Cat "AIDS"?

Question

Is there such a thing? our neighbors cat came back from the vet after being bitten by other cats, and the neighbors said the Vet told them the cat has 1 to 12 years to live, and has Feline Aids..

Is there such a thing? should we make the cat "disappear" for our safety?

By "disapear" I mean, catch it and take it to the Humane Society..Jeez, people I`m not a Mobster!! (Now I know which ones of you are near New York City!)

Answer 1

Aids is a human disease, what the cat has is FIV. And that vet is very badly misinformed if he thinks the cat has only a year or two left.

FIV in cats doesn't shorten their life span if they're well cared for (UNLESS you get a vet that recommends automatic euthenasia that is!). It won't spread to humans - it's a cat only disease.

AND it won't spread to another cat unless the infected cat bites hard enough to draw blood on another cat, and even then it doesn't always pass the first time.

A cat with FIV has to be protected from sick cats, because the immune system of the FIV cat is very low, it takes them a long time to heal if they get injured or sick.

There's two very good lists on yahoogroups for FIV cat owners. I've got two FIV cats and they've had the disease for at least 7 years on one, and 9 years on the other. Both are very healthy. I make sure they get good food and good vet care. The FIV status isn't something we worry about because even though they're around the other 3 cats 24 hours a day, they've never spread FIV to the others.

It's not a bad disease, as diseases go this is probably one of the easiest ones to take care of. Some owners on the Yahoogroups list have cats who've had FIV for 15 years and are still healthy and strong.

Answer 2

similar story, although not the same illness:
At the shelter where I volunteer we had a cat come in about a month ago, the cat was seized from it's former owners and the day that animal control seized the cat there was an incident where the cat attacked a person who was diagnosed with AIDS and the cat drew blood on a bite
when they brought the cat in, all of the volunteers were warned of the condition before the cage was opened, and those who did not want to risk it left the room, the rest of us had to put on long sleeved shirts and pants and SIX people held down that cat just to give it an intake exam and draw some blood to be tested
The cat was practically feral although it had come from an apartment, and the decision that the cat would not be adoptable was made (unadoptable cats get euthanized), the test results didn't come in until three days after the cat was put to sleep
I'm not sure what the results were (HIV positive or HIV negative), however the fact that the cat had to be tested was a scary thought...
did you know the AIDS virus actually came from monkeys in Africa before any humans were ever infected with it?

Anywho: I've never heard of a cat version of AIDS however I don't see why it isn't possible...cats have a version of our cold virus however that can't be passed to humans, so this virus probably can't get passed to you either
your question interested me, so I did a quick search ("cat AIDS") and came up with these articles:
http://www.cat-world.com.au/FelineImmunodeficiencyVirus.htm
http://cats.about.com/cs/healthissues/a/fiv_in_cats.htm
they say that it can't be passed to humans on the articles so I wouldn't worry about it

Answer 3

Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) is often called 'feline AIDS' for short. It's like HIV in the sense that it causes a gradual degradation of their immune system. It's important to remember that people *cannot* get FIV, only cats can.

The most common means of transmission is bite wounds, so if the cat does not fight with other cats he's not going to give it to anyone; just to be safe, he should be kept inside. Staying inside will also reduce his stress and exposure to infections.

Cats with FIV may live for several years or only a few months; 1-2 years is only an average.

Answer 4

Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) causes an infectious disease in domestic cats and cheetahs similar to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV infection) in humans. It attacks and weakens the body's immune system, making the animal susceptible to infections and diseases that don't affect healthy cats. There is neither a cure nor a vaccine for FIV. Though eventually fatal, an FIV-positive cat can live for many years without any signs of illness.

FIV is a lentivirus, a virus that causes slowly developing disease.

Prevalence
FIV occurs worldwide and its prevalence varies geographically. About 1.5% to 3% of cats in the United States are infected with FIV. About 5% of FIV-positive cats also have feline leukemia virus (FeLV).

Risk Factors

Risk factors for FIV include:

age,
gender,
illness, and
time spent outdoors.
Older cats are more likely to be infected. The average age of cats with FIV is 5 years at the time of diagnosis.

Aggressive male cats that roam and fight with other cats are more likely to be infected than females and nonaggressive males.


You cannot catch this disease yourself. However, if you have other cats, it is recommended that you keep FIV positive cats in a one cat house. It doesn't mention how FIV is transmitted, which is through deep bite wounds most of the time, but can be transmitted through blood contact as well. A cat that has FIV does not mean it is a death sentence. Much like HIV and AIDS in humans, it's not the virus that kills, it's the lower white blood cell count that cannot fight off virus' and infections. As long as a cat remains in the house and is not subject to infections, the cat usually lives a full, normal life.

Answer 5

Yes, there is such a thing as feline AIDS (FIV or Feline Immunodeficiency Virus). Why you would want to make the cat "disappear" is beyond me since FIV can't be transmitted to humans. Personally, I find even the thought of doing that to be sick.

What your neighbors do need to do is keep their infected cat away from other cats.

Answer 6

yes there is such a thing and it is transferrable through bites. A much more contagious disease is Pan luke, it has a real big long name, but it is a disease that causes a lot of problems and is eventually fatal to a cat. Both diseases might allow a cat to live a long time healthily before it declines. Pan Luke is very transmittable but you can get your own cats vaccinated against it. It lives in the environment and stays in environments--if you have a cat die from it, it can kill another cat you bring into the same location even a year later.

The cat aids is not transferrable to you or dogs, just other cats and through bites. The cats that bit the cat were probably unneutered strays. Don't "disappear" the cat, you have nothing to worry about even if that cat bites you.

Answer 7

Well it's called, FIV...and many cats live long healthy lives with it. It's not really something for you to be concerned over. They just need to keep their cat inside.

It's usually found in tomcats...or after a cat has been in a fight with an infected cat (deep bite wounds). It can't be passed to humans...it completely within the feline world.

If they keep their cat inside, he/she will not be able to spread it to other cats. And it really takes a bad bite to infect another cat...so if they have other cats, as long as they don't try to kill each other, they shouldn't have to be afraid of them getting infected either.

It's called FIV because it works like HIV, but it's not HIV. Their cat can live a very long life with no symptoms and there is no reason to make their cat "disappear".

Answer 8

Feline AIDS usually means FIV (Feline Immunodeficiency Syndrome), a disease that ruins the cat's immune system.

Cats with FIV can live out a full lifespan, but since they have little or no resistance to disease, they are liable to catch illnesses from other cats.

The disease is not very contagious and the danger is the cat with FIV catching something from other cats, not other cats catching FIV from the one who has it.

No need to get rid of the cat, and certainly no need to make a cat that doesn't belong to you "disappear." Cats with FIV do better as only cats, but they can live with other healthy vaccinated cats with little chance of getting sick. They should, however, be indoor-only cats.

Answer 9

My understanding is that cat "aids" is really feline leukemia. Either way, it's a bad bad thing. Any outdoor cats or cats that have contact with exposed cats need to be tested and vaccinated. I certainly hope that the infected cat will no longer be let outside where it can infect other cats.

Answer 10

Yes, cats do get HIV and AIDS.

IT'S HARMLESS TO HUMANS!!!
Even if the cat bit you or bled into your fresh cut. The diseases are similar, but they don't "cross contaminate".

It is VERY contagious to other cats though. She MUST keep her cat indoors. Keep yours indoors just to be safe.