaccurate anyway but still I had no clue I was even evers supposed ot ask for it. My first set of kittens were adopted out and never tested- if they come up positive at some point I would be so upset for the adopters. I also never would have exposed them to my cats until tested if I had known. I am feeling more confident that the chances of transmission to my cats are hopefully slim with their very limited and minimal interaction. Im sad having them contained in the room right now but they are happy and in my eyes at this point perfectly healthy. Hoping they flip negative. ITs very helpful hearing other peoples experience. April I give you all the credit in the world for sticking with your baby and making it work. I am so concerned for if they stay positive as to what that means for them. The shetler has a rescue supposedly that will take them but I dont want to just throw them at some rescue if its someting I can still work to find placement for them. I try to stick to my commitments and I love these babies BUT the thing thats not possible is for me to adopt them long term. Thats always been out of the question. I have 2 cats of my own and the current cat room was actually going to begin transformation into a baby nursery after this litter. Its all so overwhelming...I feel the weight of their lives and futures literally in my hands. Euthanization is obviously not an option or consideration for me unless it was a quality of life thing. Wrapping my brain around how to work through this and what the best course of action is if they are positive is where Im struggling most. Deep breaths I keep telling myself..one day at a time. -- Jamielynn Storch www.jlynnphotographyonline.com ___ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org
Re: [Felvtalk] Foster mom devastated at a FELV positive test result
With kittens there is very good chance they will come back negative. My girl Spicey was 10 months old and had been at the shelter for almost two months. I had her tested again and it was found that the Leukemia was in her bone. I'm just thankful that any new addition I always take to my vet right away as a precaution. My vet said as long as she wasn't shedding the virus then my other cats would be fine. What got me so upset was the adoption counslor knew I had other cats and never even mentioned about having her tested. Please contact Best Little Cat house they really helped me and put my mind at ease. They take in cats that are both FELV+ and FIV but they have two separate rooms for them. Cats that are FELV+ can live with it for a very long time. Fingers crossed that they will come back negative. From: Jamielynn Storch jlsphotograp...@gmail.com To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Sent: Wednesday, June 13, 2012 4:38 PM Subject: [Felvtalk] Foster mom devastated at a FELV positive test result April ACCT is exactly where I am fostering these guys for- so upsetting that they dont test. I as well assumed it was done. They will only test if requested by the foster home yet they dont educate the foster homes that its something they need to ask for. I understand as bottlefeeders the test is inaccurate anyway but still I had no clue I was even evers supposed ot ask for it. My first set of kittens were adopted out and never tested- if they come up positive at some point I would be so upset for the adopters. I also never would have exposed them to my cats until tested if I had known. I am feeling more confident that the chances of transmission to my cats are hopefully slim with their very limited and minimal interaction. Im sad having them contained in the room right now but they are happy and in my eyes at this point perfectly healthy. Hoping they flip negative. ITs very helpful hearing other peoples experience. April I give you all the credit in the world for sticking with your baby and making it work. I am so concerned for if they stay positive as to what that means for them. The shetler has a rescue supposedly that will take them but I dont want to just throw them at some rescue if its someting I can still work to find placement for them. I try to stick to my commitments and I love these babies BUT the thing thats not possible is for me to adopt them long term. Thats always been out of the question. I have 2 cats of my own and the current cat room was actually going to begin transformation into a baby nursery after this litter. Its all so overwhelming...I feel the weight of their lives and futures literally in my hands. Euthanization is obviously not an option or consideration for me unless it was a quality of life thing. Wrapping my brain around how to work through this and what the best course of action is if they are positive is where Im struggling most. Deep breaths I keep telling myself..one day at a time. -- Jamielynn Storch www.jlynnphotographyonline.com ___ 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
Re: [Felvtalk] Foster mom devastated at a FELV positive test result
Jamie, How old are the other cats that are actually yours? If they are not real young and are not senior's, they more than likely will not contract the disease even though they were exposed. But since you have a big heart in helping other fur babies, then it won't hurt to vaccinate your cat(s) against FeLV for the future. It will NOT make the test positive if you vaccinate them and you will have peace of mind if you do vaccinate them against FeLV if you ever take in more litters or strays. My experience is I adopted a very sweet orange kitty from my local humane society when he was 3 mos old. I fostered him until he was old enough to be neutered at 6 mos, then adopted him after. At 9 mos, he was too far gone with the disease that I had no other choice. He and my other cat were very playful together, and groomed each other, etc. I was worried he may have contracted it. But he never did. He was a little over a year old so his immune system was good. Since this experience, I continue to vaccinate all of my cats even though they are all strictly indoor only. I know in my heart that if a stray finds me, I will not turn it away. So if I were you I would go get your other babies vaccinated, it won't hurt them. But do get them tested in 90 days. I wish you the best and I did look at your photos on Facebook. They are much too precious. I love the markings on the black and white kittens. They are irresistible! - Original Message - From: Jamielynn Storch To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Sent: Wednesday, June 13, 2012 3:38 PM Subject: [Felvtalk] Foster mom devastated at a FELV positive test result April ACCT is exactly where I am fostering these guys for- so upsetting that they dont test. I as well assumed it was done. They will only test if requested by the foster home yet they dont educate the foster homes that its something they need to ask for. I understand as bottlefeeders the test is inaccurate anyway but still I had no clue I was even evers supposed ot ask for it. My first set of kittens were adopted out and never tested- if they come up positive at some point I would be so upset for the adopters. I also never would have exposed them to my cats until tested if I had known. I am feeling more confident that the chances of transmission to my cats are hopefully slim with their very limited and minimal interaction. Im sad having them contained in the room right now but they are happy and in my eyes at this point perfectly healthy. Hoping they flip negative. ITs very helpful hearing other peoples experience. April I give you all the credit in the world for sticking with your baby and making it work. I am so concerned for if they stay positive as to what that means for them. The shetler has a rescue supposedly that will take them but I dont want to just throw them at some rescue if its someting I can still work to find placement for them. I try to stick to my commitments and I love these babies BUT the thing thats not possible is for me to adopt them long term. Thats always been out of the question. I have 2 cats of my own and the current cat room was actually going to begin transformation into a baby nursery after this litter. Its all so overwhelming...I feel the weight of their lives and futures literally in my hands. Euthanization is obviously not an option or consideration for me unless it was a quality of life thing. Wrapping my brain around how to work through this and what the best course of action is if they are positive is where Im struggling most. Deep breaths I keep telling myself..one day at a time. -- Jamielynn Storch www.jlynnphotographyonline.com -- ___ 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
