Confused about checkups!

When I had taken 8wk old Harley into the vet for his first checkup last Monday-they had asked me if on his next checkup, if we wanted to test him
for Leukemia, now, the mother cat was a stray and was raised by a family who did not give her shots nor did they take her to the vet to give her checkups, and she got out one night and got pregnant by a neighbors cat. Are there any other tests they should do on him since the mother has not had any shots what-so-ever? I just want to make sure that he gets tested for everything he should be (or that Im not just getting something at the vet that he doesn't need) The vet there seems very nice but as this being the first time bringing him there I just want to make sure that he gets what he needs to be a healthy happy kitten!
So, if anyone out there could please tell me what he should really be tested for, or get shots for, I would greatly appreciate it. This site has helped me so much, I just love it!

I would have him tested for feleuk and FIV. It is a good idea because you have no idea what his mother was exposed to.

Originally Posted by Dr. Doolittle

I would have him tested for feleuk and FIV. It is a good idea because you have no idea what his mother was exposed to.

Click to expand...

Thats what I'm afraid of...they just asked if I wanted the Leukemia check--they never said anything else, and we told them that the mother had never been to a vet before!

Quite often the FIV is run with the Feleuk test. Your vet may have meant both tests would be run.

be careful with the fiv test, correct me if i'm wronng but there are two types. one may give a false positive as an 8wk old kitten will still have fiv antibodies from its mum and does not mean its fiv.

if you want to get fiv testing talk it through with your vet first.

Originally Posted by maverick_kitten

be careful with the fiv test, correct me if i'm wronng but there are two types. one may give a false positive as an 8wk old kitten will still have fiv antibodies from its mum and does not mean its fiv.

if you want to get fiv testing talk it through with your vet first.

Click to expand...

Can I ask what the FIV test is for?

its to see if they have Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), a cat version of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV infection) in humans.

Before you panic, imho its not as bad as everyone thinks. Only 50% of cats who are fiv+ suffer any ill health related to it and the vast majority are fine their whole adult lives. Fiv attacks and weakens the kitties immune system, which makes the cat susceptible to infections and diseases that don't affect healthy cats.

its transmitted through deep bites from cat to cat and is not passable to humans.

my friends cat is fiv+ and the only way you know is that he's more susceptible to eye problems and colds.

forgot to add, can be passed from mother to kitten!

I would be so lost without the help of this site!

Thank you for explaning FIV to me-like I said, the vet only asked about Leukemia testing, which is why I was curious as to if there was anything else I should maybe ask for?

Originally Posted by maverick_kitten

forgot to add, can be passed from mother to kitten!

Click to expand...

THATS what scares me -since his mother was NEVER tested for anything--I want to make sure that I get him tested for everything, I dont want him sick!!

imho you dont need to worry about fiv testing for a while yet. (i'd go out on a limb as to whether you'd need it at all. but ask your vets opinion).

you sound like a caring owner to be worried and to go to this degree of trouble for your kitty.

He is my first kitten, my famliy has always had dogs when I lived with my parents and brothers but now its just me and my boyfriend and I don't want anything to happen to him! I just get paranoid knowing that his mother was never vacinated, you never know whats floating around out there!