New kitty is FIV +

I took our new addition to the vet on Tuesday and to my surprise she tested positive for FIV/ cat aids. She is about 10 weeks old and the vet told us to come back in a few months and they will retest her. Apparently mothers can pass it thru their breast milk so she may not be a carrier of the virus. Hoping for the best for our little girl. I just wanted to hear some feedback from owners who have gone thru this or have cats with FIV. Any tips/ comments would be greatly appreciated!

@LDG has a tag about FIV in her signature. That's a good place to start. It's not a death sentence, and many cats can live happily with the condition. I had FIV cats growing up - they mostly lived normal lives, and some even died from old age, with the disease never progressing.

This article may help too http://www.thecatsite.com/a/fiv-in-cats

Hi @doritosmom

I'm sorry to hear about your kitten, but your vet is right. Just because she has tested positive at this age it doesn't mean she will develop FIV. There is every chance that she will test negative in a few months time.

I have two FIV+ cats. The cat in my avatar is at least 13 years old and tested positive about 3 years ago. (He's an ex-feral) Apart from gum disease he has no other health problems at all. He goes to the vet for a health check every six months and has always put on weight, he's fighting fit!

I also have a six month old feral kitten that I rescued just over a week ago. At the moment she is quite poorly. She has a bad cold and is very malnourished. Most of her problems come from having such a rough start in life, I'm sure she's going to improve a lot now she has a safe home and regular food.

The main thing with FIV+ cats is to keep an eye on their health and get any problems seen to sooner rather than later. There is no reason they can't live a long, happy life.

Good luck with your kitten and please keep us updated on her progress. 

I can understand your surprise and concern on receiving this report.  I will join others in saying it is not major a problem.

My Bobby is FIV+.  He was born feral and I trapped him when he was about age 4 months.  He is now age 7 years, and he has had no issues.

Norachan said one of the 2 most important things:  any health issues need to be addressed quickly.  The cat's immune system is very weak so can't fight off infections.  Medicines will help boost the battle back to health quickly.

The second thing:  this cat should always get a rabies vaccine with KILLED virus.  The usual vaccine includes live virus.  But due to the compromised immune system, you have to make certain each and every vet administering a rabies vaccine knows the cat is FIV+ and REMIND the vet to use the killed virus vaccine for rabies.