cat aids???

Question

my sister and 3 kids have two cats and have been told that cat aids has been going around town. has anyone ever seen the effects of it?

Answer 1

FIV attacks the cat's immune system which makes it vulnerable to secondary bacterial, viral, fungal & protazoal infections.

Stage 1: Once inside the body, FIV is carried to the regional lymph nodes where it replicates in the white blood cells known as T lymphocytes (CD4+ lymphocyte). It then spreads to other lymph nodes throughout the body. At this time there may be an acute illness which is characterised by fever, leukopenia, anaemia, malaise & swollen lymph nodes, lasting a few weeks. During this initial stage it may go unnoticed that the cat is unwell.

Stage 2: This is the asymptomatic phase which can last for many years. During this stage cat appears healthy & is able to lead a normal life.

Stage 3: As we've already discussed, FIV destroys the T lymphocytes, these cells are required for the proper functioning of the immune system. Eventually when enough T lymphocytes have been destroyed, the immune system loses it's ability to fight off opportunistic infections & signs of immunodeficiency develop.

Cats show a range of symptoms in this stage, these symptoms may vary from cat to cat. Some of which may include:

Weight loss

Poor coat condition

Anaemia

Gastroenteritis

Gingivitis & stomatitis

Diarrhoea

Chronic or recurrent infections of the skin, eyes, urinary tract, respiratory tract etc.

Cancer

Answer 2

At least feline leukemia isn't the main issue, that's a worse disease.

FIV is in 20% of the cat population (indoors as well as outdoor ones) The info the first person provided is accurate.

Usually you'll see runny eyes, dry coat and mouth sores. You can treat for all three of those.

FIV is spread by biting, so casual contact isn't a problem. You can mix an FIV cat in with non-FIV cats and it won't spread if the cat isn't aggressive and doesn't bite. We have two of them and over 8 years neither has given it to the other three cats we have. They were full tomcats (soon neutered) when we brought them in, so I know it's a disease that's not spread very easily. We never separated the FIV cats from the others, in all that time. They were 'safe'.

Don't call it 'aids',that's a human disease. This is FIV and is feline only, you can't get it from them.

The lifespan of a cat with FIV isn't shortened, they can live a full 15-20 years with it if you treat the symptoms, feed them good food and don't expose them to sick cats.

There are two very good FIV cat lists on yahoogroups if you want to join.

Answer 3

yes its spread by fighting and having cuts,sliver from mouth like feeding bowls or dishes.my cat died from this when i found out had to make indoor cat and lived for quite a while,never was ill.think he got from a stray cat who was always fighting with him.you cant get injections to stop this,only way cats are safe if indoors as you dont know which cat has.if not neutered or sprayed it makes harder as they catch through matting as well.so if not neutered sprayed get done to help your cats not getting