Feline Immunodeficiency Virus

[livingwith]

I had just got my 3yr old cat January of 2008, so I have only had her about 2 1/2 months. She is my pride and joy. She is so full of energy and love. I took her to the vet because I noticed her belly was looking a little bigger than usual.
Hoping it was nothing more than a sensitive tummy, he told me she has FIV He said that she can live 2 days to 2 months. She is still a baby! I am trying to keep her active and vital and want her to live a full and happy life. She is just too young to ...Read the full article

[nalexandra]

I had a cat with FIV that lived to be 17 years old! I had him since the age of 5 and he did not die of anything FIV related. Be extra careful with the cat and make sure you get her vaccinated for every other possible ailment there is, but depending on the cat and if you take care of her I would imagine that she could definitely have a much healthier, longer prognosis than what the vet gave. My cat Mikey, lived for almost 2 years AFTER I got his diagnosis, and that was the first time I had tested him. He was a stray my mother had picked up, so the vet said he may have been born with it or aquired it, and either way he has a very long and healthy life. I wish you the best. Also, I would check about the transmission risk on the cats. I have read that its mainly spread through deep bite wounds or mother/kitten. So if properly monitored there may be hope that you cats can still spend some time together (check on that first though, my cat was an only cat). Best of luck, my prayers are with you and Chloe.

[haydee]

I'm sorry to hear about Chloe but something doesn't sound right or I misunderstood..are you sure he said it was FIV and not FIP? How did he diagnosed FIV? I've 2 FIV+ cats dx by ELISA and Western Blot tests. One was very ill when we found him, almost died; he was dx FIV+ and FIP though he recovered so it wasn't FIP. His inmune system is lousy and he keeps getting infections but is OK otherwise so wasn't the last stage either, the FIVers are 6 and 5 years old, I hope they live to be 23..they might.
A kitten has less chances to live long with FIV but it is definetly not a death sentence. I'd ask more questions from that vet.
Haydee