I totally agree with this view for fiv and felv. I am trying to get my shelter to STOP testing WELL cats. Cats can catch and die from worms, uri's flea infestations, all kinds of things. These 2 diseases should not lead to cats being euthanized when they are showing no symptoms. Anyone adopting a cat should have their cats at home vaccinated before bringing in new ones. My 2 cents.
t
Nina <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Nina <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Hi Marlene,
Someone just sent me an article about just this topic, (to test or not
to test). What he had to say made some sense to me and it sounds like
the same sort of logic that the administrator at the SPCA is using:
http://www.alleycat.org/pdf/shouldwerelease.pdf
Take a look and tell me what you think.
Why are you so angry at them? The last manager sounds like a real jerk
and I'm glad he's gone, but this new person seems to be compassionate
and took the time to respond to your concern and grief with an
explanation of why they do things the way they do. I'm sure you and
your husband are still reeling from the grief and disappointment of
losing your Angels, but would you rather have had them tested and
immediately be pts because of their status? Even if they decided to try
and place asymptomatic cats that test pos, how many homes would be
available to them? Would you have adopted Pekoe and Digby had you known
beforehand? You probably would have felt sad for them, but like most
people would have left them behind in favor of a kitten with a better
chance at a healthy life. If so, you might have saved yourself a lot of
heartache, (let's face it there are no guarantees against misfortune),
but you would never have known and loved these two precious souls. I
don't know Marlene, it's a tough call. Yes it would be better if
potential adopters were prepared for the possibility of adopting cats
that were exposed to fiv/felv, but as we on the list know, that risk is
inherent in most of the "rescues" out there. If you were willing to
converse with this woman, you might be able to help put a program in
place that would advise all potential adopters of the possibility, and
their recourses if their new loves do indeed test pos after they get
them home.
Are you saying that this shelter doesn't neuter the animals they adopt
out either? I would have more of a problem with that, then I would
their logic about why they don't test. I do remember someone on the
list, (I can't remember who right now, maybe Patti, or MC, someone that
had experience with a large shelter situation), saying how they
sometimes wished people wouldn't test at all because of the negative
outlook regarding fiv/felv and the needless euthanasia that occurs
because of it. I'm sorry if I've distressed you more with my opinions,
but you did ask and you know I'm not one to keep my views to myself. I
know you are a caring, thoughtful human with only the best interest of
the cats in mind. Sometimes it isn't possible to deal with people whose
views on emotional subjects are too far from our own, but it does sound
like this manager might be open to discussing different methods in the
way they deal with testing. If you feel strongly about how they do
things at the shelter, if you think they should be changed, you owe it
to the memory of your sweet babies to do whatever you can to make things
better for the kitties still there. At least that's my perhaps not so
humble opinion.
You are in my thoughts,
Nina
Marlene Chornie wrote:
> Hello Group,
>
> It's been a little over 3 weeks now since we lost our beloved
> little Pekoe. I will be posting more about that at a later date
> though. At the time, I emailed the SPCA shelter where we adopted both
> Pekoe and Digby from, merely to let them know that Pekoe had also
> passed - not that I expected them to care, because the branch manager
> exhibited a _terrible_ attitude with us when told they were FelV+ and
> felt they bore no responsibility for it happening in the first place.
> She was also unconcerned that any other cats in the shelter may have
> also contracted the disease. Since I had not invited any response
> from them, I was very surprised when I received one. It appears that
> the branch manager that we dealt with is no longer there (what a
> surprise) and I received the following response from the new manager.
> To be honest, I'm a little disturbed by some of the things she said,
> and I would appreciate any input/comments from the group. (FYI -
> Pekoe and Digby were both unneutered males, strays, and were approx. 8
> months and 13 months old respectively. They were diagnosed FelV+ 7
> months after we adopted them, at ages 15 months and 20 months.)
>
> "With our limited resources, we are unable to test all the incoming cats
> for FeLeuk and FIV. Feline Leukemia is only present in 3% of the cat
> population as a whole, but that is mostly concentrated in strays. Since
> the most common source of transmission is by bite, we generally only test
> high risk cats, usually unneutered males who are more likely to fight. We
> don't as a rule, test kittens under 6 months as the test results are very
> unreliable. The SNAP test that we use tests for the presence of
> antibodies which can take weeks from the time of infection to appear.
> Because young kittens' immune systems are under developed, it can take 3
> months or longer from the time of transmission to the time that a test
> would be positive. Therefore, false negatives are very common in kittens
> 3 months and younger. Conversely, positive nursing moms will transmit
> antibodies to their kittens, but only 20% of the time will transmit the
> virus itself. In those cases, the kittens would test false positive and
> be euthanized unneccessarily.
>
> I know this information is of little comfort to you at this time, but I
> felt you were owed an explanation as to how this could occur."
>
>
> I believe I have a relatively good understanding of FelV from what
> I've learned with Pekoe and Digby. One of the big questions I have,
> from those of you that do rescue work and shelter volunteering is - Do
> you test ALL cats that come into the shelter, or just the "high risk"
> ones?????? Guess I'm just second-guessing my comprehension right
> now. My husband and I feel that these people just don't get it yet,
> and we want them to stop contacting us!
>
> I would really appreciate your views on the SPCA's statements.
>
> Thanks so much,
> Marlene (still missing Pekoe & Digby .....)
