Feline Leukemia Virus

[livingwith]

I just found out that the little stray 3 month old kitten that I have been feeding; and finally decided to give a home to; is “weakly” positive for feline leukemia. I have been lucky enough to find some very helpful ladies who are very involved in cat welfare; providing foster care and helping with adoptions, etc. They talked with me about the disease; and I learned a lot about it. The odds are good that this little kitty may completely shed the virus over time; and if not she sti...Read the full article

[grauntb]

Is it safe to keep a feline leukemia positive cat in a house with one that is healthy? I have them totally separated for now, no sharing of bowls or litter, no contact with one another, but I worry about my first cat.

I have Oreo, a rescue cat, in my home. She tested positive for feline leukemia. The vet said we could have her retested in a month and she might have fought it off. The problem is that I have a cat who is healthy and so I cannot keep Oreo. She needs to go into a home with no cats or cats who also tested positive. She is not contagious to people or any other animals, only cats. She's very sweet, though somewhat shy. She has never been in a house before. My husband and his friends at work had been feeding her and taking care of her. She's very friendly and affectionate. We want very much to find her a good home. My home email is [moderator note: e-mail address has been removed].

[Makohope]

Can you let me know how is your baby cat? I just found out on the 27 os dep that my baby mako has Leukimia however, he shows no signs at all and I'm wondering if there is any special things I can do to keep my Mako around
Thank you for any information you can send me

[tracyg]

To makohope - I am happy to say that now, a year later; my little stray kitty is a very healthy adult cat; with absolutely no sign of any illness. I could have her retested for feline leukemia; haven't so far. One suggestion would be to give your kitten some really good quality kitten food; I gave mine Royal Canin for kittens; it has ingredients that help support the immune system and is just generally good quality. Now she just gets a good adult cat food; she doesn't need any supplements or anything special. I still don't know what the long term prognosis is for my cat; but so far she is great. She is happy to be a strictly indoor cat; she knows she is safe and has plenty of food! I have actually had to restrict her intake a bit because she started getting a little chubby. I hope your little one will do well also.

[Makohope]

To Tracyg.
Thank you for the information I will make sure to look into the food you sugested, believe or not my Mako got hurt, the other night and end up braking 4 of his toes on the back paw, doctors gave me the option of a cast or plates and screws on his paw, of course the diference in price is huge, we decided to do the right thing and go with the surgery, since it was the fastest recuperation time acording to the doctor, his vet is hoping that the stress of the injury is not going to activate the virus, so all I can do is pray, hi is doing good from the surgery and still look very healthy, I guess I just have to take it one day at a time, I'm very happy to hear your little one is doing good, it certainly give me lots of hope for Mako.
Thank you for getting back to me best to you and weakly.