I'm writing about yet another cat in Rochester, NY that has been diagnosed with leukemia. The woman contacted me a few months ago to see if I could find a home but there was no reason she shouldn't keep the cat. I explained to her that this is not a death sentence and that she shouldn't get rid of the cat just because of the leukemia. I told her why the cat needed to stay inside and what sort of care the cat needed.
When she wrote me yesterday, she informed me that the cat has been living outdoors because they don't want to clean litter boxes and that they don't touch the cat because of the leukemia. On top of that, she is pregnant now and wants to euthanize the cat because she has read babies should not be around leuk positive cats. I'm 12 weeks pregnant and have a household of them and have done extensive research. My understanding is that the leukemia is not the problem. It is just that they are susceptible to lots of illness so they are higher risk than healthy cats. My husband and I have discussed it and I haven't changed anything about the way I interact with my leuk positives. I can't, however, take in any more as I have been out of work and confined to bed for 7 weeks. On top of that, my husband is having to do all the cat litter pans and take care of all the reptiles. There is no way I can introduce another cat at this point but I feel awful for this cat. This is what I know about the cat from her. His name is Shadow. He's about 1 1/2 years old. He's grey, has his current rabies shot, and received flea treatment within the last few weeks. He enjoys sitting by the fire and playing. He is quite active and has a very social personality. He is fine with dogs, not sure how he is with cats (since he is the only cat). He appears to be symptom free other than the occasional loose stool. If anybody can help this cat, please let me know. This woman is seriously planning to euthanize the cat as she is afraid to even touch it. My vet called and told me about her to see if I could help if she can convince her to surrender the cat. The woman is willing to let the cat go to a new home but is only willing to keep the cat another week or two. I will arrange transport if anybody is able to take this cat in. I will also get the cat to my vet to make sure he is up-to-date and in good shape - worm free, etc. Amy Weygandt Woof Wagon www.woofwagon.com __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com