I wrote about my cat sneezing and having watery eyes...............took him to the Vet and he has both the dreaded diseases. He has been attacked several times by a stay that comes in my yard to eat. I wish a thousand times that I had given him the shots.........but I had both my cats fixed and they never went out of the yard......just to the back yard through their kitty door, and I do not like to give too many shots.
If anyone has any words of wisdom for me I would appreciate hearing from you.
He is a very sweet gentle cat that does not deserve this.

Pamela,
Your cat can be treated...you will have to give information as Dr Leela suggested on your other thread... I had a cat who tested positive YEEEEAAARS ago when they suggested you destroy all cats that tested positive...this was before homeopathy for me, but I took my cat home, treated his symptoms as best I knew and he lived more than 10 additional years...we had other cats as well and none died young. I suggest you post your cats case... I'm gone for 2 weeks, but someone will likely help you...

Denise

Thanks for your answer........I had posted some info earlier in response to your original answer before I read this.
I have taken care of the stray......wish I had two years ago.
I am worried about my other cat........she is heathly but the vet said to bring her in and have her tested and have the vaccine if she test negative. I am afraid if I don't she will catch it if she already hasn't. Are you saying not to give her the vacine?
The symtoms my cat is having is just the eyes watering and closed and one pupil looks cloudy but I can't be sure. He does not have much energy
I noticed he started sneezing again today.
This cat is very big he weighs 20 lbs if not more
and very strong. He will let me brush and pet...... but drops in the eyes and medicine gets one fight started and I do not like to put that stress on him. He looks like a small panther.
I can tell he does not feel very good....but he still cleans and grooms himself so maybe he does not feel as bad as I think.
Let me know what I should do about my other cats vaccine. Really appreciate the help

Pamela,
Its not good if they test for both viruses and when they do I am a little suspicious of the results. He should have a proper blood test (not just the snap index test). The blood test done at a lab will give more reliable results and may also let us know what the cat's immune system is doing. Don't feel guilty about the "Shots", there is no vaccine for FIV and the FeLV (leukemia)vaccine is at best 80% effective and is linked to serious health complications. Certainly if he is infected with either or both NO VACCINES EVER (they will likely kill him). FIV is not as worrisome as FeLV. Most cats don't ever become sick from it and transfer of virus from cat to cat is much more difficult. FeLV, the prognosis is not so good, but many positives will revert to negative because this is a virus that their immune systems can overcome. The key is the immune system, this must be strengthened as much as possible. I've heard that Vit C has been helpful particularily in FeLV. Diet is extremely important. NO STERIODS (they inhibit the immune system). FeLV is the more serious of the 2 diseases and hopefully Dr. Leela can help out with a remedy. Please list all symptoms in detail, once the disease is ingrained... well I've never come accross any that have reverted. While he is sick its very important to keep your cats seperated. Everytime he sneezes he is releasing FeLV virus, keep them apart until he tests clean. Your other cat may have already been exposed, but you don't know so its best to safeguard against it and reportedly, repeated exposure is required. We do have several FIV+ in our program, none with any problems other than gingivitis and sometimes ear infections. We have one FeLV+ kitten, who amazed us (1st kitten to survive for us), he is now 2 with no sign of any serious trouble. I have heard about hydrogen peroxide given IV, apparently it will kill the AIDS virus, but I haven't researched that at all.
Finally, something has to be done about the stray in the area who may be infecting other cats. Do you have a shelter that might be willing to trap and test? If he is a potential source of FeLV its not right to leave him out there and intact. He needs to be tested as well, if he just has FIV, he can be neutered and released, but if he is positive for FeLV he must be treated or euthanized for the safety of the other cats. It may help you with your cat to know his testing status. Good luck, I'll be watching this topic very closely. I'm sure gpm will have some excellent words of advise, I believe she may have treated for one of these disease recently.

I could surely suggest something Kkrista, plase tell me what you feel is peculiar in this case.

PAmela,
Could you give me some characteristics of the cat?
His nature and peculiarities in it.
likes and dislikes - food frinks etc,
Any medical hisotry significant
Wherther chilly or hot
His interelationships (!)

Regards,
Doctorleela

__________________
http://www.homeopathy2health.com

Hi Dr.Leela!
Not sure if this helps, but I pulled a couple of definitions from the dictionary to further explain the 2 viruses and the nature of their pathology. Leukemia is definitly the more devastating of the 2. The virus appears to cause major damage to the immune system which paves the way for serious illness. It is excreted in the saliva, through respiratory secretions (sneezing etc) and of course in the blood stream. Ultimately it can cause cancer, although many cats will die of infections, pnemonia etc. This cat's immune system is very "busy" right now, the URI symptoms need to be brought under control so the immune system can concentrate on the FeLV.
feline leukaemia virus
A retrovirus of the Oncornovirinae subfamily [The family of retroviruses (Retroviridae) that can cause tumours. They are enveloped by membrane derived from the plasma membrane of the host cell, from which they are released by budding without lysing the cell. Within each virion is a pair of single stranded RNA molecules. Replication involves a DNA intermediate made on an RNA template by the enzyme reverse transcriptase.] causing many proliferative (neoplastic) and degenerative (blastopenic) diseases in domestic cats, including lymphosarcoma, thymic atrophy, immune complex glomerulonephritis, foetal abortions and resorptions,and several myeloproliferative and myelodegenerative conditions; it also causes immunosuppression in infected cats.
FIV:Feline acquired immunodeficiency syndrome
Acquired defect of cellular immunity [Immune response that involves enhanced activity by phagocytic cells and does not imply lymphocyte involvement. Since the term is easily confused with cell-mediated immunity its use in this sense should be avoided.] that occurs in cats infected with feline immunodeficiency virus (fiv) and in
some cats infected with feline leukaemia virus (felv).
Pamela, you need to describe the nature of discharges from the cat. Also check his mouth, gums and throat. Many of these cats will suffer from immune related gingivitus and stomatitis -this is when the system is confused and the body turns on defences where it is not required. This is why we are constantly under pressure to test our rescue cats (Siamese tend to be prone to this problem fortunatly, rarely is FeLV or FIV to blame in our cases). It's good that your cat is big and strong it definitly will buy extra time, but ultimately his immune system must respond to the virus and hopefully kick it out (but he has obviously been infected for a while, so that may not happen, so even if you manage the virus with homeopathy, he may always pose a potential "viral shedding" risk. I'm afraid you must make a decision on your other cat. She should be lab tested for a conclusive positive or negative. If she is positive her immune system is working and she should be retested 3 months later to see if she sucessfully thwarted the disease. If she is negative, I believe you may run the risk of compramising her immune system if you vaccinate however if she will have repeated exposure through the positive cat, she may eventually get it as well. You need to decide what YOU are comfortable with...because it can go both ways. Over the years I have housed cats with panleuk, FIP, FeLV, FIV, URD... I stopped vaccinating my own cats years ago and have never vaccinated them for FIP or FeLV. But I am comfortable that I take proper precautions in terms of limiting exposure to my own cats from the "foster cats". As my cats age however, the risk becomes greater to them and I have had to reconcile that risk over and over again. My advise on the vaccine issue would be for you to make your decision based on your research (search for FeLV and FIV and look for both sides of the argument, ask questions etc) and the advise of people you trust. Keep your cats seperated, at least until the one with URI symptoms is over his cold (shedding will be less if no secretions). If possible give your healthy cat immune boosters like vit c, golden seal etc. If you want to add this to the food of the positive cat, check it with Dr.Leela because some may interfer with remedy actions. Sorry my post is so long-winded... what happened with the stray? was he tested?

That certainly makes things clearer to me Kkrista, thanks for taking the time to ype it all out.
I'll read through it again before making a prescription, just so that I know where we are at.

YEs I think Pamela would be wise to get the test done to confirm what she's dealing with as the prognosis would help with repetition and understanding of the response.

Then we could analyse the homeopathic symptoms and hopefully come up with soemthing that will make a real difference.
Warm regards,
doctorleela

__________________
http://www.homeopathy2health.com

Gosh, I feel so good having you two in my corner!
I really appreciate all the info.
I have decided to take my other cat out to have her tested and give the vaccine if she test negative.....the reason is I know for sure she will die if she gets the virus and at least she will have a chance if she is protected. If you have info to debate that please express.......I will not have time to research the pro and cons as I have to do something for her right away.
As for the stray I caught him after trying a year and he was taken to a farm to some people just wanted him to catch mice. They also are going to put food and water out. Did not care if he was tame or not. You must understand that this was a wild animal.....I tried for a long time to get him to let me incorporate him into my cats lives, but it didn't work and my male cat hated him with a passion. There was no way to work it out.I didn't know he had the virus when I caught him and gave him away. I will try to give Doctorleela the info she requested.........characteristics..black with a little white on belly and under chin.....white tip on tail.......gold eyes..........weighs 17- 20 lbs. Very strong....and aggressive only with other strange cats. Like and dislikes....... loves to eat.......loves being brushed and peted and climbling in my lap. Will lay under your feet and push to have you rub his head with your foot. Does not like the doorbell ringing.......small noisy children.......taking medicine.....cats coming in his yard...... me scratching his back right above his tail.........he may try to nip me if I do this. If he wants me to do something he will follow me around and if I turn to go the other way he will nip at my foot ( and with those huge teeth that can be a scary thing to happen). His mouth and teeth . Food.......he eats Premium Edge Dry cat food.....1st ingredient is chicken. Medical History.....has had several times over the last two years getting antibotics. last time 2 weeks ago. He has been neutered. He has somewhat dry skin I guess because he has dandruff on his back..I cannot say about the heat and cold. He comes in and sleeps all day and goes out to the patio at night and is in and out through his kitty door. When he was sick I noticed him sitting in the wet(dew) grass in the mornings. Today his eye looks better and he feels better......but tomorrow it may be closed and discharging again. Hope this helps.

Pamela,
Very important if you go ahead and vaccinate the female you must keep her apart from the other cat for at least 2 weeks. She can not come into contact with the virus in the natural state because her immune system will be working overtime on the un-natural (vaccine) form of the virus. Your vet may also suggest a booster, 1 month later, so you might want to lengthen the time to 6 weeks. This means no direct (nose-to-nose)contact or sharing of food, water dishes or litterboxes during this time. What is the colour and consistancy of the eye discharge? Does it smell?, what about nasal discharge? Any drooling? Odors? Is the urine and stool as it has always been, or any change? Any peculiar habits lately other then sitting in the dew? Does he prefer cool or warm places? Is he fit or chubby (flabby)? Does he have a big, round belly? Does he have a lot of muscletone? Did the vet remark on any funny chest sounds or heart rythms etc? Are his extremities cool to the touch (feet, ears)? What is his colouring (pale, flushed,. dark)? What about the mouth and teeth?

kkrista, here are the anwsers to your questions......eye discharge (when he had it) was yellowish/green and thick.Did not notice a smell.Extremeties feel normal.Color is the same that it has always been.Does not seem to have a perference when it comes to heat or cold. He will stay in the air-conditioned house, but also like to lay in the sun when he is up and about.His belly was round and hung down ( flabby) but he seems to have lost some of that. I keep him on low fat food.Do not know about the urine but the stools seem to be the same.Teeth are white and good and his gums look good. I do not remember seeing the vet listen to his heart..if he did he did not make a comment.He just came in and butted me with his head which means He wants some petting. It is amazing the way he has been today seems totally well even his eye looks well with a little clear watery look that could be what was making it look cloudy.
Now for the biggie....It will be impossible to keep them apart....are you sure that the other cat will still be able to catch it if she is vaccinated? Don't mean to question you on this........but why did my vet not say anything. He said just causual contact was safe.