Ever heard of cat AIDS?

Question

Our vet. told me a few months ago that are cat little bo peep, has Feline Immumodeficiency Virus or disorder has anyone ever heard of this? I guess it effects cats the same way AIDS do humanes.

Answer 1

Yes, it is often called cat AIDS, but is really FIV. It is not contagious to people, only other cats. It is usually seen in male cats that roam or outdoor cats, as it usually requires a bite to spread the disease. Many cats live quite a few years with it before eventually getting sick. They should be kept indoors to help prevent the spread of it, and any sign of illness should recieve prompt treatment.

Answer 2

Yes, but don't call it AIDS, that's the human version of HIV when they're inthe last stages of the disease. It's not accurate to call a cat disease AIDS because it's not the same disease.

FIV is in about 20% of the cat population (indoor cats as well as outdoor cats) and it's not too bad a disease actually. A cat with this will live upwards of 15 years with it You treat the symptoms, as they come up.

If you got your cat from someone who vaccinated her against FIV, she'll be testing positive for FIV all her life because the vaccine gives her antibodies and the tests look for the antibodies. A vaccinated cat will LOOK like it's positive, but it won't be.

If the vet only used the SNAP test (sometimes called the Elisha test) it has a lot of false positives and shouldn't be considered proof of FIV. Up to 20% of healthy cats will come up looking positive with this test and they won't have it at all. The only good test for this is the Western Blot, but even that can't tell if your cat is vaccinated for FIV or if she's got FIV.

Consider it a 'maybe' if the test was done at the vets and he got an answer in 15 minutes. The Western Blot needs to be sent out to a lab and is the more accurate test of the two.

If your cat does have FIV, there's some very good FIV cats groups over on Yahoogroups, they can give you all sorts of info. I'll also post some good sites below.

I own two FIV positive cats. They're ok to have with non-FIV cats, as the disease only spreads by biting or from the mother giving it to her kittens. We've had the two FIV guys mixed with our other three cats for over 9 years and none of the others have gotten infected. It's not going to spread if the cat doesn't bite other cats.

Answer 3

Yup. FIV is like AIDS in cats. The first thing you need to do is NOT get hysterical about it (like I did). I thought my cat would be dead within months of being diagnosed. He was diagnosed when he was two years old and then went on to live to the ripe old age of 15. You have to keep a close eye on them for the first signs of sickness and get them to the vet ASAP. They will probably be alot more prone to things like skin abcesses (mine had some really wicked ones for a while) and respiratory infections. The most important thing you should do is get the cat spayed or neutered and keep them inside all the time if at all possible. I thought FIV was a death sentence for my cat. It wasn't. I recently lost him but he was around for many years and he gave me a great deal of joy.

Answer 4

It is in the same retrovirus family as the human AIDS virus and it is specific to cats - not transferable to humans, just to other cats.

FIV cats are subject to the same type of opportunistic infections as humans because their immune systems are compromised. LBP can have a good quality of life and she needs to be kept indoors to prevent injury that might lead to an infection and the highest quality diet you can do for her to keep her immune system healthy.

Go to http://www.littlebigcat.com and read Dr. Jean Hovfe's article "Easy Homemade Diets for Cats and Dogs". Those are optimum diets for healthy animals. It's easy to make up a couple of pounds of meat with the supplements, freeze it in muffin tins and transfer them to a gallon plastic bag to store in the freezer and take out for thawing as needed. I think two pounds of meat would last a cat for a month. Once you get your "act" together it shouldn't take much more than 1/2 hour to prepare the food for the month.

The benefits of a healthy diet are many - soft, silky coats, no hairballs, healthy urinary tracts, bright eyes, etc.

Answer 5

Here's some useful information my vet has available on his website.
It is a horrible disease, and the majority of registered breeders get their cats bloodtested for this before they breed with them. It is also the reason many people are so "for" indoor only cats - in an effort to prevent this disease spreading like a wild-fire.
http://www.catloversvet.com/fiv.htm

Answer 6

Never encounter a cat with a case of it, but I have heard of it. The cats can usually go on living happy lives so long as they are treated properly with medication and what have you.

Answer 7

ya i have. i am so super sorry!! i have known cats can get it for some time, it is also in wild cats of all kind.

Answer 8

Never heard of cat AIDS, but I have heard of FIV.........look it up....