According to the Cornell School of Veterinary Medicine: Virologists classify feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) as a lentivirus (or “slow virus”). FIV is in the same retrovirus family as feline leukemia virus (FeLV), but the viruses differ in many ways including their shape. FIV is elongated, while FeLV is more circular. The two viruses are also [...]
Week Nine Whew! This has been a big week! We had our very first vet appointment, which, of course, included our very first car ride. We were checked for worms, which was negative, had our temperature taken, which was normal (although Murray got cold and took a nap on my chest while we were waiting [...]
Week Eight When I arrived home the middle of this week, I discovered that Murray is now visibly smaller than Orson, which alarmed me since, up to this point, they’d been almost identical in size. Murray was also skinny (I could nearly see his backbone) and dehydrated. Kitsie was over her cold, but poor little [...]
Are pit bulls safe around children? The past few years have seen this topic hotly debated. Advocates on both sides feel passionately about their position and defend it strongly. A Google search on the topic does little to clear up any confusion. Stories and photos illustrating both points of view are abundant. Last week, my [...]
According to the Cornell School of Veterinary Medicine:
Virologists classify feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) as a lentivirus (or “slow virus”). FIV is in the same retrovirus family as feline leukemia virus (FeLV), but the viruses differ in many ways including their shape. FIV is elongated, while FeLV is more circular. The two viruses are also quite different genetically, and the proteins that compose them are dissimilar in size and composition. The specific ways in which they cause disease differ, as well.
How common is the infection?
FIV-infected cats are found worldwide, but the prevalence of infection varies greatly. In the United States, approximately 1.5 to 3 percent of healthy cats are infected with FIV. Rates rise significantly-15 percent or more-in cats that are sick or at high risk of infection. Because biting is the most efficient means of viral transmission, free-roaming, aggressive male cats are the most frequently infected, while cats housed exclusively indoors are much less likely to be infected.
How is FIV spread?
The primary mode of transmission is through bite wounds. Casual, non-aggressive contact does not appear to be an efficient route of spreading FIV; as a result, cats in households with stable social structures where housemates do not fight are at little risk for acquiring FIV infections. On rare occasions infection is transmitted from an infected mother cat to her kittens, usually during passage through the birth canal or when the newborn kittens ingest infected milk. Sexual contact is not a major means of spreading FIV.
What does FIV do to a cat?
Infected cats may appear normal for years. However, infection eventually leads to a state of immune deficiency that hinders the cat’s ability to protect itself against other infections. The same bacteria, viruses, protozoa, and fungi that may be found in the everyday environment–where they usually do not affect healthy animals–can cause severe illness in those with weakened immune systems. These secondary infections are responsible for many of the diseases associated with FIV.
What are the signs of disease caused by FIV?
Early in the course of infection, the virus is carried to nearby lymph nodes, where it reproduces in white blood cells known as T-lymphocytes. The virus then spreads to other lymph nodes throughout the body, resulting in a generalized but usually temporary enlargement of the lymph nodes, often accompanied by fever. This stage of infection may pass unnoticed unless the lymph nodes are greatly enlarged.
An infected cat’s health may deteriorate progressively or be characterized by recurrent illness interspersed with periods of relative health. Sometimes not appearing for years after infection, signs of immunodeficiency can appear anywhere throughout the body.
How is infection diagnosed?
Antibody tests detect the presence of antibody in the blood of infected cats.
Positive results
Negative results
Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests are designed to detect short segments of a virus’s genetic material. While antibody-based tests are ideal screening tests for infection, in certain situations (such as confirming infection in antibody-positive kittens or determining infection of cats vaccinated with antibody-producing FIV vaccines), PCR-based tests, in theory, would be superior. Although PCR testing methods offer promise and are being actively explored, at this time unacceptable numbers of false-positive and false-negative results prevent them from routinely being recommended.
How can I keep my cat from becoming infected?
The only sure way to protect cats is to prevent their exposure to the virus. Cat bites are the major way infection is transmitted, so keeping cats indoors-and away from potentially infected cats that might bite them-markedly reduces their likelihood of contracting FIV infection. For the safety of the resident cats, only infection-free cats should be adopted into a household with uninfected cats.
Vaccines to help protect against FIV infection are now available. However, not all vaccinated cats will be protected by the vaccine, so preventing exposure will remain important, even for vaccinated pets. In addition, vaccination may have an impact on future FIV test results. It is important that you discuss the advantages and disadvantages of vaccination with your veterinarian to help you decide whether FIV vaccines should be administered to your cat.
I just discovered that one of my cats has FIV, yet I have other cats as well. What do I do now?
Unfortunately, many FIV-infected cats are not diagnosed until after they have lived for years with other cats. In such cases, all the other cats in the household should be tested, as well. Ideally, all infected cats should be separated from the noninfected ones to eliminate the potential for FIV transmission. If this is not possible-and if fighting or rough play is not taking place-the risk to the non-infected cats appears to be low.
How should FIV-infected cats be managed?
How long can I expect my FIV-infected cat to live?
It is impossible to accurately predict the life expectancy of a cat infected with FIV. With appropriate care and under ideal conditions, many infected cats will remain in apparent good health for many months or years. If your cat has already had one or more severe illnesses as a result of FIV infection, or if persistent fever and weight loss are present, a much shorter survival time can be expected.
My FIV-infected cat died recently after a long illness. How should I clean my home before bringing in a new cat?
Feline immunodeficiency virus will not survive outside the cat for more than a few hours in most environments. However, FIV-infected cats are frequently infected with other infectious agents that may pose some threat to a newcomer. Thoroughly clean and disinfect or replace food and water dishes, bedding, litter pans, and toys. A dilute solution of household bleach (four ounces of bleach in 1 gallon of water) makes an excellent disinfectant. Vacuum carpets and mop floors with an appropriate cleanser. Any new cats or kittens should be properly vaccinated against other infectious agents before entering the household.
Can I become infected with FIV?
Although FIV is a lentivirus similar to HIV (the human immunodeficiency virus) and causes a disease in cats similar to AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome) in humans, it is a highly species-specific virus that infects only felines.
A number of studies have failed to show any evidence that FIV can infect or cause disease in people.
Why should I have my cat tested?
Early detection will help you maintain the health of your own cat and also allow you to prevent spreading infection to other cats.
Under what circumstances should FIV testing be performed?
Week Nine
Whew! This has been a big week! We had our very first vet appointment, which, of course, included our very first car ride. We were checked for worms, which was negative, had our temperature taken, which was normal (although Murray got cold and took a nap on my chest while we were waiting for the vet). Orson weighed in at 2.3 pounds, which is normal for a kitten his age, but Murray was only 1.6 pounds, having been sick. Murray, the older kitten, now has a big little brother. We decided on an antibiotic injection for Murray, which lasts two weeks and keeps the antibiotic at a more consistent level in their blood stream than administering it orally does. The vet advised me to continue to feed him with the eyedropper, since he was still a bit dehydrated. He told me that twelve weeks is a good amount of time to wait until after birth to get an accurate result on the FIV test, so he made a note on their charts to call me in a month to schedule that appointment. After we know the results of the FIV test, we can decide which (if any) kitten shots to administer. He also strongly recommended that Kitsie be spayed once the kittens were fully weened. Since she surprised us with this litter, she very well may surprise us with another! Once we got home, the babies were exhausted by their big adventure and had to take a very long nap!
By the next day, Murray was feeling MUCH better. So much better, in fact, that he and Orson conspired to escape from my bedroom ON THEIR OWN. The did this by climbing the rug that was drying, draped over the bottom half of the Dutch door which leads to my bedroom. They are now unstoppable! I hear Kitsie calling to them from all over the house in much the same way she used to call to her toys when she was a baby. Her overprotective nature is making her quite high-strung, since there are many other cats and dogs in the rest of the house. None of them are hurting the babies, of course, since they’ve all had plenty of experience with kittens in the past, but that does little to calm Kitsie’s nerves. Hey… Didn’t the vet tell you babies to stay in quarantine for another four weeks??? Well, that didn’t last long….
Besides zooming all over the house (it’s just a matter of time before they find the dog door), Murray has also taken an interest in Canasta. Years ago, we had a cat named Oreo that used to sit next to my monitor and watch me play Roller Coaster Tycoon this way.
We have our own Facebook Fan Page with more photos and videos!
Week Eight
Poor Furry Murray does NOT feel good
When I arrived home the middle of this week, I discovered that Murray is now visibly smaller than Orson, which alarmed me since, up to this point, they’d been almost identical in size. Murray was also skinny (I could nearly see his backbone) and dehydrated. Kitsie was over her cold, but poor little Murray just could not seem to shake it. His little nose was stopped up, and I wondered if sinus drainage was preventing him from feeling hungry. I encouraged him to lap the milk replacer from a bowl, which he refused, then I tried feeding him with an eye dropper, which he protested. Inconveniently, I could not locate any of my kitten bottles, so the eyedropper would have to do. Despite his initial protests, after a couple of forced squirts, he finally realized he was hungry and allowed me to get quite a bit of milk down him. Orson decided that he, too, needed to be fed with the eyedropper, so I squirted some in his mouth as well. Kitsie is producing less and less milk, so the babies are relying more and more on the dry food as time goes on. I have seen them both eat the dry kitten food and lap water from a bowl, so I know they are both capable, although they routinely refuse canned cat food or milk in a bowl.
Mama luvs
Murray’s inability to get over this cold alarms me. His body temperature is fluctuating wildly- one minute I can pick him up and his body will be on fire, then the next, he will be begging me to turn on my electric blanket. It is nearly identical to Kitsie’s behavior when she was small, and hasn’t changed much since then. I am starting to suspect that Murray did contract FIV at birth, while Orson, who still has not caught this cold, despite being exposed to it from both Kitsie and Muray, may not have. Orson has continued to gain weight this week, while Murray has not. I made an appointment with the vet for July 19th, when they will barely be eight weeks old. He will determine at that point what can be done for Murray and if they are big enough to begin their kitten shots.
Orson wants to be like Uncle Albany when he grows up!
We have our own Facebook Fan Page with more photos and videos!
Are pit bulls safe around children?
The past few years have seen this topic hotly debated. Advocates on both sides feel passionately about their position and defend it strongly. A Google search on the topic does little to clear up any confusion. Stories and photos illustrating both points of view are abundant.
Last week, my sister decided to stay with me for a few days, bringing her two-year-old daughter. One of my dogs, Sandy, is a pit mix, which brought the subject to light for me once again. I was not concerned about my other two dogs. Ladybugg, my border collie mix, was raised in a house full of children, so I was confident she would be friendly and behave appropriately around my niece. Chloe, my English hound mix, had little experience with children, however, not the social butterfly, I reasoned she would likely be uninterested in Kayla. Sandy, however, going on six years old, is as rambunctious, playful, and dramatic as she was at six months. I have never experience any aggression issues with her, either towards humans or other dogs, so I did not believe Sandy would hurt Kayla intentionally, however, I was concerned that she may nip or jump on her like she does me. Sandy
weighs over fifty pounds and is strong enough to nearly knock me over if she catches me off guard, even though I weigh significantly more than that. She is prone to sudden outbursts of excitement whenever anything out of the ordinary happens, such as the approaching of the mail carrier, school bus (she nearly had a heart attack the day they both arrived at once), a pedestrian walking in the street near our house, food (whether it’s offered to her or not), the cats running, other neighborhood dogs barking, or, well, just about anything else. On a typical day, Sandy is off in her own little world doing Sandy things that make Chloe roll her eyes at her. Having recently read an article outlining the changing viewpoint of pits over the last century, I had a hard time imagining my Sandy as a “nanny dog.” My collie, Ladybugg, seemed much more suited to that duty. She has a strong herding instinct and loves to watch me care for my kittens (or, as my niece Kayla called them, my “mice”), never barking or nipping, only watching and occasionally licking. Convinced I was right, I set myself up for quite a surprise.
When Kayla first arrived, all three dogs barked, as dogs normally do, but Ladybugg was immediately friendly towards her, as I suspected. Chloe was a little afraid but mostly avoided her, also as I suspected, but Sandy was so terrified, she was shaking. Kayla, not having grown up with a dog in the house, but being a natural-born animal lover (it’s hereditary- she gets it from her aunt), was a little cautious but not afraid. Once my sister and mother calmed the dogs down a bit, Kayla was able to start petting Ladybugg (pat them gently!) and loving every minute! Chloe stayed outdoors most of the time they were here, part of which was during a thunderstorm, which caused quite a dilemma in Chloe’s mind. Sandy, however, quickly learned something dogs have been realizing about toddlers for centuries: they drop food. In the blink of an eye, Sandy and Kayla were best friends.
For the next three days, Kayla did very well with Sandy (and all the others). I watched in amazement as this dog who was normally so hyper and dramatic follow Kayla around the house, licking her, letting herself be petted, pushed, and pulled, taking direction, all while her tail was wagging. Sandy never tried to jump on Kayla, although once she ran past her a little quickly and Kayla lost footing for a second. She did not lean on her. She did not take food away from her unless Kayla offered it to her. She even allowed Kayla to take BACK food she’d already given her. Sandy was calm and under control the entire visit, with no direction from me or any of the other adults present. The videos on this page were taken less than twenty-four hours after Sandy and Kayla first met.
I cannot speak for everybody, but my conclusion from this is experience is that the “nanny dog” reputation the pits used to have is completely warranted. Perhaps they need to fire their PR rep.
Kitsie’s kitsies is moving! We’re still packing and unpacking boxes, but we’ll get everything straightened out here soon!
