Hi everyone,
I am new to this group--and new to FeLV. I just took in an FeLV+ kitty from the
shelter where I am a volunteer. Her name is Dani and she is beautiful. Long
story short, she and her three siblings were found outside in a box when they
were about a week old. They came to the shelter and tested positive for FeLV
(ELISA). They were retested and again it was positive. At 9 weeks, they had an
IFA test, all positive. During this time, they were bottle fed until about 8
weeks, shuttled to and from the shelter by a staff member. They were also
treated for URIs with azithromycin. The shelter cultures all incoming cats for
ringworm and unfortunately theirs came back positive, so they were dipped in
lyme a couple of times a week for a while and put on Itraconazole. Dani took
longer to shake it off and so was completely alone for some time. During their
time at the shelter they were vaccinated with 2 rounds of FVRCP, a rabies
vaccine and spayed/neutered. Sadly, Dani's littermates all came down with
different issues (I don't know all the details, but I know the vet suspected
FIP) and were euthanized. Little Dani was left alone, in a bathroom with no
windows, and not many visitors. The second I found out about her, I set up the
sun room off my bedroom (it was unheated but fixed that fast) and took her
home.
Anyway, I wanted to give the whole background so you know just how much she has
been through in her short life. While even here it is not optimal--she is
isolated--it is so much better than being stuck in the stuffy bathroom. Here,
she bird watches, has a ton of toys, a much better diet and a ton of cuddles
(though not as much as I wish. I have 17 other cats.)
I have two big questions: is it possible for her to become negative with a
positive IFA result at 9 weeks? And, second: how do I best care for her? I have
her on a high quality canned only diet (wellness and weruva--no fish) and
minimize stress as much as possible. Are there supplements I should be giving?
Are NuCat vitamins recommended? Are my food choices OK for her? I will never
vaccinate or even take her to a vet (I'd have one come to me if necessary to
minimize stress.) I feel terrible she is alone a lot of the time and I have
thought about bringing in another young FeLV + kitty for her, but I am worried
about causing stress, having it backfire. I have all the patience in the world
when it comes to having cats work out issues, but I'm also very careful when
bringing in a new cat, quarantining for a couple of weeks, letting her explore
while I put others in other rooms, etc. But I wouldn't have that ability to do
so with a companion for Dani as I literally don't have any rooms left.
Sorry for such a long post! I really want to do right by her. I love her to
pieces.
Thank you!
Laura and Dani girl
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