Can Prednisone affect sense of smell and/or taste?

And how soon after stopping it would things return to normal?  One of my felv+ kitties started pred a couple of weeks ago and hasn't seemed entirely herself since.  The past couple of days have brought new troubles: now she yells for food while I'm preparing it, runs to the plate and sniffs it, walks away, looks at me and cries for food!  I haven't been able to get her to eat the things she usually goes crazy for.  The only thing she'll nibble on is Avoderm salmon in salmon consomme.  I may have to syringe feed her tonight just to get adequate nutrition into her  

By the way, I did look inside her mouth for any obstructions, etc., and everything looks fine in there.  There hasn't been any vomiting or other GI issues, just this strange aversion to food, though she acts hungry.

One more Q: If it could be the pred, would prednisolone affect her the same way?  Thanks!

usually, corticosteroids increase appetite

detmut said:

 
usually, corticosteroids increase appetite

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Right, and that's the funny thing.  She wants to eat, she's interested in food, but she smells and/or tastes it and walks away.  Or nibbles at it, as she's been doing with the salmon.  

I don't know, I found some info online about pred altering sense of taste- in people- causing food to taste really bad.  I thought maybe the same thing could happen in cats.  It also appears that loss of appetite is an infrequent side-effect...again, in people.  I can only guess that it's a possibility in cats.  I was also wondering if maybe it's making her stomach queasy, so if she eats and feels sick she'd start associating food with that sensation 

She's off the pred now and I guess I can only wait and see what happens.  Do you know if prednisolone is less likely to cause side-effects?  

The behavior of appearing to want to eat and then walking away from the food is often seen in a kitty with nausea.  If it's a reaction to the pred it is a very unusual one but that doesn't mean that the pred isn't the cause of it.

You might want to have her teeth and gums checked. My 14 year old cat also walked up to his bowl and walked away, clearly hungry but unwilling to try to eat.  It turned out he had developed a squamocellular carcinoma  on his gum and it hurt him to chew, plus he had a hard time being able to hold the food in his mouth.  I ended up blending his food and feeding him with a syringe but it was clear the diagnosis had come too late to save him. 

  Your kitties are much younger so hopefully aren't facing anything like this, but it still might be worth getting the gums and teeth checked out.  I didn't see the sarcoma until my vet actually pointed it out - it wasn't terribly obvious to the uneducated eye. 

Aw, so sorry that your kitty is sick. What dosage is the Pred? Just curious as to why the vet prescribed a steroid for you FeLK+ cat. Of course, there are reasons surely that this drug would be used in a cat with Feline Leukemia especially if the vet is thinking cancer and using the Pred for chemotherapy treatment. I guess we would need a bit more information and don't mean to get off on another branch of your question as you may not want to go down that path in the first place. BUT - as for you question - I know that in people it can affect your taste so I imagine it would in a cat as well. But have not encountered this problem in any of my cats using Pred. I believe it actually stimulates the appetite. I agree with Denice that it could be nausea and would ask the vet about maybe trying Cerenia for nausea or even Pepcid. Mega vibes for you dear kitty

Denice said:

 
The behavior of appearing to want to eat and then walking away from the food is often seen in a kitty with nausea.  If it's a reaction to the pred it is a very unusual one but that doesn't mean that the pred isn't the cause of it.

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Glad to have that confirmation.  I know it's just one possibility among many, but I'd like to think it's an issue as simple and easy to remedy as a side-effect.  

Margd said:

 
You might want to have her teeth and gums checked. My 14 year old cat also walked up to his bowl and walked away, clearly hungry but unwilling to try to eat.  It turned out he had developed a squamocellular carcinoma  on his gum and it hurt him to chew, plus he had a hard time being able to hold the food in his mouth.  I ended up blending his food and feeding him with a syringe but it was clear the diagnosis had come too late to save him. 

  Your kitties are much younger so hopefully aren't facing anything like this, but it still might be worth getting the gums and teeth checked out.  I didn't see the sarcoma until my vet actually pointed it out - it wasn't terribly obvious to the uneducated eye. 

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Cancer is always a distinct possibility in felv+ kitties due to their suppressed immune system.  She'll only allow a quick glance inside her mouth here and there, so of course I haven't been able to examine things too closely.  Our vet examined her only a month ago and pronounced her A-Ok, but now I'm thinking a more thorough exam was in order.  Time to find a new vet that better understands felv, I think.

Sorry to hear about your kitty, btw 

Feralvr said:

Aw, so sorry that your kitty is sick. What dosage is the Pred? Just curious as to why the vet prescribed a steroid for you FeLK+ cat. Of course, there are reasons surely that this drug would be used in a cat with Feline Leukemia especially if the vet is thinking cancer and using the Pred for chemotherapy treatment. I guess we would need a bit more information and don't mean to get off on another branch of your question as you may not want to go down that path in the first place. BUT - as for you question - I know that in people it can affect your taste so I imagine it would in a cat as well. But have not encountered this problem in any of my cats using Pred. I believe it actually stimulates the appetite. I agree with Denice that it could be nausea and would ask the vet about maybe trying Cerenia for nausea or even Pepcid. Mega vibes for you dear kitty

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She's on pred for non-regenerative anemia.  It's a mild case at the moment, almost borderline normal, but I pushed to have her put on pred immediately.  Her brother is on pred and cyclosporine and responding well to it, so I thought starting her on pred would be a good place to begin.  At least taking her off it isn't going to have dire consequences.  Her brother's anemia developed very slowly, so I'm hoping the same holds true for her.

The problem I see in the near future is that she *will* need the pred.  Its use can be delayed, but only temporarily.  I think we need to find a better informed vet that can help us figure out what exactly is going on with her. 

One day off the pred and she is doing better, eating more.  She's been taking Pepcid (2.5 mg.) to prevent problems like this from arising.  I gave it to her yesterday and today, just in case the pred really did a number on her stomach.  As far as the pred goes, she was on 5 mg. once daily.  She's a tiny thing, about 5 lbs. (I call her the "perma-kitten" because she still looks about 5-6 months old at one year!).

So things have improved, but definitely not back to normal yet.  I think I'm going to ask our current vet for a Hill's a/d script tomorrow.  If she is having mouth issues, it would probably help in the interim to have a super soft, calorically dense food.  

Thanks so much for the responses, and vibes    

Rory chillaxing with her brother, Rumi (who's rocking the new "kitty pantaloons" look for spring).  

OH goodness, Rory and Rumi are JUST beautiful little babies. Adorable. :heart2: I am so very sorry to hear about the non-regenerative anemia . They are both so young to be dealing with such illnesses and bless you for caring for them so tenderly and lovingly. They are lucky to have you. The 5 mg. of Pred is about normal for an adult cat. Rory weighs so little though. A low dose for an adult cat would be 2.5 mg. It is always a good decision to go with your gut if you are feeling less confident in your current vet. A second opinion on things can shed new light for sure. I always have Hill's A/D on hand. It is the best for syringe feeding as well. I hope Rory feels better today and likes the A/D. Most kittens/cats love the canned A/D. :cross:

I've only seen corticosteroids cause nausea +/- vomiting rarely, after many weeks of following prescribed doses or if given in excess. Or if a URI is present, and the steroids are further suppressing their ability to respond to the infection; antibiotics are prescribed and syringe feeding until sense of smell/taste improves and congestion abates.

Hope Rory improves! If she was slightly anemic but can generate reticulocytes, and doesn't have agglutination, IMHA is not a concern, and her bone marrow is still functioning normally. With reticulocytes, it's regenerative anemia, and iron supplement is needed (ie Pet Tinic or Lixotinic), rather than pred.

I didn't read through the last posts, but I just wanted to say that I was prednisone for 9 months and it made me bloated and fat, but I don't recall it changing the taste of foods or drinks. However, that is a possibility because I was on a med once for my glaucoma and it made coke taste metallic. I had ordered a coke and it came in a can, unopened. I was about to send it back thinking it had gone bad until I realized it was the medication I was on. Try different foods for your cat now that her taste buds seem to have been altered by the medication.

EDIT: Try different foods IF she has to go back on predisone and the same thing happens again with her acting hungry but not eating.

Sorry to add another post, but I just remembered that that oral med I was on also made desserts taste bad so it completely changed the taste of anything sweet, so meds can definitely suddenly change taste buds.

Feralvr said:

OH goodness, Rory and Rumi are JUST beautiful little babies. Adorable.

I am so very sorry to hear about the non-regenerative anemia

. They are both so young to be dealing with such illnesses and bless you for caring for them so tenderly and lovingly. They are lucky to have you. The 5 mg. of Pred is about normal for an adult cat. Rory weighs so little though. A low dose for an adult cat would be 2.5 mg. It is always a good decision to go with your gut if you are feeling less confident in your current vet. A second opinion on things can shed new light for sure. I always have Hill's A/D on hand. It is the best for syringe feeding as well. I hope Rory feels better today and likes the A/D. Most kittens/cats love the canned A/D.

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The fubabies say, Aw shucks, that was a nice compliment!   We're in complete agreement that we are adorable   

Yes, the anemia sucks big time.  But they're troupers, they really are.  They squeeze all the enjoyment they can out of every second of relative good health and are quite brave during the rough times; I could learn a lot from them.  

I thought the 5 mg. seemed a little high for her, and now I'm starting to worry that it may have induced pancreatitis.  Could that happen over a two week period?  I don't know if i'm googling too much or if there's genuine cause for concern.  I've been watching her like a hawk today and I think she's looking really uncomfortable, like she might be in pain, right after eating.  It seems to pass, or abate, pretty quickly, but I think I'm starting to better understand why she's developed this mysterious food aversion.  I've spent about a gabillion dollars on vet bills recently and don't really have the funds for an emergency visit.  As long as she is consuming food, even if it's really small portions at a time, do you think we can wait for a vet appointment?  

I've increased the pepcid to a half tablet (in a pill pocket, so that has to affect absorption somewhat) and I have leftover Buprenex from their spay/neuter surgeries (I am the person who never tosses rx drugs, and sometimes it works in my favor!), and that seems to be in line with standard pancreatitis treatment.  I know it's not a great idea to play armchair vet...I'm kind of desperate here   

Keeping a/d on hand is a brilliant idea    I always have CatSure on hand for whenever my IBD girl gets into someone else's food and we have a mini-crisis on our hands- it's the only thing that tempts her appetite when she's suffering a flare- but it never occurred to me to keep emergency food on hand for sick cats.  I guess I'd better start!  Rory did enjoy a little a/d earlier, though she enjoyed it even more with Gerber 2nd foods chicken and gravy on top    

puck said:

 
I've only seen corticosteroids cause nausea +/- vomiting rarely, after many weeks of following prescribed doses or if given in excess. Or if a URI is present, and the steroids are further suppressing their ability to respond to the infection; antibiotics are prescribed and syringe feeding until sense of smell/taste improves and congestion abates.

Hope Rory improves! If she was slightly anemic but can generate reticulocytes, and doesn't have agglutination, IMHA is not a concern, and her bone marrow is still functioning normally. With reticulocytes, it's regenerative anemia, and iron supplement is needed (ie Pet Tinic or Lixotinic), rather than pred.

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Honestly, I'm assuming Rory has the same type of anemia as her brother, I haven't been over her CBC in any great detail with the vet.  Rumi has IMHA and non-regenerative anemia (RBC and platelets).   I think the only reason he's still with us is that it came on very gradually, giving his body time to adapt.  Serious meds (pred and cyclosporine) have helped give him some semblance of normal health.  

Pet-Tinic didn't do anything for Rumi, but chicken liver powder has made a noticeable improvement in overall health and well-being.  Not sure why he seems to be utilizing the vitamins from the liver when he couldn't get anything from the supplement, but, hey, it works, so I'm not complaining!

Bonitababy said:

 
I didn't read through the last posts, but I just wanted to say that I was prednisone for 9 months and it made me bloated and fat, but I don't recall it changing the taste of foods or drinks. However, that is a possibility because I was on a med once for my glaucoma and it made coke taste metallic. I had ordered a coke and it came in a can, unopened. I was about to send it back thinking it had gone bad until I realized it was the medication I was on. Try different foods for your cat now that her taste buds seem to have been altered by the medication.

EDIT: Try different foods IF she has to go back on predisone and the same thing happens again with her acting hungry but not eating.

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We're trying some different stuff now, since she's still food averse.  Fancy Feast turkey & giblets was a minor hit (hate the food, but I've been keeping it on hand in case someone starts losing their appetite and I'm desperate), and Hill's A/D with Gerber chicken & gravy didn't take too much coaxing.  So switching up the food has helped, but not sure it's for the reason I wish it was for.  

the3rdname said:

The fubabies say, Aw shucks, that was a nice compliment!  We're in complete agreement that we are adorable   

Yes, the anemia sucks big time.  But they're troupers, they really are.  They squeeze all the enjoyment they can out of every second of relative good health and are quite brave during the rough times; I could learn a lot from them.  

I thought the 5 mg. seemed a little high for her, and now I'm starting to worry that it may have induced pancreatitis.  Could that happen over a two week period?  I don't know if i'm googling too much or if there's genuine cause for concern.  I've been watching her like a hawk today and I think she's looking really uncomfortable, like she might be in pain, right after eating.  It seems to pass, or abate, pretty quickly, but I think I'm starting to better understand why she's developed this mysterious food aversion.  I've spent about a gabillion dollars on vet bills recently and don't really have the funds for an emergency visit.  As long as she is consuming food, even if it's really small portions at a time, do you think we can wait for a vet appointment?  

I've increased the pepcid to a half tablet (in a pill pocket, so that has to affect absorption somewhat) and I have leftover Buprenex from their spay/neuter surgeries (I am the person who never tosses rx drugs, and sometimes it works in my favor!), and that seems to be in line with standard pancreatitis treatment.  I know it's not a great idea to play armchair vet...I'm kind of desperate here   

Keeping a/d on hand is a brilliant idea :bigthumb:   I always have CatSure on hand for whenever my IBD girl gets into someone else's food and we have a mini-crisis on our hands- it's the only thing that tempts her appetite when she's suffering a flare- but it never occurred to me to keep emergency food on hand for sick cats.  I guess I'd better start!  Rory did enjoy a little a/d earlier, though she enjoyed it even more with Gerber 2nd foods chicken and gravy on top    

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The baby food is a good option for Rory right now too. Fancy Feast pate canned kitten is another real hit. I also keep NutriCal on hand too for when one becomes sick and off food. So - they both have FeLV, correct? The 5 mg. of Pred would not cause Pancreatitis but being on Pred will lower their immunity which is what you don't want with a FeLV+ kitty. It becomes a weighing and balance act with this disease and doing what will just make them comfortable the best you can. I think you are prepared though that with this disease - the future/outcome may be bleak no matter how hard you try to fight it for them. So bless you for doing your best for them. The Pred can help with some of the issues caused by FeLV but at the same time causing them to not be able to fight off any additional infections. At least that is my understanding anyway. I would see about putting Rory on the 2.5 mg. of Pred - just make sure you and your vet are on board and discuss all of these issues/options. Very important to have a vet you can rely on and put your trust in, especially in treating FeLV kitties.

I really think you should not be that "armchair vet" (I like that clever term - I, too, myself have been one a time or two). But, I always call my vet before I would give anything or any medication that I have leftover or have kept in my kitty medicine chest. I have a wonderful vet and one who will spend time on the phone with me approving protocol or not. I would be very careful about giving any additional medication to either kitty without your vet's opinion. With having FeLV - then be extra careful about that. Rory may benefit from fluids also at this point if she is not eating well. Being so young, she could go down hill quickly and I think at this point, I am for the fluids to perk her up a bit.

I and am sure others reading your thread totally get the kitty breaking the bank. Very expensive when they are sick with a disease and managing that disease with constant vet care, updates, rechecks and medication/tests. FeLV kitty care is so hard and my heart goes out to you, hun. You do seem to know a lot about this disease and are continually doing more research to gain a better understanding. I think you know more about it than I do, certainly. I have never cared for FeLV kitties and I see you have a few of them. Your a saint. They are lucky each day that they have with you and I think you feel the same about them too. They are both just beautiful and adorable. Rory and Rumi

p.s. I tried to go over some of your older threads. I see you have two older resident kitties and then the other four are rescued feral kittens. Surely, you have a giant heart. I would not give the older two the FeLV vaccine that I saw another person mentioned in one of your threads. Nope - IMO - they are already exposed and giving them the vaccine may bring on the disease immediately. Chances are they might never contract it if their immune systems are healthy but what I know about FeLV - extremely contagious. You have done a beautiful thing for these little ones and try not to worry about your older two resident kitties contracting it. Hopefully - they will be passed over. I would never, ever vaccinate any of your cats .... ever, since this disease is present in the home. Anyway - I tried to get some background by viewing your other threads so I have a better picture of what you are trying to manage. :heart3:

 The baby food is a good option for Rory right now too. Fancy Feast pate canned kitten is another real hit. I also keep NutriCal on hand too for when one becomes sick and off food. So - they both have FeLV, correct? The 5 mg. of Pred would not cause Pancreatitis but being on Pred will lower their immunity which is what you don't want with a FeLV+ kitty. It becomes a weighing and balance act with this disease and doing what will just make them comfortable the best you can.

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Good idea, having the Nutrical on hand.  I'm going to start work immediately on my sick kitty stockpile using all these ideas    Yes, both have FeLV.  In fact, the four of them, all the siblings, have it.  Tyger and Tavi are the healthy ones at the moment: they had a clean CBC and are thriving.  They've got skin issues (hyperkeratosis and itchy ears the vet can't figure out) and herpes virus, but they're Ok otherwise.  

The funny thing is that cyclosporine is "officially" (in the rx info) contraindicated in felv+ cats, but that's old school thinking according to Rumi's internist.  I'm glad she put him on the immunosuppressants because he's like a whole new cat.  He was so pale and exhausted a month ago and now he's pink at times and pale at times (his bone marrow is struggling to make things work, but that's a huge improvement), has put on weight, and he zooms around, playing like a typical one-year-old more often than not.  So my line of thinking is that you treat the problem in front of you, hope for the best, and take everything one day at a time.  That's all you can do.  

 I really think you should not be that "armchair vet" (I like that clever term - I, too, myself have been one a time or two). But, I always call my vet before I would give anything or any medication that I have leftover or have kept in my kitty medicine chest. I have a wonderful vet and one who will spend time on the phone with me approving protocol or not. I would be very careful about giving any additional medication to either kitty without your vet's opinion. 

 With having FeLV - then be extra careful about that. Rory may benefit from fluids also at this point if she is not eating well. Being so young, she could go down hill quickly and I think at this point, I am for the fluids to perk her up a bit.

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I hate to say it, but I've yet to find a vet in this area I can confidently put that much trust and faith in.  I've been inquiring around, but I haven't had much luck picking them.  And I do quite a bit of research, perusing all the reviews, etc., beforehand, so it's getting head-bangingly frustrating.  Wish me better luck in the near future 

Another "I hate to say it" moment here.  I did give her the buprenex (eek) and it actually seems to be helping.  I know stomatitis is a common issue in these kitties and that's a ridiculously painful condition, so there's another possibility.  Glad to hear pancreatitis isn't likely- very glad!  I'd hate to think it's time to overhaul everyone's diet because one kitty is having problems.  What a nightmare   

 I and am sure others reading your thread totally get the kitty breaking the bank. Very expensive when they are sick with a disease and managing that disease with constant vet care, updates, rechecks and medication/tests. FeLV kitty care is so hard and my heart goes out to you, hun. You do seem to know a lot about this disease and are continually doing more research to gain a better understanding. I think you know more about it than I do, certainly. I have never cared for FeLV kitties and I see you have a few of them. Your a saint. 

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Everyone keeps saying that, but, truthfully, I'm just doing what I think most would for their own animals.  Most people rise to the occasion when necessary and just about everyone will find it necessary at some point.  A litter was born to ferals beneath my porch, there weren't any foster homes available at the time, so I ended up stuck with them and ended up falling in love with them.  They became a part of the family in short order and that's pretty much that.  

 I tried to go over some of your older threads. I see you have two older resident kitties and then the other four are rescued feral kittens. Surely, you have a giant heart. I would not give the older two the FeLV vaccine that I saw another person mentioned in one of your threads. Nope - IMO - they are already exposed and giving them the vaccine may bring on the disease immediately. Chances are they might never contract it if their immune systems are healthy but what I know about FeLV - extremely contagious. You have done a beautiful thing for these little ones and try not to worry about your older two resident kitties contracting it. Hopefully - they will be passed over. I would never, ever vaccinate any of your cats .... ever, since this disease is present in the home. Anyway - I tried to get some background by viewing your other threads so I have a better picture of what you are trying to manage. 

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I didn't want to say anything because it's contrary to the advice usually given, but I'd opted to forgo having the older kitties tested.  Or vaccinated.  They were sharing space with the kittens for months and, the way I see it, they've already been infected or they're naturally resistant to the virus.  The older feral colony members- mom, dad and sister from another litter- are healthy.  They're either carriers of the virus, their immune systems fought it off, or they just aren't going to get that sick.  I'm hoping we won't have issues, either.  Maybe my old girl with IBD will have problems, but, looking at it pragmatically, she's like a little old lady in the nursing home.  She hobbles to and from her heated bed to the food dish and that is the sum of her life. She's half-blind, half-deaf, enfeebled and nearing her expiry date with or without help from a virus.  Some things you have to accept as inevitable, kwim?

Thanks again...your responses have been incredibly helpful   

She's on corticosteroid to help with a potential inflammatory response that has induced her anemia then, but unknown if she has such inflammation, or if her anemia has improved on steroids? Overall, rotating a buffet of stinky, palatable diets of the texture she prefers, is what works for my picky, congested, GI, or painful cats off their food for multiple days. Never leaving something out too long that there is not interest in, so aversion to that particular diet doesn't develop. I stock pile "Fancy Feast Green" as it's dubbed, the classic Shrimp Sole and Cod, because it's odor has overcome many anorexic patients' previous tendency to ignore food, when I couldn't get them to eat tuna, chicken baby food, high cal/tasty Recovery or a/d, etc. It's not the best nutrition, but it jump starts the appetite! Even painful chronic renal failure kitties (including one right this very moment, smacking gums over his Green Can contents).

Is her anemia considered non-regenerative purely because she has leukemia? A fast blood smear on a slide and a PCV/TS in hematocrit tubes will tell you if she has regenerative (good bone marrow) or non-regenerative (reduced bone marrow response) anemia starting. The two different bone marrow responses have different treatment protocols.

Just for background, as you already know, IMHA is a form of regenerative anemia, meaning the body can produce red blood cells, but the body also attacks them, popping them (hemolyzing) to the point they have low RBC, low hemoglobin, poor oxygenation, high bilirubin which leads to icterus ("jaundice"), and lethargy. Most cases of feline IMHA are caused by the FeL virus, but most leukemia cats don't have IMHA.

With very mild anemia (almost normal hematcrit/pcv), and some visible reticulocytes on blood smear, your girl may have a mild regenerative anemia (meaning her bone marrow is working fine producing red blood cells) related to a mild decrease in appetite, increased thirst (diluting her blood, increasing serum, decreasing packed cells), a couple days of bloody stool or urine (source of blood loss accounting for lower circulating red blood cells), etc. Corticosteroids suppress the excess immune-mediated response by the body to destroy its own RBCs. If a cat doesn't have IMHA, corticosteroids won't help the anemia. Then, that particular non-IMHA cat on pred has suppressed immunity, and is more predisposed to infections.

Typically, iron supplement helps a "small bleed" anemia as it helps produce more RBCs from working bone marrow. Iron can't help non-regenerative anemia patients, such as those with IMHA, because we can give the factory (bone marrow) all the supplies (iron) it needs, but a closing factory (less and less productive bone marrow) won't produce more, and the supplies just keep passing through, never to made into product.

Pet Tinic or Liquitinic can help a regenerative anemia patient, giving them iron to make more hemoglobin to make more red blood cells.

the3rdname said:

 Most people rise to the occasion when necessary and just about everyone will find it necessary at some point.  A litter was born to ferals beneath my porch, there weren't any foster homes available at the time, so I ended up stuck with them and ended up falling in love with them.  They became a part of the family in short order and that's pretty much that.  
 

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Was just thinking this as well today. Most people I know at first think that they could never handle nor deal with these illnesses emotionally or financially until they are a reality to them. Then things change and they end up doing whatever it takes to keep "fluffball" happy and healthy. Our hearts won't allow anything less. I think when put in the reality of an illness and the situation, we all step up to save the little ones as best we can. Yes - surely it is inevitable that illness and potential disease is going to rear it's ugly head at one time or another when we share our lives with these bundles of love and fur. AND, the heartache and expense WILL come along with that.

AW - the feral kittens. YUP - my three siblings, Presley, Perkins and Perla. Feral born barn kittens. We take them in when no other option is available and usually with these feral kitties - there is NONE. I see it as a no choice option and a MUST DO option.

I will be keeping close by here and hoping for the best. You certainly are getting a fast education (via your vet and/or Dr. Google ) on FeLV and again, feel that those porch feral kittens couldn't have found a better porch to be born under. Continuing vibes for your kitties - all of them.