Hi, Anders here–I’m nudging Dr. B off of his soapbox for a few minutes to jump in on the Vet Blog today because I had the opportunity to meet with Dr. Barchas this past weekend for Tailer’s first check-up since he arrived from Sweden.
Due to Tailer’s leap of faith at 0:24 in the video, I almost posted this on Snuzzy as well, but in the end felt that, thanks to a super thorough and very informative interview with Dr. Barchas, it really needed to be posted here.
Dr. Barchas talks about common vaccines, rabies, feline Leukemia, feline HIV and microchipping, among other things. Hope you enjoy it–HUGE thanks to Dr. Barchas for making this happen.
I am a foster parent for a cat rescue and am
currently fostering an FIV-positive cat. Our
philosophy is that FIV-positive cats can live
happy and healthy lives with proper care and we do not need to resort to euthanasia.
The problem lies in the misperception of FIV in the cat community.
Many people, some vets included, believe we should
euthanize FIV-positive cats and should not adopt
them out. I hope you can write an article to help
educate the Catster community about FIV.
Lily
West Covina
Frankly Lily, I couldn’t have said it better than you.
Infection with FIV, also known as feline AIDS, is not a valid reason to euthanize a cat. Many FIV-positive cats lead normal, healthy lives. A large proportion of these cats ultimately die of unrelated causes.
FIV, like human AIDS, is not highly contagious. It is spread by fighting. And, like human AIDS, FIV does not cause illness or death on its own. FIV weakens the immune system. This predisposes cats to infections and certain cancers.
Sadly, there is no effective treatment for FIV. Nonetheless, most FIV-positive cats live for many years before their immune systems are clinically affected.
FIV-positive cats have special needs. They should be kept indoors. This prevents the virus from spreading, and it protects infected cats from many types of wounds and infections. Also, FIV-positive cats may require more aggressive treatment for minor injuries or infections.
However, with proper care FIV-positive cats can lead long, happy lives.
Finally, I should point out that routine screening tests for FIV are not perfect. They sometimes falsely identify uninfected cats FIV-positive. Until a positive result has been confirmed by a more rigorous method it cannot be considered definitive. And it certainly isn’t a good reason to euthanize a cat.
A comment on the recent post about a potential treatment for FIV/Feline AIDS caught my eye. Here is the comment.
S Bridges posted a comment on August 7th, 2008 at 4:02 pm
Is there any way to participate in the testing of a new FIV drug? We adopted a 3 year old cat a year ago and he, as of today, is positive for FIV. We were told that he may be showing a positive result from a previous FIV vaccination but we do not know if he has been vaccinated.
A vaccine for FIV (feline immunodeficiency virus) has been on the market for several years. It has been the subject of intense controversy among veterinarians since its introduction. The vaccine is not widely used.
Many experts question the effectiveness of the FIV vaccine. Laboratory studies performed by the vaccine’s manufacturer have shown efficacy of the vaccine against some strains of the virus. However, there is no conclusive proof that the vaccine works in real life. As well, there is an inherent conflict of interest in studies performed by the manufacturer.
Another major complaint about the vaccine is that it interferes with testing for FIV. The test for FIV checks for antibodies to the virus. Any cat that receives the vaccine will develop antibodies to FIV. Therefore, any cat that receives the vaccine will test positive for FIV–even if he is not infected.
Is the cat belonging to the comment’s author actually infected with FIV, or has he received the vaccine? Because the vaccine is not commonly used, it’s most likely that the cat is infected. However, there is no way to know for sure. And, sadly, clinical trials of the treatment mentioned in the original post are not yet under way.
This situation is unfortunate, but there is a silver lining. FIV is fatal, but the disease takes several years to run its course. I hope that a more advanced test, one that can differentiate infected cats from vaccinated cats, will be available soon.
In the meanwhile, my advice to the commenter is as follows. Enjoy your new cat, and let him live a normal life. Keep him inside to protect him from contagious disease, and to protect other cats from possible FIV infection. Get veterinary examinations at least twice each year. And keep your fingers crossed.
Feline immunodeficiency virus, also known as FIV is very similar to the human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV. Both cause a disease called AIDS. Neither virus is highly contagious. There is no proven vaccine for either disease (a vaccine for FIV exists, but experts do not agree that it is effective). Both viruses damage the immune systems of affected individuals, leading to increased rates of opportunistic infections and certain types of cancer. Untreated, both viruses lead to death several years after infection.
HIV patients, thank goodness, may benefit from anti-viral therapies that can stop the virus from reproducing and prevent the development of AIDS. These therapies have saved the lives of millions of people who have access to them (sadly, other millions of infected individuals do not).
Cats, however, do not tolerate some of the anti-viral therapies that have helped so many people. Other anti-viral therapies do not inhibit FIV. Therefore, there is no effective treatment for feline AIDS.
But that may change in the future. The North American Veterinary Conference’s May, 2008 Clinician’s Brief details a study (original paper: Savarino, Pistello, D’Ostillo, et al. Retrovirology 4:79, 2007) that describes a new class of anti-viral drugs.
The drugs, called INSTIs, inhibit FIV grown in cultures.
This is an important step forward, but it is a long way from an effective treatment for feline AIDS. The drugs have yet to be tested on infected cats.
Meanwhile, cats with AIDS must live without effective treatment.
FIV is transmitted mainly by fighting. The most effective way to prevent the disease is to keep cats inside. FIV cannot spread to humans, and cats cannot catch HIV.
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