Has anyone ever had a vaccinated cat get FeLeuk after bringing in a FeLeuk + cat?

[summerhorse]

So someone dumps this kitty off at work. Someone says they will take her, so I get her, take her to vet for shots and she is Leuk. +. She is not sick, she’s young and healthy right now. I could not put her down. So person of course backs out (they got a kitten, so WHY did you say you’d take the cat???), nobody else wants her of course, can’t even get someone to foster her (someone with no cats or an isolation area of course) so I can booster all of mine and have time for it to take effect.

She is in a carrier in the carport and not happy about it. I have 18 cats and some are elderly. There is no way to isolate one cat in this tiny house. I can’t find much on the risks except they say it is small but (no vaccine is 100%…) I’d like to know how many, if any, adult cats previously tested negative and vaccinated actually DID get Leuk. + from an infected cat. So far I have not found any.

I’m starting to feel a bit like the old woman in the shoe.

[BuddyRoo]

AVMA says: (https://www.avma.org/About/AlliedOrganizations/Pages/rbbroch.aspx)

Feline Leukemia Virus Vaccine: Feline leukemia virus (FeLV) is the leading viral killer of cats. The virus is spread from cat-to-cat through bite wounds, through casual contact with infected cats, and from an infected mother cat to her kittens. The individuals most at risk of infection are outdoor cats, indoor/outdoor cats, and cats exposed to such individuals. Cats living in households with FeLV-infected cats or with cats of unknown infection status are also at risk. Indoor-only cats with no exposure to potentially infected cats are extremely unlikely to become infected. FeLV vaccines are recommended for all cats at risk of exposure to the virus.

Cornell has a write up on FELV as well and they repeat a few times that infected cats should be kept separate from non infected cats: http://www.vet.cornell.edu/FHC/health_resources/brochure_felv.cfm

Personally, I don’t think it’s fair to your other 18 (negative) cats to take on this new one with a known infection. The risk may be low(er) for your younger, healthier cats. But for your older cats? Or to any cats who might get in a tussle as they sort out the hierarchy in the house?

You are clearly a cat lover and I can appreciate your desire to help. But before you help a new cat, I would consider the others that you’ve already taken responsibility for.

[Justmyluck]

I know it really really sucks, but euthanasia is most likely the best option unless some one only wants one cat that is 100% indoor. FeLV will kill them and it isnt pretty. Keeping her locked up isn’t fair to her and to put all of you other cats a risk of an unpleasant disease and death.

[Coyoteco]

I don’t know the answer to your question. I do know that there are alternatives to euthanasia. If you decide that it isn’t safe for your existing cats, there are more and more no-kill shelter/sanctuaries for disease positive cats. Aside from the shelters, there are sometimes people who have a positive cat who don’t mind taking in another one.
Good luck, and I’ll watch this thread for more information about this subject.

Good Friends in Utah will be a good source of information on the subject.

[Alex_and_Bodie_s_Mom]

OP – I had a FeLV kitty a few years ago. Someone dumped her and her brother when they were very small; I caught him, but didn’t find her until 4 months later, when she came in from the cold (literally!).

We did not know she was positive at the time and she lived in the house with my five other kitties, including her brother, until she developed symptoms and was diagnosed (about 2 years later). At the time, we didn’t regularly vaccinate for FeLV (bad us, yes, I know), and immediately everyone went in for vaccinations, which they have received annually since then.

I lost Bitsy, but none of the other cats, either indoor or out, has ever tested positive for FeLV. Her brother never did, either. So . . .

[cowboymom]

We had a similar experience as A&B…one cat died of it but his litter mates and house mates were/are fine. But I don’t know that I would deliberately tempt fate. I would spend my energy finding her a one-cat inside only type of home.

[Calamber]

Don’t cats test positive for FeLV if they have been vaccinated? Isn’t it possible this cat was already vaccinated?

[Justmyluck]

[QUOTE=Calamber;7263180]
Don’t cats test positive for FeLV if they have been vaccinated? Isn’t it possible this cat was already vaccinated?[/QUOTE]

That is FIV, that they will test positive with if they are vaccinated. Which is why many veterinarians are reluctant to to vaccinate against it. If you do have to use that vaccine the animal should be properly microchipped, because if it ends up as a stray and wonders into a shelter or clinic it will most likely be euthanized, unless it can be traced to its owner.

[clint]

Long ago, before FELV vaccinations, I had what I believe was a leukemia positive cat come to live with my other cats. Over the course of a few years, all of them died of leukemia. I love cats and have many of them, and I would never introduce a leukemia positive cat
to live with them. It is an almost certain death if they get it, and in my experience, they will. Even vaccinated, it isn’t 100% effective. It is not a pretty way to die.

[summerhorse]

Thanks everyone for your input. I do know FeLeuk is very contagious to unvaccinated cats and youngsters. There seems to be a new school of thought that adult cats tend to have some immunity to it anyway. Someone was supposed to take her, they backed out because the day we caught her, they went out and got a kitten. (?!!) I hope I can find a home for her. She is sooo sweet.

[In_The_Gate]

I hate to say it, but it really isn’t fair to adopt this cat out to a new cat owner who is hoping for a lifetime with their kitty. FIV + cats can live a near normal life span, while the majority of FeLV + die within a few years and no amount of care will save them. Anyone who takes this kitty needs to know that if it’s truly FeLV positive the odds of a normal life aren’t good.

[shiningwizard255]

I don’t know how common it is but there are false positives with FelV tests. Is getting a second opinion an option before you make your next move with her?

Sorry you are in this situation, OP, and kudos to you for trying to help.

[Calamber]

This publication indicates that if a cat tests positive for FeLV using the Elisa test, that a second test called an IFA is indicated to confirm. Did the kitten receive a second test and an Elisa as the initial, meaning blood test, not saliva or tears?

http://www.cathealth.com/infectious-diseases/feline-leukemia-virus

[summerhorse]

She did get the second test but so far I have not been able to get the results from the vets office! Hopefully I can tomorrow.

I would never adopt out a cat with an illness to somebody unless they had a thorough understanding of the disease, no worries there. She’s inside now but still in a crate, everyone has been boostered.

[clint]

Since you posted this, I had a kitten I was fostering test positive for FELV after first testing negative with the eliza. I had retested because of a positive FIV test, and he tested negative for FIV but positive for FELV. I had the IFA test done, which was negative and I have now waited almost a month to retest with the Elisa. A vet tech at the animal hospital where this was being done has been kind enough to take this kitten in for a month, and I’m holding my breath for the second test. OP, I’m holding my breath for your cat too.

[summerhorse]

I hope yours tests clear!! I finally got up with the vet clinic and they had sent the blood for FIV testing despite the fact that A) she’d already tested neg. for FIV and B) I repeatedly said IFA test for Leukemia NOT FIV. Over and over. Turns out they didn’t know what an IFA test WAS so just assummmed. Now they expect me to pay for the FIV test I repeatedly said I did not want.

How much did you pay for the IFA test? I want to be sure they don’t say sure we’ll cover it (the screw up) and then tack that cost on to the new test!

[clint]

He tested clear! I still don’t have the invoice for the IFA test, but this is a rescue price, and was around $120. The FIV test for our cats has always been part of the combo FELV/FIV elisa test; I was told there isn’t a separate one. If I had specifically requested an IFA FELV test I wouldn’t pay for another elisa combo test.

I hope your IFA results are clear!

[alto]

@summerhorse;7353370

Now they expect me to pay for the FIV test I repeatedly said I did not want.

No! that is their mistake not yours.

Hope kitty is clear … head over to some of the cat forums & re-ask this question there.

[vacation1]

Sympathy for your dilemma - you did a nice thing and now you’re trapped in a painful situation, that sucks. I do understand the people who backed out, though - I would back out too, at that stage of an adoption.