HELP! I'm New to FIV+ care!

MyBabyJensenJared

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SO-- my Baby Jensen Jared found me on 5-24-2020 ~10:45pm & VERY quickly wrapped me around his lil paw like the stripes on a barber pole!

long story short, even though he was soon tested and his results came back negative, AND im 200% sure he hasn't been outside affiliating with unknown cats, he was tested again a couple of days ago in the course of treating an unexplained fever/illness, and his results came back saying he is now FIV+ (💔) ......

so, i understand that that means basically that he has a weakend immune system, & will need to stay indoors (DEF not a problem, ever since he first came here, his attitude towards going outside has been like "outside?! blegh! that is VERY beneath me & well behind me now, plz k no thks!")

what i want to ask is if anyone who has experience with FIV+ cats has any good info/advice for providing the best & healthiest & safest life possible for them??

like... what kind of changes should I make around the house?

what kind of FOOD should i give him now?

are there any good & good quality vitamins i should get him started on?

do i need to get an air purifier? etc etc etc....

(if its not perfectly obvious, this is my BABY, & im prepared to do THE MOST for him... so lifestyle changes WILL be made if/however necessary, so PLEASE, feel free to share ALL the helpful experience info/advice possible!!!)

❤❤❤thanks!!!
 

StanAndAlf

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It's completely possible for FIV positive cats to live a long and healthy life. Glad you are able to keep him indoors, that is a great first step.

Do you have other cats? I definitely wouldn't recommend getting another one while you have him, as he can spread the FIV to others and if your other cats get sick, they pose a risk to him.

I know a lot of people advertise raw food as preferred diet, but personally I don't think that is wise for an immune compromised cat as the potential for contamination is not a risk I would be willing to take. Others may state differently though. Either way, clean food and water dishes are paramount.

A stress free environment is also recommended, so lots of hiding places if he wants them, a regular routine and as little change as is possible in his day to day life. A calming diffuser may also be something to consider or discuss with your vet.

Make sure to keep parasite protection and vaccination up to date, even if he is an indoor only cat. Never wait and see if a health issue or abnormality will clear up in its own, contact a vet straight away.

So good of you to continue caring for him, I wish you both a long and healthy life together. Congrats on your new family member, would love some photos!

P.S Are you a Supernatural fan by any chance? Wondering about the inspiration for his name...
 

fionasmom

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IMO air purifiers are always a good idea, especially with pets. I am also of the opinion that you have to be careful feeding raw to immune compromised animals. My experience with that deals with GSDs, so I am not going to go into it here. You might get other opinions on that, but if you are inclined in that direction, I would do a lot of research.

Your baby is lucky to have you to care for him.

Fiv In Cats – TheCatSite Articles
 

cataholic07

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Was the diagnosis confirmed with either IFA test or quant pcr test? How old is he?
 
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MyBabyJensenJared

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the diagnosis WAS confirmed but im not sure via which test, im still waiting on the vet to forward copies of those results.

& he just made a year in April. i had to guess at his age when he rescued me. he was less than a LB & was JUUUSSSTT barely able to eat dry food. he NEEDED a birthday, so we guestimated & made his birthday on April 12th.
 

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MyBabyJensenJared

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It's completely possible for FIV positive cats to live a long and healthy life. Glad you are able to keep him indoors, that is a great first step.

Do you have other cats? I definitely wouldn't recommend getting another one while you have him, as he can spread the FIV to others and if your other cats get sick, they pose a risk to him.

I know a lot of people advertise raw food as preferred diet, but personally I don't think that is wise for an immune compromised cat as the potential for contamination is not a risk I would be willing to take. Others may state differently though. Either way, clean food and water dishes are paramount.

A stress free environment is also recommended, so lots of hiding places if he wants them, a regular routine and as little change as is possible in his day to day life. A calming diffuser may also be something to consider or discuss with your vet.

Make sure to keep parasite protection and vaccination up to date, even if he is an indoor only cat. Never wait and see if a health issue or abnormality will clear up in its own, contact a vet straight away.

So good of you to continue caring for him, I wish you both a long and healthy life together. Congrats on your new family member, would love some photos!

P.S Are you a Supernatural fan by any chance? Wondering about the inspiration for his name...

First THANKS for the info, its definitely reassuring...

i guess maybe my thread title was a bit ambiguous... so, ive had Jensen for over a year now but we only just found out about the FIV. hence being new to the FIV thing.. sorry..just wanted to clarify that one.

Yes, Jensen has a cat, Smokey. (HE made the solid decision to adopt that one.) But Smokey ALSO tested negative for FIV about two months after Jensen did. it was before he & Jensen ever interacted or even MET. But he'll be getting tested again soon.
but aside from keeping them both as healthy as possible, i don't really know what i can do, i can't POSSIBLY take Smokey away from him, they've gotten so attached... like... as in... they'll go to sleep near each other, not necessarily all piled up together but... a few inches at least apart... & if I bump the bed or something, one or both of them will just automatically reach out to make sure the other one is still there. ❤.

& ACTUALLY, Supernatural is exactly where Jensen's name came from... I had a nephew (he left us on Feb 12th, 2020 after a long battle with cancer)... & THAT was hard...he'd always been my lil soulmate... like... we were 🤞 from day 1. . . .& after he left us...i was LOST.... & an odd chain of events found me walking home from work one night when I started hearing these tiny little meows from some bushes... about a day after I brought him home, Jensen was like a little window cling... he was my biggest fan & just ADORED me in ways I've never been loved by a cat before. & just immediately, i noticed that he'd make me have alot of the same thoughts id had about my nephew Asthon. like... i gave him a piece of paper & he was so excited & i thought "it doesn't matter what i give him, it's just like christmas." id had exactly the same thought about Ashton. even my dad noticed & mentioned things like that. so Jensen was the first name... because Ashton was a HUGE fan. & one day, "Jared" just followed it out of my mouth. :)

sorry for the huge reply.

again.

thanks SO much for the response, i appreciate it, feel free to share any other tips/info/advice any time!
 

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Norachan

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He's so lucky to have you at MyBabyJensenJared MyBabyJensenJared

:heartshape:

First of all don't worry about him passing FIV on to any of your other cats. There is very little chance of the virus being spread between neutered/spayed cats who are buddies.

I've had two FIV+ males in the past and now I have an FIV+ female who, like Jensen, must have got the virus from her mother. All three were feral rescues, the first two males would have been infected by cat bites while fighting, but the little girl was too young to have been infected any other way.

I have a lot of other cats and none of them were ever infected by the FIV+ cats. If Jensen and Smokey are friends you have nothing to worry about.

Have they both had all their vaccines? If you are going to get Jensen vaccinated or give him a booster shot make sure you ask for the killed version of the vaccine. This is easier on cats who have compromised immune systems.

Keep a close eye on his teeth. FIV cats are prone to gum infections.

I have my current FIV+ cat on a supplement called Vetri DMG Liquid for Dogs and Cats I've only had her on it for about a month, so I don't know how effective it is, but I'm going to tentatively say her health seems better.

di and bob di and bob can probably give you some more advice on supplements.
 

di and bob

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Hi, I'm so sorry to hear about your little one, I pray you have many years with him......my cats have leukemia, another immune system problem, one being diagnosed and the others presumably having it too because they all were outdoor cats in their younger years and all got into fights. The one that was diagnosed was repeatedly sick and at the time was so weak and lost so much weight the vet said he had only days left to survive. The vet said his white blood cell count was too low to even count, he didn't know how he was surviving. I had him take a few licks a day of Hartz Delectable Lickables in the stew flavors it was the only thing he would eat so sick. I still share a packet between the three of them every morning for their meds. I did some research and started them all on the VetraScience DMG a supplement to keep their immune system up, I get it at Walmart now online, (cheaper), and also LifeGold a supplement for cancers on Amazon. 21 months later all are doing well and are fat and sassy! It is said if they can reach a year old there is a chance they may be able to fight off the disease. Kittens almost always die, their immune systems are too weak. I keep them all strictly indoors now and wash my hands thoroughly if I pet another animal.
 
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