Re: [Felvtalk] both of my cats are FELV positive. What to do now?
Hi Realissa You are a newcomer to the group, and so I will tell you what all our group is already tired of hearing me say. I apologize in advance to the other members of this group, for my incessant repetition. First, I agree with Marsha. As long as your cats are okay right now, don’t panic. Nothing is going to happen in the short term.] I would recommend the following: 1. Get baseline blood work done including a full haematology panel, along with a reticulocyte count. (this latter test is not usually part of the haematology panel so you need to ask for it specifically.) You can get a full biochemistry panel done as well, but chances are it won’t be too illuminating. However, it will give you baseline results. 2. If there are any signs of anemia at all, including low RBC’s (red cells), haematocrit, haemoglobin, abnormals in the MCV, MCHC or MCH values, or a low reticulocyte count, OR if any of the other cell lines (white cells or platelets) are low or showing abnormalities, I personally would not wait for anything worse results. I would start your cats on a number of medications: a) 1 mg of Winstrol (Stanazolol) x2 per day (very inexpensive medication, but your vet may not know it and probably doesn’t know how to get it – see more below) – for very sick cats, start at double this dose – 2mg x2 per day; b) 50 mg Doxycycline x2 per day; (again, check with the vet – you may start this at 100 mg a day for very sick cats) c) ¼ to ½ tablet of prednisone x2 per day; d) If there are any signs of problems with food moving through the intestines, also add ¼ tablet of metoclopramide given twice daily and preferably about ½ an hour before meal times in the morning and evening (it helps quell nausea and it accelerates peristaltic action which helps empty the stomach and pushes food through the intestinal tract. Now about Winstrol. This is an ANABOLIC steroid (not a corticosteroid like prednisone) and as such, you have probably never heard of it, nor has your vet, except in connection with doping scandals in professional athletics. Likely, your vet will be dead set against using it. I found that it was the only thing that helped my little Zander, after I had tried (a) blood transfusions; (b) injectable interferon; and (c) LTCI. My cat was in very very bad shape with an extremely low haematocrit that dropped to 5 after his major “episode” with the norm being 35-45 in cats. He was under an oxygen tent at that point because he had so few red cells that his body was unable to properly transport oxygen to the cells. He was basically in a coma. I had the vets give him blood transfusions, which got his haematocrit up to 16 – still a far cry from normal – but it bought us some time. This is when I tried all the various items mentioned. I also did weekly blood work to assess whether any of his haematology results were showing ANY improvements at all. None of them caused his three cell lines to budge upwards at all. (You may know that the FeLV virus infiltrates the bone marrow and causes infected cells to reproduce, thus filling the bone marrow with diseased cells that cannot produce red cells, white cells and platelets as normally occurs. With the bone marrow no longer producing needed blood cells, the ones in circulation eventually die off – life span of red cells for example is 120 days – and there is nothing to replace them.) After purchasing and couriering to my vets, these various treatments, I would try them for a number of months. None of them did a thing. All of them were extremely expensive. We got another blood transfusion for Zander when his haematocrit dropped back down to below 10. Again, he went up to 14 or 16 or so, and this time, he had had a reaction to the blood transfusion and so we were told that this was it. We could no longer give him more transfusions. While sinking into despair that I had no other options to try, I ransacked my supply of cat medications I had in my drawer. I found Winstrol, which had been given to me for another cat, years and years ago. It was just supposed to make the other cat feel better and perhaps increase his appetite – the other cat had FIV and died within 2 days of going the vets, and so I had not even had a chance to try the Winstrol on the other cat. I had absolutely nothing else and figured, what the hell. To my very great surprise, it ended up taking my very very anemic and desperately ill Zander, and turned him right around. It is a long term medication so Zander was on it for at least 10 months before his lab results (which I continued to run weekly) showed his haematology results to be perfectly normal, and every time I tried to wean him down, his lab results would drop again. However, after a year, I did wean him to lower levels, but I watched him like a hawk and any signs of paler than normal gums or paw pads, and I would give him a 6 to 8 week stint of Winstrol at the 1 mg
Re: [Felvtalk] Go Fund Me account help for SC
Hi Ardy Thanks for your supportive comments. Thanks also for asking about the GoFundMe website for Sharon. Here is the link again. https://www.gofundme.com/7rnkx4ry Thanks again for anything you are able to spare. Amani From: Felvtalk [mailto:felvtalk-boun...@felineleukemia.org] On Behalf Of Ardy Robertson Sent: June-05-16 8:04 PM To: felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Subject: [Felvtalk] Go Fund Me account help for SC Hi everyone, So far the go-fund-me account seems to be the best option in my opinion. If someone could repost the link, I will donate again. Possibly this fund could help to get them into one of the mobile homes Amani found. In that case the son will have a place to be and care for the animals while his mom undergoes her transplant. Thanks, Ardy ___ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org
Re: [Felvtalk] SC woman
Bob I too get your position. However, as a lawyer who fights hard to get proper compensation for people who have been harmed by medical negligence in Canada, I see all the time how a little bit of money - given in a single chunk to someone - can change their lives around. Moreover, before become a successful lawyer, I spent a very very long time barely making ends meet (almost lost my house and was working two jobs at two different hospitals), and I know the lengths I went to once, to get $1000 and another time, to get $3000. I was thrilled, once, to win a radio contest and I got $100. To people with money, these sums are tiny. But to someone struggling, giving them $5000 all at once is often enough to get the ahead of the curve. In third world countries, it has been found that "microloans" in the amount of $100, often given to women, is usually enough to allow them to turn their lives around, and the lives of their children. You are correct that it isn't always successful when you try to help others. You are also correct that one must be worried about scams and being taken for a ride. But I have a seen a whole lot of people get some relief with a modest chunk of money and some resources in hand, and this makes big differences in their lives. In one of my cases, I represented 99 women who had all been injured by the same obstetrician. He was a surgeon who thought his skills in surgery were way better than they actually were, and he stampeded a lot of women into unnecessary surgery by suggesting there were findings in their pathology results, that were indicative of early cancer. So between the unnecessary surgeries and the horrible complications, he hurt a lot of women. The law in Canada isn't particularly wonderful where it comes to compensating patients who have been injured by medical negligence, but I fought every step of the way to get SOME money into every one of the women's hands - even the few cases where our experts were not supportive. My very wealthy co-counsel used to say to me that the smaller amounts of money would never change anyone's life, but I told him that he had been well-off too long now to remember when $100 was a lot of money. I am a very big believer in assisting smaller groups and individuals. I think that big organizations are often bloated with bureaucracy. With Sharon Jowers in South Carolina, I have done what I can to verify her story. I think that instead of just helping her home her animals, I can find some kind of alternative housing for her and her son. I think that once she has some stable housing, other things will fall into place. My big problem is that I am not down there to make the deal for the housing, or able to inspect the potential places, etc. But I am not going to let that get in my way if I can help it. I will work around it. I will call in favours from my friends and acquaintances, and I will also try to connect with like-minded lawyers in the vicinity. Contrary to what you may have heard, most lawyers (at least those who represent injured people) are extremely caring and work like mad, and put their own money on the line, to help their clients. I am certain I will be able to find a lawyer in North Charleston, South Carolina, who would be willing to help. Bob, I sympathize very much with your plight and I recognize that not everyone is in a position to assist or to donate financially. However, people have already been very generous in response to my call for donations, and people have donated just a little shy of $1400 in 2 days. I have covered her rent for two weeks and will continue to do that as necessary until we can get her into some other housing. Let's focus on what we can do. Remember two things: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens, can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Meade AND "The only man who never makes mistakes is the man who never does anything." - Theodore Roosevelt. Amani From: Felvtalk [mailto:felvtalk-boun...@felineleukemia.org] On Behalf Of bcha...@optonline.net Sent: June-05-16 9:53 PM To: Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org Subject: Re: [Felvtalk] SC woman Amani I wholly understand your position. Years ago in my first and longest profession(psychotherapy ) I became more than a little disenchanted with the number of patients who had no real intention of seriously working to change. Every now and again I would devote myself to a patient widely regarded as "impossible" by colleagues who I felt held promise because I simply NEEDED to believe that I could ,somewhere, make an appreciable difference. I actually ran about 50/50. Not bad on balance : ) If it comes down to needing transport for these animals to an accepting facility I could contribute to the actual driving but I am ,without doubt , tapped out fiscally. I realize this might not be much help but it's what I can offer. I do a fair amount of transpo
[Felvtalk] has anybody tried NHV felimm?
it was recommended to me by a lady who has Felv cats. I am willing to give it a try, but I would be glad to hear feedback from someone who has tried it. ___ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org
Re: [Felvtalk] both of my cats are FELV positive. What to do now?
Hi, welcome to the group! First off, don't panic. If they appear to be otherwise healthy, the most important things are a low stress environment and a high quality diet. My Harley & Milkdud each lived 4.5 years after I adopted them, in generally good health until the virus changed to its active form. Brock only lived a year and a half (but he was probably close to 5 when he died). All were doing great until 10 days to 3 months before they died. Harley did have a severe upper respiratory infection (10 days in the hospital) 2 months before he got cancer, but those 2 months between, he was a happy boy, his usual rambunctious self, causing all kinds of mischief. All 3 got cancer in the end - 2 lymphoma, and Harley's was an inoperable tumor that started in the middle ear and spread down to his jaw. Brock had a heart condition and was on 5 prescription meds plus 2 supplements for that. I gave lysine when Harley got his upper respiratory infection, but I'm not sure it did much. I think I gave it to Brock also. He lived with Harley, but never got the infection. I will always wonder if Brock might have been the source. But it was 2-3 months between the time I adopted Brock and Harley got the URI. Mice would get in sometimes, and a week or two before Harley got sick, he caught a chipmunk in the garage. Some lucky FeLV+ cats live 10-12 years. I have had 2 vets say they see an average survival of 2.5 years, with a range from 6 months to 10+ years. Marsha On 6/5/2016 7:51 PM, Realissa Dekraunti wrote: Hi everybody. Thank you for accepting me in this group. I am just too devastated to think straight. I rescued two cats in October and I found out two days ago that they are both Felv positive. We did an Elisa test on Thursday, and it came back positive, and an IFA that confirmed the positive results. I live in LA and I don't know what to do, where to go, if there is alternative medicine. I love these two cats more than I could ever imagine and it is breaking my heart. Any input, help, direction you could give me, would be incredibly appreciated. They are FIV negative but FELV positive. I have heard there is a medicine called LTCI but that it is very expensive. I am also heard of Virbagen Omega, L Lysin, Interfone. There is so much info that I am overwhelmed. to add some information. Date of birth: May 7, 2015 ELISA "snap" test at Animal Wellness Center: June 25, 2015 (age: 7 weeks). Results: weak positive for FeLV IFA confirming test at Animal Wellness Center: June 30, 2015 (age: 7 weeks, 5 days). Results: negative ELISA "snap" test at Animal Wellness Center: August 1, 2015 (age: 12 weeks, 2 days). Results: weak positive for FeLV ELISA in-lab test at Animal Wellness Center (sent to IDEXX): August 13, 2015 (age: 14 weeks). Results: negative June 1, 2016 ELISA test both came positive June 2, 2016 IFA both came Felv positive FIV negative Thanks a lot ___ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org
Re: [Felvtalk] SC woman
Amani I wholly understand your position. Years ago in my first and longest profession(psychotherapy ) I became more than a little disenchanted with the number of patients who had no real intention of seriously working to change. Every now and again I would devote myself to a patient widely regarded as "impossible" by colleagues who I felt held promise because I simply NEEDED to believe that I could ,somewhere, make an appreciable difference. I actually ran about 50/50. Not bad on balance : ) If it comes down to needing transport for these animals to an accepting facility I could contribute to the actual driving but I am ,without doubt , tapped out fiscally. I realize this might not be much help but it's what I can offer. I do a fair amount of transport to and from vets and spay and neuter clinics for my local shelter but,again, that is on their dime with me providing the " physical" aspect. Has the situation changed.? I don't think I missed any mail about this ___ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org
[Felvtalk] both of my cats are FELV positive. What to do now?
Hi everybody. Thank you for accepting me in this group. I am just too devastated to think straight. I rescued two cats in October and I found out two days ago that they are both Felv positive. We did an Elisa test on Thursday, and it came back positive, and an IFA that confirmed the positive results. I live in LA and I don't know what to do, where to go, if there is alternative medicine. I love these two cats more than I could ever imagine and it is breaking my heart. Any input, help, direction you could give me, would be incredibly appreciated. They are FIV negative but FELV positive. I have heard there is a medicine called LTCI but that it is very expensive. I am also heard of Virbagen Omega, L Lysin, Interfone. There is so much info that I am overwhelmed. to add some information. Date of birth: May 7, 2015 ELISA "snap" test at Animal Wellness Center: June 25, 2015 (age: 7 weeks). Results: weak positive for FeLV IFA confirming test at Animal Wellness Center: June 30, 2015 (age: 7 weeks, 5 days). Results: negative ELISA "snap" test at Animal Wellness Center: August 1, 2015 (age: 12 weeks, 2 days). Results: weak positive for FeLV ELISA in-lab test at Animal Wellness Center (sent to IDEXX): August 13, 2015 (age: 14 weeks). Results: negative June 1, 2016 ELISA test both came positive June 2, 2016 IFA both came Felv positive FIV negative Thanks a lot ___ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org
[Felvtalk] Go Fund Me account help for SC
Hi everyone, So far the go-fund-me account seems to be the best option in my opinion. If someone could repost the link, I will donate again. Possibly this fund could help to get them into one of the mobile homes Amani found. In that case the son will have a place to be and care for the animals while his mom undergoes her transplant. Thanks, Ardy ___ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org
