Saturday January 31, 1998 12 Messages ====================================== From: PUFFERINO@aol.com Date sent: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 07:40:19 EST To: felvtalk@MailingList.net Subject: Re: Welcome aboard Dana Send reply to: felvtalk@MailingList.net Hi, I saw your post about Benny and wish you well, I feel that Ester Vitamin C for Cats is very important--it can be bought in a tablet or powder form--it is mixed with sodium which enhances its effectiveness in cats. Also, I use Nutrical and Nupro (which is a powder for dogs--it does not contain taurine) and all my guys and gals are doing well. I alternate feedings with various vitamins--because you don't want them not eating because they don't like the taste of the supplements. Good luck and all our thoughts are with you and Benny. Regards, Joan -------------------------------------- From: AskforArt@aol.com Date sent: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 14:46:51 EST To: felvtalk@MailingList.net Subject: Re: new kittens Send reply to: felvtalk@MailingList.net Hi--I don't remember where I read this info, but somewhere I read that some strains of the virus can survive for up to 72 hours in moist environments. Hope this helps with your adoption process. Good luck! Linda P in Sacramento -------------------------------------- Date sent: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 10:17:29 -0600 (CST) From: "Nancy A. Schmall" To: felvtalk@MailingList.net Subject: Re: new kittens Send reply to: felvtalk@MailingList.net Barb, I mentioned I would let you know about Jake from time to time being as he is on Prednisone and we are constantly trying to lower his dose (and I know you considered it for Merlin). The last time I e-mailed you on this page, he was on 2.5 mg. every other day. He just had his blood work redone and we're lowering it to 2.5 mg. every third day since he is doing so well. He's down to the one shot every 2 weeks for Immunoregulin (soon to be once a month), and we're slowly moving into the 7 days on, 7 days off of Interferon. He's doing really well--which as you know, makes me feel great. This is a cat whose bloodwork was not only bad, at first we thought he had FIP--I was considering putting him down before Christmas since he was steadily going downhill. It's hard to try to balance the great times (thinking they're doing so well) and then when they take a turn for the worse . . . (I have to remind myself that all this is a TREATMENT, not a CURE). How's Merlin? Thinking of you, Nancy -------------------------------------- Date sent: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 10:26:27 -0600 (CST) From: "Nancy A. Schmall" To: felvtalk@MailingList.net Subject: Re: how to make last days more comfortable? Send reply to: felvtalk@MailingList.net Jenn, One thing I noticed in your message to Liz about steroids and FELV (and it may be true), but my own personal experience has been that steroids can keep at bay whatever's killing the red cells that lead to anemia in cats. My Jake's red blood cells were not reproducing and were being killed at an extremely fast rate. My vet put him on prednisone while we initiated the interferon and immunoregulin. He is doing much, much, better and we have lowered the prednisone considerably. I really feel he will be able to get off it completely. Nancy -------------------------------------- Date sent: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 11:56:11 -0500 From: Brian and Jennifer Kleeman To: felvtalk@MailingList.net Subject: Dr Myers:DMG, interferon , vaccine questions Send reply to: felvtalk@MailingList.net Dr. Myers, First- THANK YOU for your patience as we attack you with so many questions:) You have been so helpful atgiving us an additional perspective. I do hope we don't ware you out! :) I have read with great interest your information about DMG. I currently have Yo-yo, a 3 1/2 year old, asymptomatic FeLV positive Chartreux that has been on interferon for about four months now (week on, week off). She has been FeLV positive for two years (contracted it from another cat we adopted... that BTW had tested negative as a kitten). We decided it may be helpful after watching her bloodwork over a nine month period-- her hematocrit was abnormally high, while her WBC was trending to the low side of normal. Her hematocrit was coming down and her WBC were coming up on their own, but we thought this may be a result of the FeLV and decided to start the interferon. After three months on the interferon, Yo-yo seems to have made greater progress than she was on her own. I read you suggestion that for long-term treatment you prefer a several days on/off regimine to the week on/week off protocal. Would you mind explaining this a bit? It looks as if Yo-yo will be on this the rest of her life (which we plan on being _many_ years). Also, re DMG, have you used this in asymptomatic cats with success? Would you recommend putting Yo-yo on this in addition to the interferon? I also have two nearly two year old cats that we adopted as kittens before we realized that Yo-yo was actually positive (she tested negative for six weeks after we lost the other kitten). They were vaccinated just before meeting Yo-yo and continue to (knock on wood) test negative. Do you have any recommendation for giving them DMG to help them to continue to resist the virus? Or do you have any other suggestions that might help them -- separation has been extremely carefully considered and rejected as an option. A third and final question (once again, THANK YOU for your continued patience:) ). I saw you mention that you continue to vaccinate your FeLV positive cats as you believe that it helps them. I had a vet that shares your opinon (we have moved since then). He vaccinated Yo-yo when we learned that she had been exposed to a positive cat and recommended that we continue to vaccinate her (she hadn't been vaccinated for FeLV before for reasons that aren't relavent here). He also vaccinated our positive cat. He, however, admitted that there wasn't any data to support his thesis. I was hopeful that you might be able to explain your position on this issue. I did not revaccinate Yo-yo because of the recent studies that have confirmed a link between FeLV and rabies vaccines and reoccurant tumors. Since her immune system is already compromised and tumors are a definte posibility. My old vet and new vet agreed that it may make sense to not continue to vaccinate because of this increased risk of tumors. I was interested to read your thoughts on this. For the third time, THANK YOU for your patience and understanding as we attack you with more questions:) Jennifer Kleeman Minoux Chartreux -------------------------------------- Date sent: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 11:58:32 -0500 From: Brian and Jennifer Kleeman To: felvtalk@MailingList.net Subject: digest form? Send reply to: felvtalk@MailingList.net I know this list is new--- but I was wondering if by chance there was an option to receive it in digest form? I would be _EXTREMELY_ grateful if this were made an option, if it isn't already! Just a thought! Jennifer Kleeman Minoux Chartreux -------------------------------------- Date sent: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 09:37:03 -0800 From: Dana Crow Organization: Magical Moments Preschool To: felvtalk@Mailinglist.net Subject: Questions,questions,questions Send reply to: felvtalk@MailingList.net I have a bunch of questions that I thought I had mailed the other day but can't seem to find. These were prompted by Belinda's question re Vaccinating cats who have now tested positive. We know that about 30% of cats can become negative but what are the factors for this?? What about length of time with the disease? Age of acquisition? Degree of illness while positive? Howe about cats who are positive but have never shown symptoms? What is the length of time before they are negative ie. can they have it for 4 -5 yrs and they become negative? If so how often should we retest?If they are once positive now negative can they become positive again? It seems unlikely this should happen. I have selfish personal reasons for wanting these answers as my 3 kittens(8 mos) all likely acquired it at birth or very shortly after. They are all presently healthy . It seems to me from what I have read that a lot of kitties who are born with FeV get very sick quickly & either die or constantly fight off disease forever after. When I had the female spayed & the boys tested the vet said that by looking at them you could never tell. They are big with shiney eyes & coats, LARGE appetites.& active. I know that this could change almost immediately after reading other's stories but for now I am greatful. I wish there were more answers for all of us but maybe if we can all put our heads together we can discover a common link & then the BIG CURE!! Thanksfor all answers, I know that they may not be facts but it may be worth discovering links!!! Dana -------------------------------------- Date sent: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 14:35:02 -0500 From: "M. Woodrow Myers, D.V.M." Organization: Vet Care, Etc., P. C. To: felvtalk@MailingList.net Subject: Re: Dr Myers:DMG, interferon , vaccine questions Send reply to: felvtalk@MailingList.net If this regimen of a week on and a week off of interferon is working, I probably wouldn't change it. I have seen it work this way and on an every other day or every third day regimen as well. One thing a veterinarian has to assess is his client's lifestyle so that medications can be given regularly. This may determine a medication choice and doseage regimen. I have successfully used DMG in asymptomatic cats and it is compatible with interferon. I generally use 50 mg daily in asymptomatic cats, usually mixed with their food. I vaccinate positive cats in order to "trick" their immune system into producing more antibodies to the virus. When the virus is highly cell associated and is not exposing itself to the immune system very often, immunity may slightly reduce thus sparing the virus to some extent. Bolstering this response may help keep the virus at bay. This is only a theory, but I have been doing it for about ten years now. Hope this helps. M. W. Myers, D.V.M. -------------------------------------- Date sent: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 15:17:22 -0600 (CST) From: "Nancy A. Schmall" To: felvtalk@MailingList.net Subject: Re: Merlin Update Send reply to: felvtalk@MailingList.net Barb, Great to hear how your little magical fellow is doing; I bet he loves sleeping with his person again! And good for you for checking on that Tom--no doubt he knew your intentions were good! Nancy -------------------------------------- From: "Lynn Stickels" To: "felvtalk" Subject: re: Meryln Date sent: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 19:21:37 -0800 Send reply to: felvtalk@MailingList.net Barb, So good to hear about your Merylin! I was happy to get an update on your kitty. So glad to hear he is doing good.:) Stinker is doing about the same.......pretty good. I just took him to the vet for his lymph nodes......no tumors!. I hope the best for you and Merylin!:).............Lynn(Stinker) -------------------------------------- From: "Corvus Corax" To: Subject: Please help Date sent: Sun, 1 Feb 1998 06:04:57 +0100 Send reply to: felvtalk@MailingList.net Posted for Linda DLMLLM@AOL.com ------------------------------------------------------ This is the best support section I've seen so far. And please excuse me if I've written too many of you. But desperate times take desperate mesures. My beautiful Russian is 13 and has been a carrier since 1992. She is fighting tonight to beat down this disease as she has so many times. But this time it is happening too often and this time the disease is stronger. Our vet is old and thinks she has lived a good life, he believes in antibiotics.
Any help offered would be appreciated. Linda - Saturday, January 31, 1998 at 23:36:44 (EST) ------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------------------- From: "Corvus Corax" To: Subject: Any help for Buddy? Date sent: Sun, 1 Feb 1998 06:04:19 +0100 Send reply to: felvtalk@MailingList.net Posted for Bob Robinson bobrob@cetlink.net Hello, Our Buddy has been diagnosed with feline leukemia and we are just torn apart by this. Your web site has offered hope where we thought there was none. We are willing to try anything to get Buddy back on a healthy track. Over the last few months, we have come to love him more than any cat we've ever had. He's a true member of the family. To this point, our prayers have been limited to the hope that Buddy is a carrier, and that this won't take his life. Now, we will have an extra prayer to say for our little furry one. Thanks, Bob Robinson Rock Hill, SC bobrob@cetlink.net -------------------------------------- END