FeLV

[pandorabox78]

dear june,

Rapid FeLV Ag Test Kit is a chromatographic immunoassay for the qualitative detection of FeLV antigen in feline whole blood, plasma or serum.

Limitations of the Test
1) Rapid FeLV Ag Test Kit will only indicate the presence of FeLV in the specimen and should not be used as the sole criteria for the diagnosis of FeLV infection.
2) As with all diagnostic tests, all results must be interpreted together with other clinical information available to the veterinarian.
3) If the test result is negative and clinical symptom is persist, additional testing using other clinical methods is recommended. A negative result does not at any time preclude the possibility of FeLV infection.

Rapid FeLV Ag Test Kit has been compared with a leading commercial FeLV antigen test. The overall accuracy is greater or equal to 99.0%.

there is also the ELISA snap test available....

[June]

Tks Doc.I just have to face the fact that they are infected already

I'm so sad because my apartment seems very quiet now. No Peterpan's voice meowing asking me to open the door or waiting for me when I come home. He is in the cage in the other room.I have to close the door because Pokemon keep poking his paw to Peterpan.

Originally Posted by pandorabox78

dear june,

Rapid FeLV Ag Test Kit is a chromatographic immunoassay for the qualitative detection of FeLV antigen in feline whole blood, plasma or serum.

Limitations of the Test
1) Rapid FeLV Ag Test Kit will only indicate the presence of FeLV in the specimen and should not be used as the sole criteria for the diagnosis of FeLV infection.
2) As with all diagnostic tests, all results must be interpreted together with other clinical information available to the veterinarian.
3) If the test result is negative and clinical symptom is persist, additional testing using other clinical methods is recommended. A negative result does not at any time preclude the possibility of FeLV infection.

Rapid FeLV Ag Test Kit has been compared with a leading commercial FeLV antigen test. The overall accuracy is greater or equal to 99.0%.

there is also the ELISA snap test available....

[blackie007]

I'm a bit confused here.....June's cats have been with her for some time now. More than a year or two, if I'm not mistaken. And if I'm not wrong, they are strictly indoor cats.

So, where did they get the virus from??

Anyway, what is your prognosis, Dr Jon?

And June....I agree with what Bina said....make them as comfortable as you can.

[June]

End of July already 2 yrs they stay with me. They get the virus from strays that I fed regularly and also possibility the strays that I rescued like Daybonk,Teh Tarik & Belang.Maybe they have the virus already when I pick up them from street. Also,maybe from the clinic when Peterpan was warded last year.He got it from another cat. Many possibility.

Originally Posted by blackie007

I'm a bit confused here.....June's cats have been with her for some time now. More than a year or two, if I'm not mistaken. And if I'm not wrong, they are strictly indoor cats.

So, where did they get the virus from??

Anyway, what is your prognosis, Dr Jon?

And June....I agree with what Bina said....make them as comfortable as you can.

[pandorabox78]

dear blackie,

the source of infection is numerous..... june's cat are mostly strays and with all the different modes of the virus transmission from in-utero, transmammary being high on the list in june's case.... would probably be the reason how peterpan got the virus too... transmission from saliva, via food and water bowls would be the least likely since transmission is difficult due to the lifespan of the retrovirus outside the body.... that would mean that it would be unlikely for peterpan to get the virus from the clinic because the bowls, trays and towels are disinfected with chlorox and also it would require repeated exposure to an infected cat before contracture of the virus which is not so since each cat is placed in separate cages.

you may question that the cats 'appeared' healthy and showed no typical signs and suddenly falling ill only goes to show that stresses may be the likely element to have triggered the possible emergence of the virus.....

many cats in 1 household may be stressful for some cats but not all, also depends on level of immunity of the cat if infected by the virus and many other factors.......

its important for multicat owners to understand feline dynamics and behaviour and how territorial these animals about their living spaces and how these factors contribute to stresses and eventual medical problems in cats

[blackie007]

I really don't know what to say except hope for the best. While there is no effective cure for FeLV, cats who are healthy but FeLV-positive can live long, full lives in many cases. They need excellent care, including parasite control, a strictly indoor life, top-quality nutrition, regular grooming, and minimal stress.

Also, some cats are able to produce neutralizing antibodies by themselves which will eliminate the virus. So, there is hope that your cats are able to produce such antibodies.

Most important, don't give up hope....you didn't give up hope on Peterpan!

Originally Posted by June

End of July already 2 yrs they stay with me. They get the virus from strays that I fed regularly and also possibility the strays that I rescued like Daybonk,Teh Tarik & Belang.Maybe they have the virus already when I pick up them from street. Also,maybe from the clinic when Peterpan was warded last year.He got it from another cat. Many possibility.

[pandorabox78]

prognosis for these cats range from fair to grave depending on the complications that arises from other diseases....

FeLV... like FIV affects the immune system of the cat and predisposes the animal to other infections that can kill a cat.... toxoplasma, cystitis, FIA and loads more.....

in the case of coklat....coklat is doing well.... she's eating already..... she goes home tomorrow....

the only advice for all FeLV cat owners out there.....love your cats.... when i say that...i mean provide the cat the best care, give them good food, ensure stress free environment, load with supplements that these animals don't succumb to the virus..... but.......... be prepared to let them go when the time comes.....

[blackie007]

dear dr jon,

thanks so much for answering my questions. yes, I did wonder at how june's cats (since it's not one but 3?) got infected, as I did quite a bit of reading up not only from the Cat Owner's Home Veterinary Handbook, but elsewhere on the internet, too. As you pointed out, it would require prolonged repeated exposure to get infected for an adult cat.

therefore, in your professional opinion, it is likely that the virus was ALREADY in peterpan's, coklat's and oni's bodies (these are littermates?), lying dormant and due to some stress, the virus was triggered?

and what might be the maximum number of cats in a household to avoid the cats being stressed out? I'm asking this as you highlighted that for multicat households to beware of. I think it will be good if everyone can learn from this.

Originally Posted by pandorabox78

dear blackie,

the source of infection is numerous..... june's cat are mostly strays and with all the different modes of the virus transmission from in-utero, transmammary being high on the list in june's case.... would probably be the reason how peterpan got the virus too... transmission from saliva, via food and water bowls would be the least likely since transmission is difficult due to the lifespan of the retrovirus outside the body.... that would mean that it would be unlikely for peterpan to get the virus from the clinic because the bowls, trays and towels are disinfected with chlorox and also it would require repeated exposure to an infected cat before contracture of the virus which is not so since each cat is placed in separate cages.

you may question that the cats 'appeared' healthy and showed no typical signs and suddenly falling ill only goes to show that stresses may be the likely element to have triggered the possible emergence of the virus.....

many cats in 1 household may be stressful for some cats but not all, also depends on level of immunity of the cat if infected by the virus and many other factors.......

its important for multicat owners to understand feline dynamics and behaviour and how territorial these animals about their living spaces and how these factors contribute to stresses and eventual medical problems in cats

[blackie007]

I'm so glad to hear that coklat is doing well. :)

stress free environment.....what would constitute as stress from a feline's perspective, dr? (besides multi-cats)

Originally Posted by pandorabox78

prognosis for these cats range from fair to grave depending on the complications that arises from other diseases....

FeLV... like FIV affects the immune system of the cat and predisposes the animal to other infections that can kill a cat.... toxoplasma, cystitis, FIA and loads more.....

in the case of coklat....coklat is doing well.... she's eating already..... she goes home tomorrow....

the only advice for all FeLV cat owners out there.....love your cats.... when i say that...i mean provide the cat the best care, give them good food, ensure stress free environment, load with supplements that these animals don't succumb to the virus..... but.......... be prepared to let them go when the time comes.....

[abgraldo]

Dear June,
Pakcu punyerler terperanjat bila June call beritahu tu 2 hari lepas. Walaupun so far tak de cure for FELV, but there is drugs and medicine, untuk mengurang aktifkan virus tu, so feline lives will be prolong. Pakcu dah tanya Vet Pakcu, and now dia tengah discuss dgn dia nye lecturer/dean kat UPM, for what would be the best remedial and cost effective action. As Kak Zai ckp, we can only put in our best effort but Mighty God menentukan... Be strong k June.

[pandorabox78]

as you may have read from the net...there are many stages of the virus causing problems in the these cats.... probably 1 cat was infected and spread the virus to the others....or from litter mates..... june has been keeping this cats together which may predispose to disease transmission. they do share food and water bowls at home..

you may ask how come the rest are negative, the test kit only test the viral antigens in blood.... the possible reason is either these immuned or possibly not shedding the virus because the body has contained the virus in bone marrow and places that cannot be detected by the test kit.... thats why it's imperative that these cats are tested again in 90 days.

the IFA test is only available in large veterinary labs and very expensive... but if a client insist... it can be arranged..... for now.... best to separate the positives from the negatives...being mindful that the negatives may be positives later or probably negative altogether which is a good thing....

i'm sorry i cannot answer how many cats it takes to create a stressful environment... even 2 cats can be stressful if 1 cat cannot handle the presence of another.... what more in june's case...

the element of stress is also important to be looked into.... the number of males and females, dominant male ones, the 'gangsters' of the lot, the number of available food bowl, water bowls, cat litter trays, whether they hate sharing, whether they hate eating together, the place they stay, whether they get feral cats coming to the house, whether the owner allows them outdoors, whether the place where the owner stays......a small apartment is pretty stressful for 10 cats compared to 10 cats in a 2 storey bungalow and huge gardens.....

we cannot change a few of these stress factors...the only thing we can do is ensure we limit the number of cats in our household, quarantine if they are strays joining the population, ensure proper disease control....cats with infectious disease given away or put to sleep.... it may sound harsh...but thats the reality..... to ensure the rest of the population are protected...

as for cats that come from breeders who breed cats with known medical records and are disease free.... then it would be ok.....but....the element of stress cannot be disregarded too.....

[blackie007]

I see what you are saying, and do appreciate your taking the time to help us understand FeLV better, dr.

It is one of the most common and destructive virus, and I can't help but want to learn as much as I can about it. and as you probably know, I can read all I want from the internet or books, but the more I read, the more questions I have (does this make sense to you??).

I think it is not really necessary to give away or put to sleep the cat with FeLV....I think as long as the infected cat is kept away from all other cats, its life should be spared.

Forgive me if I sound blunt, but we don't put to sleep humans with H1N1 or AIDs, which are both contagious. In the same vein, I firmly believe that the unfortunate cat with FeLV should be given even more love & care till the last day of its remaining life. No offense, dr.

[pandorabox78]

none taken blackie....

the options of giving away or ending the life of the animal is reserved for the few people who cannot manage these cats and remains the last resort in any case....

remember.......coklat's life was spared after i managed to convince the owner to change their initial decision

[prinz38i]

I had sadly put to sleep one of the most beloved kitten I have, due to FeLV + FIV positif. Plus some more also diagnosed +ve FIP....... veryyy sad. Once diagnosed +ve, I had to put him away from the others.. caged him. But he become more stress. Don't want to eat, drink, and not even move.. just stay static in the middle of the cage. He used to eat and drink with the others, play and 'fight'. For few days he become soooo thin till I can see there a gap between his skull and eye ball when I look at his eyes.. weight drop drastically.. I can't see him that way, so decided to put him to sleep eventhough it was just few days after diagnosed +ve of all those viruses. Plus I need to think about the other cat too. Don't want it to spread to the others. I feel bad to be heartless to the sick one, but I hope it will giving something good to the others.
I bring the others to the vet as well and thank God, they -ve.

[FurKids]

Originally Posted by June

Bro,aku call Dr Chee,he said dia buat ANTI GEN test bukan ELISA & IFA.Ambil blood test ...

June, kalau tak silap, Dr Chee cakap "Anigen" rapid test kit untuk FeLV (supported by the additional info in Dr. Jon (Pandorabox78)'s postings) mcm one of those test kits biasa dan senang diguna oleh manusia mcm pregnancy test, blood glucose test, etc. etc. dalam pasara atau macam yg disebut oleh Fred Scott DVM, PhD di bawah. Memang test kit jenama "Anigen" ini guna spesimen darah sahaja dan tidak termasuk air mata atau air liur mcm ELISA. But testing using blood is more accurate than using non-blood specimens like tears and saliva.

"Anigen" test kit ini adalah merupakan produk buatan syarikat Animal Genetics Inc. dari Seoul, Korea.

June, oleh kerana realistically, the consequences of both a false positive and a false negative test are potentially severe, saya ingin kongsikan sedikit kata-kata daripada Fred Scott, DVM, PhD, professor emeritus of virology at Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine and the founding director of the Cornell Feline Health Center mengenai FeLV:

Various other commercial kit tests are available to diagnosis FeLV and FIV. For a number of years, an innovative kind of assay called the IDEXX Combo test has been routinely used by veterinarians. The assay, which typically costs about $60, can be performed in a local clinic and completed in a matter of minutes.

Basically, Dr. Scott explains, the assay kit consists of a small piece of filter paper impregnated with various dots of test material: FeLV- and FIV-positive controls, a negative control, an FeLV sample test spot and an FIV sample test spot.

When a few drops of a cat's blood, serum, or plasma are put on the paper, either a change in the color of the various dots-or no change at all-will indicate whether or not the animal is harboring one or both of the viruses.

Diagnostic Tests

Diagnosis of FeLV infection, says Dr. Scott, is based on a cat's medical history and clinical signs and the results of tests to determine whether the virus is present in the blood.

A positive test will identify the presence of FeLV or its antigens.

Two types of tests commonly used for this purpose are an ELIZA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay), which can be performed in a veterinary clinic and is routinely carried out as the initial FeLV screening test; and an IFA (immunoflourescent assay), a confirmatory test that, because of the technology required, must be done at a commercial laboratory.

If your cat has tested positive for one of these viruses, says Dr. Scott, "You don't have to consider it a death sentence.

First of all, you'd do well to have the animal retested after about three months, since the original test may have yielded a false positive.

Secondly, some FeLV-infected cats develop an effective immune response, which controls the viral infection and results in a transient viremia instead of a persistent viremia. In these cats, subsequent FeLV tests will show that the cat no longer has virus in its blood.

Finally, while there is no complete cure for FeLV or FIV infection, newer treatments and supportive care can often result in several years of relatively good health."

[June]

yeah bro.I read it from Cornell University web also ini information.what else can I do?? Just make them comfortable possible though it is not easy. This morning I woke up tgk Peterpan tendang his food and waterbowl smp tumpah,turn his litterbox upside down

Originally Posted by FurKids

June, kalau tak silap, Dr Chee cakap "Anigen" rapid test kit untuk FeLV (supported by the additional info in Dr. Jon (Pandorabox78)'s postings) mcm one of those test kits biasa dan senang diguna oleh manusia mcm pregnancy test, blood glucose test, etc. etc. dalam pasara atau macam yg disebut oleh Fred Scott DVM, PhD di bawah. Memang test kit jenama "Anigen" ini guna spesimen darah sahaja dan tidak termasuk air mata atau air liur mcm ELISA. But testing using blood is more accurate than using non-blood specimens like tears and saliva.

"Anigen" test kit ini adalah merupakan produk buatan syarikat Animal Genetics Inc. dari Seoul, Korea.

June, oleh kerana realistically, the consequences of both a false positive and a false negative test are potentially severe, saya ingin kongsikan sedikit kata-kata daripada Fred Scott, DVM, PhD, professor emeritus of virology at Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine and the founding director of the Cornell Feline Health Center mengenai FeLV:

Various other commercial kit tests are available to diagnosis FeLV and FIV. For a number of years, an innovative kind of assay called the IDEXX Combo test has been routinely used by veterinarians. The assay, which typically costs about $60, can be performed in a local clinic and completed in a matter of minutes.

Basically, Dr. Scott explains, the assay kit consists of a small piece of filter paper impregnated with various dots of test material: FeLV- and FIV-positive controls, a negative control, an FeLV sample test spot and an FIV sample test spot.

When a few drops of a cat's blood, serum, or plasma are put on the paper, either a change in the color of the various dots-or no change at all-will indicate whether or not the animal is harboring one or both of the viruses.

Diagnostic Tests

Diagnosis of FeLV infection, says Dr. Scott, is based on a cat's medical history and clinical signs and the results of tests to determine whether the virus is present in the blood.

A positive test will identify the presence of FeLV or its antigens.

Two types of tests commonly used for this purpose are an ELIZA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay), which can be performed in a veterinary clinic and is routinely carried out as the initial FeLV screening test; and an IFA (immunoflourescent assay), a confirmatory test that, because of the technology required, must be done at a commercial laboratory.

If your cat has tested positive for one of these viruses, says Dr. Scott, "You don't have to consider it a death sentence.

First of all, you'd do well to have the animal retested after about three months, since the original test may have yielded a false positive.

Secondly, some FeLV-infected cats develop an effective immune response, which controls the viral infection and results in a transient viremia instead of a persistent viremia. In these cats, subsequent FeLV tests will show that the cat no longer has virus in its blood.

Finally, while there is no complete cure for FeLV or FIV infection, newer treatments and supportive care can often result in several years of relatively good health."

[FurKids]

Diorang tak ada hantar blood specimen PP ke commercial lab untuk IFA confirmatory test jadi PP punyer kes memang tak confirm kan?

[June]

takde hantar for IFA test.just pakai the kit as u said earlier. but then, itu test pun accurate jugakan??

Originally Posted by FurKids

Diorang tak ada hantar blood specimen PP ke commercial lab untuk IFA confirmatory test jadi PP punyer kes memang tak confirm kan?

[BabyZee]

Kak June, I'm sorry to hear this, sedihnya kalau the worst thing happen tapi mintak2 boleh dihandle lagi la...Amin..
Dah kita orang dekat sini kebanyakkan macam dah kenal je anak2 bulus akak walaupun tak pernah jumpa pun lagi...
Be strong k and usahala semana yang bleh...

[hatemetoday]

JUne..aku tak tau nak kate ape..semua orang dah ckp benda yg aku nak ckp..yg aku pasti..ko ngan aku sama...sama2 rescue stray..ini hari hari ko..esok lusa mana tau hari aku...bak kata doc...mcm mana bersih dan tertib pon kita jaga ..kita tak tau apa yg ada dlm badan dorang...

but.......... be prepared to let them go when the time comes.....

ayat2 doc ni buat aku tesentak kejap...

june..semoga tabah....aku doakan yg terbaik dan positif untuk anak2 bulu ko...