eHow Member Stories: Virginia and Susan | eHow Blog | eHow.co.uk

Ehow in the United Kingdom did a story on Virginia Allian, my cat Sam and me.  Sam is my rescued Siamese cat that was infected with Feline Immunodeficiency Virus and Leukemia.  Sam's story has helped cat owners to understand that the feline viruses are not death sentences. 

I started this blog; Feline Leukemia and other cat conditions and treatment tips in April of 2009.  That is when I first learned that Sam was infected.  Since then I have received messages from people all over the world and I know that this blog has helped cat owners and has saved cat lives.  I write about my cat Sam's life and how I have cared for him I share the products that I used to build up his immune system which enabled him to eliminate the feline Leukemia virus in the 3^rd phase.  

In 2009 when Sam was diagnosed the veterinarian was insistent that we euthanize him, he said it was best for the cat and for us, and it would spare us from suffering.  As I type these words I am watching Sam out of the corner of my eye, he went into the guest bathroom and was Mr. busy cat, he got a roll of toilet paper and he is decorating my office and is having the best time. Sam is alive today because I said NO to euthanasia.  Sometimes you just have to listen to your heart and have a little faith in yourself, your cat and in God.

I want to thank all of you who have supported this blog, and I would like to thank Virginia and Mecca the Community Manager at eHow.com for believing in my cause.

Adopting Cat with Feline Immunodeficiency Virus

Adopting a cat that has a health concern is never easy however if you love cats and are a nurturing type of person then you will save a cat with feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) life.  

There are so many homeless and stray cats that test positive for the antibody for feline immunodeficiency virus however because these cats are strays there is no way of knowing if the cats were vaccinated and thus the blood test could be a false positive. 

FIV cat plays with dogs on the bed

Feline immunodeficiency is commonly referred to as FIV, AIDS or Cat AIDS. This viral infection attacks the infected cat’s immune system and makes it difficult for the cat to fight off infection. FIV has infected cats worldwide as it is transmitted by saliva or deep bite wounds.  The virus enters the other cat’s blood stream and the cat is infected for the rest of their life.
 
Many animal shelters are euthanizing cats that test positive for FIV (Feline Immunodeficiency virus).  However, studies show that there is no need to euthanize these cats.  

Normal as Sam can be, he has FIV

FIV cats that carry the antibody can live long and relatively healthy lives in households where they are the only cat. Or they can live with cats that are not infected provided they get along and do not fight.  I have three FIV kittens that were raised with two healthy cats.  The two healthy cats have never been infected with the feline immunodeficiency virus.  

My cat Sam had FIV since 2008 / he is a rescue

The cat relationship is normal.  The adult cats took care of the kittens with grooming and they ate out of the same bowl.  They did not fight or bite each other.  The kittens are now age two.  I also have Sam my rescued Siamese cat.  He does not get along with other cats so he resides in my office and is with me and my dog 7 to 8 hours a day.  We tried to socialize him with other cats but he is a fighter.  

FIV cat Sam sleeping in Water container

Getting Home Read for your Adopted FIV Cat


The cat owner would have to provide a sanitary lifestyle by keeping the home spotless and litter boxes clean.  You would not want to weaken your cats immune system by exposing them to unnecessary germs.   


The indoor temperature would need to be an average temperature of 72 degrees.  You do not want your cat to be cold or hot. You would also need to feed an FIV cat a quality high protein diet with low carbohydrates.  Canned cat food that is supplemented with antioxidants. Supply the cat with filtered water and provide a stress free environment and your FIV cat should live a long life.  


A cat that is infected with FIV cannot go outside unless it is to an enclosed shelter that is safe from interaction with other cats. 

FIV cat plays with toys

No Kill Animal Shelters

I have noticed many cats that test positive for feline immunodeficiency virus at the private no kill shelters and these cats appear well groomed, in good healthy and happy.  While the virus does not have outward symptoms one will be able to note if the cat is lethargic, or has a weakness.  

The no kill shelters will offer cats that have the FIV antibody for adoption because the cat is healthy enough to live in a household with no other cats, and will live a relatively long life.  All these cats need in their life is a forever home where they will be loved.  I believe that adopters are passing by these cats because they are afraid of the virus and feel that the cat will infect humans or the cat will be sickly.  

A cat that is infected with the FIV antibody has the same mannerisms as normal cats: they play with their toys, they love, and they cuddle with their people.   

The only difference that I can see is that Sam and the two kittens sleep more than the other cats.  Sleeping more is not an issue for me, and it should not be an issue with adopters. 


Long Term Care for FIV Cats


Your FIV cat will need to go to the veterinarian for a wellness check up as soon as you adopt them.  

The veterinarian will exam your cat and he may test their blood. Thereafter your cat will have yearly preventative check-ups.  If you cat shows signs of cold; sneezing , runny nose, tear staining then you must contact your veterinarian for medical care.

I recommend that you do not turn your back on a cat that has the FIV antibody. If you have a household that does not have any other cats then this situation is ideal for an FIV cat.  It would be stressful to try to socialize an FIV cat with other cats simply because they may fight.

Note: 

• A cat that is vaccinated for the prevention of  Feline Immunodeficiency Virus will show a false positive for the rest of their life. Many veterinarians do not vaccinate cats for this reason.
• There is no cure for the feline immunodeficiency virus.
• Spay or neuter your cat and treat them with flea preventative as the biting fleas will cause infection. 
• Keep all veterinarian appointments.
• To date, I have adopted 5 cats that have tested positive for FIV.  To look at them they appear as normal healthy cats.

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Getting Creative to Keep My FIV Cat Hydrated

Cats like humans need water to sustain their health and well-being. A cat can skip meals however they need to hydrate their bodies to prevent illness; bladder infection and cysts will occur if the cat is not hydrated.

My cat Sam shows no interest in the water in his bowl and I needed to find ways to get him interested in water so that his body would be hydrated. Sam has feline immunodeficiency virus and his life needs to be an equal balance at all times. Any change to his happy life could make him sick.  I must watch his water intake to make sure he stays hydrated.

 It is not uncommon for cats to avoid drinking water and pet owners must get very creative to entice their cats to drink more water. If your cat shows signs of illness and is staring at the water bowl, but not drinking then contact your veterinarian. Otherwise for all other finicky cats that need to be coaxed into drinking more water, here is what I suggest.

The first thing that I needed to do is determine if Sam was getting his daily water intake from another source; fish aquarium, faucet, cup in the sink or toilet. To achieve this I measured the amount of water going into his water bowl. Sam is 10 lbs and his daily water intake needs to be 3/4 cup to 1 cup per day so I filled his bowl with one cup of purified water.  I cleared my schedule so I could watch Sam's drinking habits.

I discovered that Sam did a balancing act on the aquarium and drank a little fishy water in the morning, then in the early afternoon he drank some lactose-free milky water in the sink, followed by licking up the droplets of water in the shower and in the evening he charged to the guest bathroom and attempted to drink from the toilet while it was going down the drain. 

At the end of the day, I poured his water from his bowl back into the measuring cut to determine what he drank and Sam drank 4 tablespoons of water. I learned that Sam did like water, as long as it was flavored and interesting. I had my work cut out for me and I was determined to wean him off his bad water habits and get him to drink water from his bowl as I was certain that he was not getting enough water to keep him hydrated.

Update:  The best way to keep your cat hydrated is to make water fun. Since Sam enjoys water movement I got him a pet water fountain at amazon.com.  It took him some time to figure out that he was supposed to drink the water.  At first, he played with the water but soon he learned that he could drink the water and now  Sam loves the water fountain. 

Train Cat to Use Scratching Post

Scratching posts provide your cat with beneficial exercise. Encourage your cat to use their scratching posts and they will be healthier.

Training a cat to use a scratching post is not easy especially if the said cat is older and set in his ways. My cat Sam is a kitty that could do no wrong in my eyes.  He was diagnosed with feline leukemia and I had intended on spoiling him for the rest of his short life.  I figured he had a year left before I would need to put him down.  I did not reinforce training Sam, I would say No to his destructive scratching but I did not follow through with being disciplined with him. 

Sam tore up my sofa before scratching the bottom out of my Queen Anne chair and then moved on to the trim on the door.  Sam was loving life and I was paying the high costs for my sofa and chair to be upholstered.   

Sam went in for his wellness exam and my kitty’s immune system was able to fight off the feline leukemia virus this meant that  Sam could live a long and happy life with me.  It also meant that I needed to set up some house rules.

No would be the first word that Sam would learn.  He would also learn boundaries; where he could scratch and where he could not scratch.  

Sam did not react well to the house rules and he certainly did not like the word NO.  He would look at me in disbelief and then give me the sad eyes that always make my heart melt. But this time I did not fall for his kitty tricks, this time I stuck to the training guidelines at first training Sam on the house rules was hard because he liked to test me, but when I followed up on him and watched his every move, Sam began to think that house rules was a game and he was eager to please me.

Training Cats to Use Scratching Post

Sam would not allow anyone close to his nails so we could not trim them. I made an appointment for him to be groomed with a nail trim and when I dropped him off I told the pet groomer my concerns.  She noted that Sam was feisty and I worried about Sam with a stranger.  

To my surprise, he was a very good boy and the groomer told me that Sam talked to her the entire time.  His nails were clipped and that has stopped his destructive scratching by 80%.  The remaining scratching I believe is due to a bad habit.

I introduced Sam to his scratching post but first I sprayed the post with catnip and set the post outside his cat house.  

I purchased another post and placed it in Sam’s playroom.  The posts were in areas that Sam would frequent and they were easy to access for him.  Sam’s initial reaction was to sniff the post and then he rubbed his entire body on them.  Sam liked the scratching post however he did not place his paws on the posts.

Sam preferred to scratch on the furniture and I needed to train him to use his scratching post.  Sam was reluctant at first and tested me by darting past me and running full speed to the trim on the kitchen door.  As soon as he would extend his paws to scratch on the wood I would say NO and then pick him up and carry him to the scratching post.  I would place his paws on the rope and tell Sam “good kitty, Sam is a good boy” and then I would give him a cat treat.

Scratching Post Tips

Training Sam to use his scratching post took 2 weeks.  Sam was a slow learner because he kept testing me, however in the end he realized that mommy was not nice when he would scratch on the furniture and mommy was nice and he got a treat when he scratched on the post.  He learned the negatives and the positives and now he and I have a closer bond.

For best results treat the scratching post with catnip daily and do not move the posts. Cats do not like change. If you move the scratching posts then your cat may regress back into destructive scratching.


 

 

 

Cat FeLV - Information

Feline Leukemia, CAT-FeLV does not need to be a fatality as many cats may have a false positive when they are tested.  

In many instances rescued, stray, or abandoned cats will show a false positive because their previous owners had provided the cat with the vaccine to prevent feline leukemia and the new pet owner or shelter would not be aware of the cat’s history. Thousands of cats are euthanized each year because the test for feline leukemia came back positive. 

When the attending veterinarian tells the cat owner that they recommend euthanasia because the FeLV virus is aggressive and their cat will suffer.  Many cat owners are inclined to say yes to euthanizing as they love the cat, and do not want the cat to be inflicted with pain or suffering. 

However cat owners need to look at their cats and determine if the cat is sick, they also need to find out what stage the virus is in before they decide to make life-altering decisions about their cats.  If the cat is in stages 1 to 3 the cat's immune system may be able to fight off feline leukemia, however, if you euthanize your cat based on a positive test result, then you will never know if your cat's immune system could eliminate the virus.  

I rescued a Siamese Cat that I named Sam in April of 2009, he was abandoned and roamed the woods by my home, and by the time Sam had found me he was skin and bones.  My husband took Sam in for his exam and checkup and the report on his test was fatal, as he had both viruses; feline leukemia and feline immunodeficiency virus, CAT-FIV. 

The attending veterinarian informed my husband that Sam would have a short life and he recommended that he put the cat down.  Normally my husband will make these big decisions because he knows I am pro-life. I think that I can heal any sick or suffering animal and I would say NO to euthanasia. By the grace of God, my husband called me from the pet clinic and told me about my cat's diagnosis. 

 I spoke to the doctor and asked him if Sam had symptoms of virus and he said no. I then inquired about the stage of his illness, and he said he did not know, but in his experience cats with FeLV and FIV go very quickly and suffer great pain. The veterinarian repeated that putting Sam down would be better for the cat and for us because we would not suffer heartache.  

 Since Sam had no symptoms and because his blood had not been checked, I said NO to euthanasia the veterinarian said I could not keep Sam in the same house as my other cats because they would be infected, so the veterinarian called rescue facilities to take Sam until he got sick and would need to be put down. No shelter would accept Sam. My husband and I talked and there was no way that I would euthanize Sam so I decided to make Sam my office cat.  

Sam would live the rest of his life behind a closed door.  In a room that is 12 x 21 with 10 windows, a cat seat by the window, cat toys, a bed, a comfy chair, carpeting, and a TV that provided him with entertainment by Animal Planet. Sam would hang out with me 8-10 hours per day and I would play with him and love him.  

Sam was diagnosed with feline leukemia and feline immunodeficiency virus in April of 2009 and today Sam is playing with toilet paper, he is very proud of himself he has dragged a new roll out of the bathroom and is decorating the office, Sam is happy, healthy and strong. 

 I was determined to make Sam healthy so I fed him a high-protein food that was enriched with vitamins; Blue Buffalo cat food. I added a natural antioxidant supplement to his diet and provided him with a loving environment.  

Sam’s immune system was able to fight off Feline Leukemia in the third stage.  He no longer has leukemia, but he does have feline immunodeficiency.  Sam can can live a longer life.  

If your cat tests positive for Feline Leukemia wait 30 days and have them tested again, it could be a false positive. If your cat has the Feline Leukemia virus and has no symptoms then help the cat to fight it off by boosting the immune system.   Sam is alive today because I said NO to euthanasia.

Sam gives the puppy the right paw - FIV cats rule!

  

Feline Stroke Recovery

A cat stroke can come on quickly and you will note that your cat will appear off-balanced, having problems walking and head tilted to the right side. Your cat may walk in circles and seem confused. My FIV cat Sam, age 8 suffered a feline stroke.  

 My veterinarian told me that my cat would come out of the stroke in a few weeks and recover from the side effects.

I am happy to report that I see glimpses of my old friend Sam in the back, his eyes are no longer mismatched; one eye had a dilated pupil the other was normal. Now both eyes are of normal size. 

Every day Sam’s energy is increasing and he is getting stronger. Today he played with his tennis ball, picked up a pen from my desk, and placed it in his kitty condominium, he also played with his feather toy on the stick. During his playtime, he took 3 naps. Sam gets fatigued easily and takes more naps throughout the day.

During the stroke recovery, I noticed that Sam has lost his appetite and he is not drinking water. We had to take him to the veterinarian to get him hydrated with intravenous fluids.  The veterinarian suggested that I had tuna juice in his water to entice Sam to drink more.  I followed my veterinarian's instructions and added 1 tablespoon of Albacore tuna to a 1/2 cup of filtered water.  The naturally flavored water did not interest Sam.

My husband reminded me that one of Sam’s favorite pastimes was drinking out of the fish aquarium. I made up a fresh bowl of fishy water and added a fancy guppy to entice Sam to drink the water. All that accomplished was interesting to Sam briefly, he went to the bowl immediately, stuck his paw in the middle of the water bowl, and tried to grab himself the fresh catch of the day. He did lick the water from his paw but that was not enough fluid to keep him hydrated.

Sam’s One Year Anniversary

A year ago on this day, Sam the Siamese cat wandered into my yard. He was skin and bones and very hungry. Sam has Feline Leukemia and feline immunodeficiency virus and he is symptom-free for one year. Therefore, to mark this special occasion, Sam and I spent the day together in the big house. 
 
 I removed all of the other cats from our home, as it was time for their annual visit to the veterinarian. We also removed all of the cat’s toys, litter boxes, and food bowls. Next, I cleaned the house from top to bottom. We took the necessary steps to ensure that the house was sterilized and safe for Sam. 

 When I opened the office door Sam ran out into the living room. He jumped on the sofa, the chair, and the buffet. He then charged out to the sun porch and began to sing his kitty cat song. He sang to the birds, the squirrel, and the rabbit, It was safe to say that Sam was a happy cat today. 

Sam playing with his pal Benny the Labrabull

Lunch was served to Sam on the sun porch and after lunch, Sam took a catnap on the wicker chair. When he awoke, he stretched and then proceeded to check out the kitchen. Sam checked out the dog’s bed and then the toy box, he selected one of Lily's favorite toys and spent the rest of the day playing with a tennis ball. 

The day flew by quickly and it was time to pick up the other cats, so I went into the office and called out to Sam and to my surprise he did not talk back. He slowly walked into the office and jumped up on my lap. Mike closed the door and I stayed with him for the rest of the day. When the sun began to set Sam knew it was time for me to go, so he picked up his toys and retreated to his kitty condo.

Cat toys are not to be shared

Note: Before we were able to bring the other cats back into the house my husband,  cleaned the entire house with vinegar and hot water. We are very careful and take extra steps to keep the house sterile at all times.

Treatment tips: Sam was diagnosed with Feline Leukemia and feline immunodeficiency virus in April of 2009 over the last year I have made him comfortable by keeping him in my office and decorating it with cat attire. He has his own food and water bowls, litter box, toys, bed, and a state of art kitty condo that we bought at amazon.com. 

 I feed him high-quality holistic food by Wellness, fresh filtered water from his fountain, and supplement his diet with Nu-Pet * 

If you have an FIV cat then be sure to give them lots of hugs and kisses, talk to them and spend quality time with them. Enjoy your cat every day and for the rest of their feline life.

My cat Sam is symptom-free but that is not to say that he will not get sick one day. He could be healthy this week and sick next week, so I spend quality time with Sam every day.