Re: Tsunade, question, and Samantha
I'm new to this disease so I don't know if I can help, but two of my cats have the herpes virus. From what I am told the virus never leaves the body. If the cat becomes stressed out, the virus flares up. I've noticed this with Sarah. She is fine for months then something upsets her and her right eye flares up. It becomes red and inflammed. I use a compounded eye drop on her and in a few days it heals. But my understanding is that the virus cannot be expelled from the body. I think probably this is true about leukemia, although I'm still learning. Samantha seems to accumulate tartar where the teeth join the gums. The tartar irritates the gums and they recede even more. As the condition worsens the bone may become exposed. The vet suggested that the teeth be pulled to lessen the reaction. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 Chelsea Bennett [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/26/06 6:19 PM Tsunade is doing much better. She has really gotten into playing with toys (was not interested at 1st). I bought some new toys yesterday, put 4 of them in her porch and she went wild knocking them everwhere. She even brought me a present, she carried her fish plush toy, and dropped it on the mat next to the door that leads inside. When she was staying outdoors, before I decided to keep her, she would bring a half-eaten vole or sometimes whole voles as presents. I like the toys much better, its cute and the rodents can live in peace now. My question is HOW can a cat that is leukemia positive make the virus go away or become dormant??? I understand a false test result, but I thought once a cat gets the leukemia there is no way to truly get rid of it. Please clear this up for me. This is for Samantha. If her totth roots are showing why not just do surgery to pull the gums back up over the roots??? The tooth roots of all of my bottom teeth are showing, and they are getting lower and lower. I will probably have to have gum sugery within the next year because my lower gums continue to recede. My dentist is puzzled by this as I am young, 23, and have never had a cavity. Go figure. Chelsea
Re: OT: Why is this list so nice?
You are so right. I can testify as to the quality of the vets I have consulted. They charge me at least $200 to $300 every visit and tell me erroneous info. One of my dogs had a benign cyst. I took her down to the vet. He extracted the cyst, but when they shaved her tummy they nicked her with the razor. When the bandage was removed I couldn't understand what had caused the wound. The vet either knowingly or unknowingly said it was another growth. He charged me another $200 for antibiotic and the office visit. I later asked a friend what they thought it was. When he said it was a nick from the razor, everything fell into place. I have since then learned not to trust vets, but to be skeptical about what they say. [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/26/06 6:48 PM I think that the reason this list is different is that it takes a different sort of person to want to and be willing to care for cats with FeLV. It takes a lot of compassion, and also a lot of willingness to face hard things, and also a willingness to have an open mind and do some research. All of this makes the list self-selecting, I think, to people who are more generally compassionate and less combative than on other lists. And people withh FeLV positive cats also have to deal with the fact that most vets are just abysmal and clueless on this subject, which makes us really need to depend on each other to learn the information that we all need to take care of our cats. Which, I think, also makes us nicer and less combative than people on other lists, because we really NEED to be here for very practical reasons, and we really need, and recognize that we need, each other's advice and information. With FeLV we do not have the luxury of alienating each other in order to have a petty argument. I am not sure that people on other lists feel so dependent on each other. In fact, on one of the IBD lists a woman really, really tore into me for questioning something that another member had been told by a vet. She wrote that it was completely inappropriate for me to do that because I do not have a veterinary degree. It was one of the reasons I left that list. I can not imagine anyone on this list writing that. We have all had such bad experiences with vets, so we don't put them on a pedestal. Which does make us need each other more. Just my thoughts. I have spent some time thinking about the subject, because this list really is so amazing, and so much better than all the others. Michelle Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245
Re: Weak positive kitty
Try giving her the Just Born formula. Someone suggested it before. It seems like a good source of nutrition if she's weak. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 Frullani, Anita [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/27/06 9:13 AM Help! Here is the situation -- in July I took 2 sick URI kittens (BooBo, female; and Wheezer, male) in from terrible living conditions in the City of Harrisburg -- the Mom cat was feral and was fixed and sent to live at a sanctuary. The kittens recovered. Both kittens were vaccinated for Felv once (although I had some trouble with the female's injection and some of the liquid came out the other side of the skin). I had to treat for fleas ith Revolution but of course now they have the fleas again (including all my 20 cats) and am waiting for the Advantage to come in from Australia. The male kitten got a 105 degree fever either in Sept or early Oct and received antibiotics and is fine now. A few weeks later, I used some pyrethrum powder for fleas as the 1st round of Advantage hadn't arrived via mail. The female had a reaction and had hematomias on her ears and bleeding from the mouth (abscess). She was put on prednisone and it started going away but then she got a fever. She was getting clavamox for that and I didn't give her any more pred but then the spots came back all over her body. Took her back to the vet for a blood test -- results came in this am: Anemic, Platelet down, Weak positive felv, re-rest Antigen 3 to 4 weeks. Vet recommends euthanasia if she re-tests positive as she can't keep getting viruses and the low blood platelet count and hemotomas are not good. Does anyone have any similar experiences, ways to boost the immune system, anything? She is so young and such a sweetheart. Anita
Recent vaccination vs actual disease
I have a question. My cat recently was vaccinated for feline leukemia. No one suspected she might have the disease. Another vet tested her for the disease and said she is positive. Is there any correlation between a recent vaccine for feline leukemia and the lab picking up a positive result for feline leukemia? I know the cat is not doing well. She is thin and has stomatitis. I am going to take her to a holistic vet to try to get her better. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245
Re: Recent vaccination vs actual disease
Thanks for the info. One of the vets thought you could. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 kelly [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/27/06 11:22 AM At 11:13 AM 10/27/2006, you wrote: You do not get a positive snap test from the vaccine... Kelly Lane I have a question. My cat recently was vaccinated for feline leukemia. No one suspected she might have the disease. Another vet tested her for the disease and said she is positive. Is there any correlation between a recent vaccine for feline leukemia and the lab picking up a positive result for feline leukemia? I know the cat is not doing well. She is thin and has stomatitis. I am going to take her to a holistic vet to try to get her better. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 -- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.408 / Virus Database: 268.13.16/504 - Release Date: 10/27/2006
Re: Recent vaccination vs actual disease
Thank you for your kind words. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 Lora [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/27/06 12:25 PM Nancy, Agreed. It is very rare for a cat to become positive from a Feline Leukemia vaccine. Since the FeLV vaccines are Killed the cat has very little change of contracting the virus. The cat has a better chance of developing fibrosarcomas than FeLV. However, if the cat was positive for FeLV BEFORE the vaccine was administered, then she got a double-dose of Feline Leukemia. Which is bad. The cat's body was already producing antibodies to fight off the disease, so her immune system did not need to be stimulated into making more. Over stimulation can compromise the immune system making it weak and more susceptible to secondary infections and/or diseases. Humans do not take the flu shot when they have the flu and FeLV vaccines should absolutely NEVER be giving to a FeLV positive cat. PERIOD. Sounds like your poor kitty was FeLV positive prior to the vaccine and no one knew about it. Just make sure that the she does not receive any more FeLV vaccines. She may be sick for awhile. Imagine having the flu and fighting off the flu vaccine at the same time. It has got to be hell. Please keep us posted and do not PTS immediately! She can recover from the double-dosage if even the proper recovery time, but she will probably always be FeLV positive. Good luck. I will be praying for your kitty. Feline Leukemia is not a death sentence. --- kelly [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: At 11:13 AM 10/27/2006, you wrote: You do not get a positive snap test from the vaccine... Kelly Lane --- Nancy Schneider [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I have a question. My cat recently was vaccinated for feline leukemia. No one suspected she might have the disease. Another vet tested her for the disease and said she is positive. Is there any correlation between a recent vaccine for feline leukemia and the lab picking up a positive result for feline leukemia? I know the cat is not doing well. She is thin and has stomatitis. I am going to take her to a holistic vet to try to get her better. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 __ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com
Re: Samantha has feline leukemia
Thank you so much for the article. It answers more questions than any vet. The vet does suggest three tooth extractions although she said this would buy the cat only 3 to 6 months. Eventually all the teeth will have to be removed. The article mentioned irritability because of the mouth pain. That is very accurate in Samantha 's case. She definitely is irritible. I noticed that ever since I adopted her. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 Belinda [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/26/06 5:22 AM Nancy, Here is an article on what your vet is saying your baby has: http://www.vin.com/VINDBPub/SearchPB/Proceedings/PR05000/PR00066.htm If your vet is right and your kitty has FORL (Feline Odontoclastic Resorptive Lesions), it is a very painful disease and really needs to be treated. Here is a quote from this article Cats with immune system deficiency caused by infection with FIV or FeLV often have chronic oral inflammation, although most cats with FORL test negative for these two viruses. -- Belinda happiness is being owned by cats ... Be-Mi-Kitties http://bemikitties.com Post Adoptable FeLV/FIV/FIP Cats/Kittens http://adopt.bemikitties.com FeLV Candlelight Service http://bemikitties.com/cls HostDesign4U.com [affordable hosting web design] http://HostDesign4U.com BMK Designs [non-profit animals websites] http://bmk.bemikitties.com
Re: Samantha FORL
This vet definitely has experience with the disease. Eventually, I will go to a vet dentist if whole mouth extraction is necessary. I just don't have the money right now and the vet feels that the three teeth need to be removed immediately. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 Belinda [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/26/06 5:34 AM Here is an article with photos, *some of the photos are graphic*, it shows the different stages of the disease and what treatment is. Ask your vet if he has ever treated a cat with this, it may be a good idea to see a vet dentist if that is possible to make sure the roots are completely extracted. http://www.dentalvet.com/Encyclopedia/P00352_SC01100.htm -- Belinda happiness is being owned by cats ... Be-Mi-Kitties http://bemikitties.com Post Adoptable FeLV/FIV/FIP Cats/Kittens http://adopt.bemikitties.com FeLV Candlelight Service http://bemikitties.com/cls HostDesign4U.com [affordable hosting web design] http://HostDesign4U.com BMK Designs [non-profit animals websites] http://bmk.bemikitties.com
Re: Samantha has feline leukemia
The thing about Samantha is that she does eat the hard food and doesn't seem to experience any discomfort when eating it.I believe she is actually eating less because of the weight loss as I'm not home during the day. I know what you mean when you say that you have to be happy knowing you did your best. I used to beat myself up when I lost a cat due to kidney failure last year. I had her for 15 years and I felt that she took a part of my life with her when she passed. I felt that I should have done more. Sometimes nothing you do can help. You have to accept that fact and let go. Tad Burnett [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/25/06 5:48 PM Nancy An average cat needs to eat about one 5.5 oz can of food each day.. If she is eating much less than that than that explains the weight loss... FeLV is spread in the saliva so it is possible to spread by grooming or food and water... It dies as soon as it dries out but if it is kept moist ... If the neg. cats are healthy and a year old or older they have a good resistance to FeLV... It spreads among strays that are in run down condition and under the stress of being homeless... It is very unpredictable and you have to be happy knowing that you gave them all the good life that you could within your means... It may be a good long while and they may be happy right up to the end and pass in their sleep or it can be a long illness and you may have to make the decision that you will have to help them to the Rainbow Bridge... This is a great group and we are all here to help each other with much experience and to be with you during the sad times when we are loosing one of our babies... Tad Nancy Schneider wrote: Hopefully you are right about the mixing. The vet stated that the virus can be transmitted via food bowls. I don't see evidence of it in my household. I really hope and pray that your feelings about the difficult transmission of the disease to other cats is accurate. I feel that it is hard to transmit , because of the fact that the virus is very sensitive outside the body. I have read this fact before. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 wendy [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/25/06 1:32 PM Hey Nancy, I want to clarify that although many of us feel that we are fairly safe mixing (especially since most of us had already exposed the other cats beforehand), there is not enough research on FeLV, so we don't really know how it is exactly transmitted, or how easily it is transmitted. Most of us here though have seen patterns, and we don't believe it is easily passed via food, water, or litter boxes. We do however feel that bites are a form of transmission. The virus can only live seconds outside the body, exposed to air, so that's why we think it's really difficult to pass. And even those that are exposed, in ways other than biting, usually throw off the virus if they are adults. I just wanted to clarify so that you don't think we said it was ok to mix, and you come up with a positive test on one of your others later on. We have just seen that it's very rare, unless there is biting. :) Wendy P.S. I have family in LA (Studio City and Hollywood). __ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245
Samantha has feline leukemia
I have had Samantha for i year. I just found out that she has leukemia. She has red irritated gums and is losing weight. I have 4 other cats that have not contacted the disease. When I adopted her, I was assured she was felv negative. I love her very much and I am researching the web to get info to help her. I am planning on taking her to a holistic vet. If anyone has any other suggestions Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245
Re: OT:Need prayers for my baby Dharma again pleease!!
I am saying many prayers for your baby. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 Hideyo Yamamoto [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/25/06 9:32 AM Hi, everyone, I am here to ask again to send healing positive energy to my Dharma who is trying to over come what's call fatal disease FIP .. She has been doing really well with Feline interferon treatment and noticed that she is eating less the last day or two and seems a bit pale - I am debating over to take her to the vet or not to draw a blood.. but I don't want to stress her out unless I have a solution to the problem that she has.. Please please send her healing vibes and please imagine Dharma is surrounded by and protected by a bunch of white beam of lights so that she can bounce back all the negative energy from her - this really has worked for her - Dharma is a tiny beautiful calico girl with three feet - pleaes everyone.. I need lots of and lots of prayers!!! I just cannot lose her! Hideyo
Re: Samantha has feline leukemia
Nina, the vet did a blood test because she was so thin and she isn't eating as much. She is scheduled for 3 tooth extractions because the vet said her tooth roots are exposed. Al least I'm grateful I know what is wrong. I really didn't have a clue. The vet gave her some depo and antibiotics. I may try interferon. From what I read it seems to work. I've had cats for 17 years and never had any experience with feline leukemia. Thanks for your words of support. Nina [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/25/06 10:20 AM Hi Nancy, I'm sorry you had to find us, but welcome to the list. Gingivitis, (irritated gums) is a common problem with felv kitties. The weight loss is troubling though. Is that why you took her to the vet and found out she was pos? Did the vet do blood work? Is she eating the same as always and still losing weight, or is she losing weight because her mouth hurts her and she's not eating as much? I'm a fan of homeopathic treatments, but sometimes when our fur babies are in crisis allopathic measures are necessary, esp for acute conditions. Antibiotics have saved my kids on more than one occasion. I'm sure you are going to get lots of good advice from the list members. Do searches on the group page and ask as many questions as you like. Everyone is really supportive here. Everyone understands how upsetting it is to find out one of our babies has felv. Take a deep breath, we'll help you help Samantha as best we can. Nina Nancy Schneider wrote: I have had Samantha for i year. I just found out that she has leukemia. She has red irritated gums and is losing weight. I have 4 other cats that have not contacted the disease. When I adopted her, I was assured she was felv negative. I love her very much and I am researching the web to get info to help her. I am planning on taking her to a holistic vet. If anyone has any other suggestions Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245
Re: Samantha has feline leukemia
Wendy, thank you for the info. I never knew you could mix feline positive cats with negative ones. Luckily, the other cats are not losing weight and have better kept coats. My cats don't bite. They generally just hiss at each other. I try to keep Samantha as comfortable as possible. I also have two dogs. But she has never exhibited any slightest hesitation about giving the dogs a whack when she wants to be left alone. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 wendy [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/25/06 11:07 AM Nancy, I'm sorry to hear that Samantha has tested positive, but happy you found us. This a great and very well informed group. I'm even happier that you have decided to keep Samantha and want to give her the best care possible. Bless you for doing this. About FeLV and transmission. I had a stray give birth on my porch about five years ago. I found her a home and two of the three kittens a home. The third kitten I named Cricket and ended up keeping. He was my baby. I had two others in the house as well. Two years after Cricket was born, he got very sick and ended up testing positive for FeLV. He probably was born with it. We got him over that illness and he was fine for two more years, until he succumbed to FeLV related anemia that I believe was brought on by the stress of having a lot of family living with us for a week during Hurricane Rita last year. I lost him last November. None of my other cats are positive. Two of them lived with him more than four years (they are 10 now) and another lived with him for two years (she's 17). They all shared the same water and food bowls and litter boxes, but no grooming. There are a lot of people here who mix. The big thing you will need to worry about is fighting. If blood or bites are exchanged, then the FeLV is more easily transmitted. Also, we've seen a pattern here that it is much harder for an adult cat to contract FeLV. Samantha may still throw off the FeLV virus, so you'll need to retest in several months. I think the statistics say this happens 40% of the time. FeLV is not a death sentence, whether she throws the virus or not. There are many kitties here who have led long, happy, healthy lives. The two big things in keeping Samantha healthy and helping her to throw the virus are her diet and keeping her stress free. Make sure she is getting a good, quality food (anything you can buy at Walmart does not count nor does Science Diet, which is what I fed mine before I joined this group; I feed mine Innova Evo now). Also, supplement her immune system by giving her L-Lysine (without propylene glycol) and Vitamin C. Others here use a few other supplements. She will have the upper hand by getting all the love that you will be giving her. I think that goes a long way in keeping any cat healthy. Please post if you have any more questions or just need an ear and good luck! :) Wendy Dallas, TX __ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com
Re: Samantha has feline leukemia
It's really hard to find a good vet. I think I found one just recently. Samantha was diagnosed with stomatitis. But none of the vets suspected feline leukemia. They just explained that her gums are allergic to her teeth. That explanation never made much sense to me. I recently read that there is hope for feline pos cats. I have very little experience with that disease. I always thought it was highly contagious and the cat had to be put down. This vet said that is not the case. I guessm we learn something new every day. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/25/06 11:23 AM Sounds like she has gingivitis and could have stomatitis. Clindamycin is an antibiotic that often helps with gingivitis. My cat Patches stopped eating for a day or two because of inflamed gums and a five day course of Clindamycin cleared it up enough for her to feel and act ok again. If it is stomatitis, there are various things that seem to help, from steroids to suppress the symptoms to particular immune supports. The weight loss could be just from her gums hurting, or it could be from something else that she needs treatment for. Do you have a good vet? Michelle In a message dated 10/25/2006 12:53:50 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: I have had Samantha for i year. I just found out that she has leukemia. She has red irritated gums and is losing weight. I have 4 other cats that have not contacted the disease. When I adopted her, I was assured she was felv negative. I love her very much and I am researching the web to get info to help her. I am planning on taking her to a holistic vet. If anyone has any other suggestions
Re: Samantha has feline leukemia
The vet did a blood test and said that it came back negative for FIP but positive for Feline leukemia. They did a more comprehensive blood test and they said her bone marrow and cbc was normal. I don't know what it means exactly, but hopefully it means her disease is not that unmanageable. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 Belinda [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/25/06 11:35 AM Hi Nancy, Is she FeLV+ or does she actually have the cancer form of leukemia? Can you give more details about what your vet told you? -- Belinda happiness is being owned by cats ... Be-Mi-Kitties http://bemikitties.com Post Adoptable FeLV/FIV/FIP Cats/Kittens http://adopt.bemikitties.com FeLV Candlelight Service http://bemikitties.com/cls HostDesign4U.com [affordable hosting web design] http://HostDesign4U.com BMK Designs [non-profit animals websites] http://bmk.bemikitties.com
Re: Samantha has feline leukemia
Hopefully you are right about the mixing. The vet stated that the virus can be transmitted via food bowls. I don't see evidence of it in my household. I really hope and pray that your feelings about the difficult transmission of the disease to other cats is accurate. I feel that it is hard to transmit , because of the fact that the virus is very sensitive outside the body. I have read this fact before. Nancy Schneider Management Analyst Dept of Transportation 12544 Saticoy St N Hollywood 91605 Voice(818) 756-9558 Fax (818) 756-9245 wendy [EMAIL PROTECTED] 10/25/06 1:32 PM Hey Nancy, I want to clarify that although many of us feel that we are fairly safe mixing (especially since most of us had already exposed the other cats beforehand), there is not enough research on FeLV, so we don't really know how it is exactly transmitted, or how easily it is transmitted. Most of us here though have seen patterns, and we don't believe it is easily passed via food, water, or litter boxes. We do however feel that bites are a form of transmission. The virus can only live seconds outside the body, exposed to air, so that's why we think it's really difficult to pass. And even those that are exposed, in ways other than biting, usually throw off the virus if they are adults. I just wanted to clarify so that you don't think we said it was ok to mix, and you come up with a positive test on one of your others later on. We have just seen that it's very rare, unless there is biting. :) Wendy P.S. I have family in LA (Studio City and Hollywood). __ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com
