Very OT/FIV

[Teresa]

Hello Everyone,
A few months ago I posted that we had lost our cat Pooh to a diabetes complication. I had so many nice responses and a few mentioned that when the time was right   God would send another 4 legged friend my way. Well, guess what I found at my doorstep a week ago. A very lovable but quite dirty and hungry kitty. The poor fellow ate 6 cans of food in one day. Anyway, today I brought him to the vet ( and you can imagine how attached I am at this point) and although he is healthy, he tested positive for FIV which is similiar to HIV in humans. My dilema was what to do at this point. Here I have this 1 yr old kitty purring in my arms as the vet tells me his results. I have another cat at home who is negative and that was the dilema. After some thought I decided to go ahead and keep him and the vet said the chances of my other cat contrating is remote as long as he does not get bitten by the new cat. We have to keep any eye on them but since neither is agressive it should not be a issue. Right now my new kitty is being "fixed" and declawed ( I know some may not agree with that but the vet said it will cut down on chances of transmission if they fight)
So am I a complete idiot or what. I have such a soft spot for animals and the thought of putting the little guy down just killed me. I actually bit my nails off making the decision. If anyone out there has any FIV cats please send me a private message here and let me know how you deal with it. I don't want to clog up the board with this but would be interested in hearing some others stories. I am interested in holistic treatment also.
Thanks for listening.
Teresa

[Afan]

Sorry, but we lost both of our FIV cats after all heroic efforts by our vet including several blood transfusions. We had to have a beloved l7 year old dog put down recently, and it was very traumatic.  He grew completely helpless and so it was the only alternative.

I remember feeding one of our cats with a medicine dropper many times a day in an effort to save him, but it didn't work.  We have never had a female with FIV, but still have every cat we own get the serum against this killer.  I know that it is a hard decision, and I feel for you. Afan

[Connie]

Sorry about your sad dilemma.  Dunno - I'd be hard pressed to expose my cat to this new one, but....you're obviously going to keep it.  Anyway, this animal showed up on your doorstep for a reason.  I'm a firm believer in that sort of thing.  You were brought together.

This is what I would do:
There's this product called XtraLife.  It's made specifically for animals.  I would put both cats on it immediately.  I have no experience with it (have no pets at the moment), but I have some experience with the product for humans - Immunocal.  What it does is raise glutathione levels in the body and greatly enhances immune system function.   The webpage below describes the product.  It's from my mother's website.  She is a huge believer in this stuff and is helping lots of people with all sorts of health problems with it.  I checked the page and it DOES list FIV in cats as responding to it.

I've never recommended this stuff to anyone before - I'm always hesitant 'cause I don't know much about it, BUT, I can say that I've heard that people with AIDS are getting some positive immune system responses.
What I DO know, is...
(a) my sister was diagnosed with Hepatitis C one year ago and started taking the stuff shortly thereafter.  A few weeks ago she started this PEG-Interferon treatment.  She was dreading it because there are bad side effects - similar to those experienced by chemotherapy patients.  She's had absolutely no side effects at all and feels great.  (She takes 4 packets of Immunocal a day).
(b) my mother was plagued with irritable bowel syndrome over the last few years.  Doesn't have it anymore since taking the stuff.  (Takes 2 packets a day)
(c) I only take 1 packet a day, sometimes 2, and I've noticed two things so far.  This joint pain and stiffness I used to have in my fingers and one of my wrists is gone now.  I can practice the piano for a couple of hours now with no problem.  The other thing, (and I know it sounds weird), is my hair isn't falling out anywhere NEAR as much as it has been over the last few years.

I don't know the cost of the product for animals.  Actually, I don't know the cost of any of the products - my mother supplies the stuff to me for free, but I don't think it's cheap.  It's definitely a high-quality, legit product.  It's patented, it's listed in the Physician's Desk Reference, and some Medicare plans cover it.

Anyway, I'd check it out.  Maybe you know a distributor locally.  If not, don't hesitate to call my mother - her number's listed on the website and she'll help you in any way she can with any questions, whatever.  (She's always in touch with a couple of different doctors involved with the products and bombards them with questions about different ailments and the product).

Good luck with the kitties.

love
CLC

http://www.immune-response.net/go/cdesmond?sr=/secondary/cdesmond&pr=/templates&ht=/templates/products/xtralife.htm

[Teresa]

Thanks everyone,
I will check out all your ideas. I should mention that back in the 1980's I had a cat who was FIV + and had leukemia. None of my other cats became ill so that is what is making me feel positive.
I work in the medical field and will check out with some of our drug reps on xtralife. Cost is not an issue, my pets are my kids. In all my years of owning a pet, I have rarely had one who lived a full life without some health issue so whats another one right.
I'll get a photo of my new little guy posted as soon as he is up and feeling better from his surgery. Ouch!!
Love and thanks,
Teresa

[dom]

Hi Teresa,

Good luck with the new kitty. It may be too late but I heard on the radio that cats that are declawed are more likely to bite because their main defense (claws) are gone. This would not be a good thing  in your case being that your kitty has FIV. Something to think about.

Dom

[Teresa]

Lots to think about but I guess I'll just take it one day at a time. I did see this stuff at Petsmart that you can spray on your cats when you are introducing a new one to the household. It's supposed to make them all smell the same.
I have been checking quite a few sites and message boards on this and found it comforting that there are quite a few households out there in similiar situations that have not transmission from one cat to another so that is incouraging.
Thanks everyone!

[Misty]

My daughter takes her two dogs to a holistic vet who treats them with natural nutrition additives and so far, her oldest dog has lived well past the life expectancy for that breed. I've heard of diet being a factor in the treatment of cancer in animals but I have no statistics one way or the other. I'm not sure I would approve of using diet as an exclusive treatment but it is a consideration.
Good luck with your new kitty. I would have done exactly what you did.

                                                    Misty

[TERRY308]

I have two cats and they are, thankfully, healthy.  I would have done what Misty said....taken that kitty in and just loved it.  

Who knows how long it has.  But you can give it some dignity and love.  And you know what....the love will be returned to you, two times.

[Mark Rainey]

Good luck with the new kitty. It may be too late but I heard on the radio that cats that are declawed are more likely to bite because their main defense (claws) are gone. This would not be a good thing  in your case being that your kitty has FIV. Something to think about.

We have had many declawed cats over the years and we've never, ever had a problem with any of them biting--or any other behavioral problems. This is an exaggerated load of crap the Humane Society is using to try to justify their attempts to make declawing illegal. In general, I support the Humane Society because I have such great affection for animals, but they're WAY out of line on this one. I could write a ten-page refutation of their every argument against declawing (strictly indoor) cats, but I won't get into that here. Suffice it to say I've had a hundred times more problems with clawed cats (NONE involving furniture; a very near loss of eyesight being the most notable of them).

Anyway, Teresa, I hope your newfound friend will have a happy life. We, too, had a beautiful stray cat show up on our doorstep a while back, and he's been a great joy to us. The other three cats love him, too.

Well, two of the three love him.

OK, well, ONE of them tolerates him, and only just, but he really is a good boy.

--Mark[/glow]

[dom]

The important thing is that you are giving kitty a home.

Let us know what you name him, Teresa.

dom

[onyx_treasure]

Hi Teresalita,
    I had a cat with a serious, contagious disease and my veterinarian was a great source of help.  He did web searches and chat rooms trying to find a cure.  The office also had another veterinarian that had worked in a research facility and had experience with the disease.  My suggestion is to call around.  Good luck and my prayers are with "kitty".  Please, let us know the name.

[RingoCollins]

If you are short on a list of names, may I suggest one of the following few:

Kittysback, Wild Billy, Sandy, Mary Queen, Angel, Arkansas, Wages, Adam, Ricky, Cain, Candy, Sherry, Jackson, Ramrod, Johnny, Trooper, Reason, Brilliant, Valentine, Janey, Rockaway, Honeymoon, Lover, Trouble, Rendezvous, Darlington, Zero, Iceman, Bobby Jean, The 'C', Roulette, Seeds, Santa Ana, Jenny, Light, Spare, Hero, Muddy, Thunder, Cali, Reward, Lucky, Pinky, Chimes, Freedom, Glaveston, Best, Joad, Balboa, Borrow, Sinaloa, Hiway, Cool, Clarence, Nils, Max, Boss...and my personal fave: Ringo![wink]  Oh yeah, Wink!

We all send good vibes in the direction of whatever the cats name will be!

[Teresa]

If you are short on a list of names, may I suggest one of the following few:

Kittysback, Wild Billy, Sandy, Mary Queen, Angel, Arkansas, Wages, Adam, Ricky, Cain, Candy, Sherry, Jackson, Ramrod, Johnny, Trooper, Reason, Brilliant, Valentine, Janey, Rockaway, Honeymoon, Lover, Trouble, Rendezvous, Darlington, Zero, Iceman, Bobby Jean, The 'C', Roulette, Seeds, Santa Ana, Jenny, Light, Spare, Hero, Muddy, Thunder, Cali, Reward, Lucky, Pinky, Chimes, Freedom, Glaveston, Best, Joad, Balboa, Borrow, Sinaloa, Hiway, Cool, Clarence, Nils, Max, Boss...and my personal fave: Ringo![wink]  Oh yeah, Wink!

We all send good vibes in the direction of whatever the cats name will be!

Oh my God, I like how you think! We have tossed a few of those around and you came up with some I didn't think of. Actually, Ringo is a consideration. I did have to throw out the girl names. Don't want to confuse the new guy now.
Thanks everyone, the new addition has already met his siblings and hissed at them. Right now he is laying on his back with all fours straight up purring like a baby. I think I made the right choice :-)