Re: Is FeLV really the WORST?

[Faye Lewis]

Around here, FIP is not that common but I have no doubt it is awful.  For 
me, this has been the worst experience I have had.  The psychological 
torment.  I love these cats so much.  I cannot explain it to anyone.  I love 
all of my pets but Simba and the twins have a special place in my heart.  
Their loss is just an unbearable concept to me.  I never know when or if the 
shoe is going to drop.  Every sniffle could be the beginning of the end.  I 
have never gone through anything like this.  Plus, with the twins having 
been kittens, my vets really thought their demise would show up rather soon 
after the first exposure. Plus, when Tigger was diagnosed, I did not see it 
coming.  All I knew is that he threw up the night before.  I thought maybe 
he had eaten something that did not agree with him. It was a very stunning 
shock.  He went down so fast.  Plus, he had tested negative and had been 
vaccinated so I just didn't imagine anything like this.


From: Cherie A Gabbert <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
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Subject: Re: Is FeLV really the WORST?
Date: Sat, 22 Jan 2005 13:36:19 -0800 (PST)
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FILETIME=[787ED920:01C500CA]

Point taken Sally,
As far as I can tell from my personal stand point, I think FeLV is the 
worst, but I am sure we can debate on bad or worse all day. There are more 
vicious diseases out there, as with everything.

Luckily and not so luckily, my expierence with this is limited, I just can 
tell you watching a kitty bleed to death is very hard to do. Snowball was 
playing and eating with the bleeding so it just was one of those things. 
Not to mention my daughter (age 1) bled to death in my arms, many years 
ago.

Watching and being with a dieing animal is hard no matter what the disease, 
and we all can attest to it, so I guess it does not matter better or worse 
sicknesses it is just a shame there has to be any.
Cherie

[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
Dear Cherie:
While FeLV is a horrid disease to deal with, with so few givens and so many
unanswered questions, there ARE worse things to deal with. I haven't had 
any
personal experience dealing with it, but if you were to ask listmember 
Denise
Uriarte here in San Jose, I think she will tell you that FIP is even worse 
to
deal with than FeLV. She has dealt with both.

Kittys who develop FIP (a mutated form of the corona virus) may exhibit 
none
to mild symptoms in the early stages on infection, and that is when they 
are
infectious to other cats. By the time they are actively showing classic
symptoms of the disease, they are said to be no longer contagious. And some 
cats can
evidently be latent carriers and never show symptoms, themselves. There is
NO TEST which can positively tell you a cat has FIP...the only way to
absolutely confirm it is through necropsy. A high corona titer may be an 
indication,
but not absolutely as a cat exposed to it but not becoming infected may 
have a
high antibody titer. There are two forms, the dry and wet form. With the 
wet
form there is excessive buildup of a stringy proteinaceous fluid in the
abdomen or chest and cats with this form succumb rather quickly. With the 
dry
form, a cat can linger for several months and in the end stages there can 
be
neurological damage which causes seizures and the cat may be disoriented 
and
crashing into walls in its distress. Not a pretty sight to observe. Just as 
with
there being no explanation as to why the FeLV virus mutates into one of its
more virulent subgroups in some cats and not others, I've never seen an
explanation as to why the corona virus mutates to FIP in some cats, but not 
others.
Immuno-compromised cats, such as those with FeLV are said to be more
suseceptible.

In '03, Denise lost two kittens from a litter of three FeLV+ kittens to 
FIP,
and three otherwise healthy "older" kittens. Two were feral from a mom 
whose
previous littter had all perished and we have hypothesized she may be a
carrier. Luckily this mom cat who had long evaded being trapped and 
produced litter
after litter of kittens, has finally been trapped and spayed.

After what I saw Denise go through with those kittys, I would take an FeLV+
kitty over that any day.
Sally in San Jose