Re: [Felvtalk] New to the FELV+ kitty group
Stacy, Hi. I am sorry to hear you got a postive felv. I think it's a good idea to either retest with the elisa (snap test) or send for IFA. The ELISA can show you a transient infection (one in which your cat can fight off the virus and survive without complication) wherein the test will become negative once the virus is gone. In this case, the IFA should be negative. If the virus gets into your cats cells, the IFA test will become positive and your cat will either become an asymptomatic carrier of the virus or progress onto the symptoms of the disease. So a repeat test would be high on my list especially with your cat's history. As far as treatment, if it is a transient infection, high dose vitamin C, lysine and possibly acemannan (injections or oral) have all been theorized and in some cases shown to help them fight off and overcome the virus. If it's in your cats cells, there is no known cure for removing the virus. It will likely be there for life and have the ability to cause disease. In this case, the only thing that is really done is to support the cat's immune system to keep the virus as minimally active as possible. This is done with things like LTCI (although it is possible that if this is given early enough you may be able to get rid of the virus - this is conjecture for now), interferon, Standard process immune support, acemannan, vitamin C, etc. Your cat is having symptoms, or something. Possibly symptoms of felv (the anemia and GI problems would be consistent) and possibly something else. I would be suspicious about your situation for the following reason - your cat is older and had a negative history with yearly vaccinations. Although it's possible he still picked up felv, I would still persue other causes of the symptoms. Metronidazole is a good idea, but was a fecal done? You could try probiotics. I would also be considering a Bartonella infection (hemobartonella can cause anemia - it is an infection in the blood) and it is often seen in felv cats. I live in Kenosha, WI and an absolutely excellent holistic vet is Dr. Jodi. She is a little bit on the expensive side and you have to plan ahead to see her, unless there is a cancellation, but is well worth it. Here's the information The Animal Doctor in Muskego WI - Dr. Jodi - http://www.animaldoctormuskego.com/ Hope this helps. Jenny On 4/13/10, Stacy Zacher stacy_zac...@yahoo.com wrote: Hi: We are new to the group. My (approximately) 13 year old male kitty has been diagnosed with FELV via a SNAP test. I found him as a stray when he was about age 1-2 and I did have him tested then. The test came back negative and I proceeded to vaccinate him for FELV with yearly boosters as at the time he was a semi-outdoor still. I don't recall if my vet had me do a second test or not so I am rather surprised and shocked that he has tested positive now but I've read it can happen. We have a bloodwork re-check tomorrow and the IFA test at the vet. We've been to an internal medicine specialist for a second opinion on how we can manage this disease and keep him comfortable. This showed up because his white blood cell count has been abnormally low ever since we moved from one side our townhouse to the other (Feb 2010) and he has been very stressed out ever since the move. He was vomiting a lot in the recent past and I took him in again for testing. The vet this time tested him for the FELV, FIV etc. His attitude seemed inconsolable at times and he seemed to howl a lot and vocalize a lot as though he is having issues or pain. But he runs up and down the stairs with ease, jumps on to counters still and plays a bit but is less active than he was in January. Any advice is greatly appreciated as far as best diet (he currently eats wellness canned and assorted other canned but only seems to like fish flavors now! He eats Tasted of the Wild Dry salmon flavor as well). At the moment I've started him on Standard PRocess feline immune support supplements. The vet put him on metronidazole in case he has bacterial overgrowth in his intestines and reglan for nausea/vomiting. He seems to do well for about 4 days off reglan, then starts vomiting food again in the morning. He is eating/drinking/ urinating/ defecating okay and seems to be howling less on the meds. I am looking for advice on treatments, immunotherapies etc. - both conventional and holistic. I've heard from others that immunoregulin works as does Imulan LTCI. I'd love to hear what helps your kitties.If you know of any vets in Wisconsin in the Milwaukee county/Waukesha/ Jefferson County areas who specialize in FELV+ kitties, please let me know also. There is a great vet in Madison but that is a ways to drive for us in his state. Thanks so much for all your help. Stacy and Spanky in Wisconsin ___ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org
[Felvtalk] New to the FELV+ kitty group
Hi: We are new to the group. My (approximately) 13 year old male kitty has been diagnosed with FELV via a SNAP test. I found him as a stray when he was about age 1-2 and I did have him tested then. The test came back negative and I proceeded to vaccinate him for FELV with yearly boosters as at the time he was a semi-outdoor still. I don't recall if my vet had me do a second test or not so I am rather surprised and shocked that he has tested positive now but I've read it can happen. We have a bloodwork re-check tomorrow and the IFA test at the vet. We've been to an internal medicine specialist for a second opinion on how we can manage this disease and keep him comfortable. This showed up because his white blood cell count has been abnormally low ever since we moved from one side our townhouse to the other (Feb 2010) and he has been very stressed out ever since the move. He was vomiting a lot in the recent past and I took him in again for testing. The vet this time tested him for the FELV, FIV etc. His attitude seemed inconsolable at times and he seemed to howl a lot and vocalize a lot as though he is having issues or pain. But he runs up and down the stairs with ease, jumps on to counters still and plays a bit but is less active than he was in January. Any advice is greatly appreciated as far as best diet (he currently eats wellness canned and assorted other canned but only seems to like fish flavors now! He eats Tasted of the Wild Dry salmon flavor as well). At the moment I've started him on Standard PRocess feline immune support supplements. The vet put him on metronidazole in case he has bacterial overgrowth in his intestines and reglan for nausea/vomiting. He seems to do well for about 4 days off reglan, then starts vomiting food again in the morning. He is eating/drinking/ urinating/ defecating okay and seems to be howling less on the meds. I am looking for advice on treatments, immunotherapies etc. - both conventional and holistic. I've heard from others that immunoregulin works as does Imulan LTCI. I'd love to hear what helps your kitties. If you know of any vets in Wisconsin in the Milwaukee county/Waukesha/ Jefferson County areas who specialize in FELV+ kitties, please let me know also. There is a great vet in Madison but that is a ways to drive for us in his state. Thanks so much for all your help. Stacy and Spanky in Wisconsin ___ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org
Re: [Felvtalk] New to the FELV+ kitty group
Here's the link for the American Association of Feline Practitioners: http://www.catvets.com/ If nothing else, this will give you a compact list of places to call with questions. The search function is pretty good:) Barb+Smoky the House Puma+El Bandito Malito My cat the clown: paying no mind to whom he should impress. Merely living his life, doing what pleases him, and making me smile. - Anonymous From: Stacy Zacher stacy_zac...@yahoo.com To: Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Sent: Tue, April 13, 2010 4:26:05 PM Subject: [Felvtalk] New to the FELV+ kitty group Hi: We are new to the group. My (approximately) 13 year old male kitty has been diagnosed with FELV via a SNAP test. I found him as a stray when he was about age 1-2 and I did have him tested then. The test came back negative and I proceeded to vaccinate him for FELV with yearly boosters as at the time he was a semi-outdoor still. I don't recall if my vet had me do a second test or not so I am rather surprised and shocked that he has tested positive now but I've read it can happen. We have a bloodwork re-check tomorrow and the IFA test at the vet. We've been to an internal medicine specialist for a second opinion on how we can manage this disease and keep him comfortable. This showed up because his white blood cell count has been abnormally low ever since we moved from one side our townhouse to the other (Feb 2010) and he has been very stressed out ever since the move. He was vomiting a lot in the recent past and I took him in again for testing. The vet this time tested him for the FELV, FIV etc. His attitude seemed inconsolable at times and he seemed to howl a lot and vocalize a lot as though he is having issues or pain. But he runs up and down the stairs with ease, jumps on to counters still and plays a bit but is less active than he was in January. Any advice is greatly appreciated as far as best diet (he currently eats wellness canned and assorted other canned but only seems to like fish flavors now! He eats Tasted of the Wild Dry salmon flavor as well). At the moment I've started him on Standard PRocess feline immune support supplements. The vet put him on metronidazole in case he has bacterial overgrowth in his intestines and reglan for nausea/vomiting. He seems to do well for about 4 days off reglan, then starts vomiting food again in the morning. He is eating/drinking/ urinating/ defecating okay and seems to be howling less on the meds. I am looking for advice on treatments, immunotherapies etc. - both conventional and holistic. I've heard from others that immunoregulin works as does Imulan LTCI. I'd love to hear what helps your kitties.If you know of any vets in Wisconsin in the Milwaukee county/Waukesha/ Jefferson County areas who specialize in FELV+ kitties, please let me know also. There is a great vet in Madison but that is a ways to drive for us in his state. Thanks so much for all your help. Stacy and Spanky in Wisconsin ___ 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
