I'm looking for people's opinions on feral cats in colonies testing positive for FIV/FeLV after original TNR and the steps you do or would take afterwards
I've been on here before and you've always been so helpful so now I'm back for more ;-)
My "B" colony was a mess when I first showed up late Winter of 2014. Dead cat, skeletal remains of cats, kittens, trash, females in heat, you name it, it was there. Three cats were had already been TNR. I don't know who did or when or even if it was done at the colony or another colony and then the cats settled at "B"
A local rescue was going to foot the bill on all the remaining cats at the colony provided they were tested and euthanized accordingly if positive. Although I am not in the habit of testing unless the animal is ill or going for adoption, I agreed to the terms only to have one of the long time feeders become upset and claim she "would miss them too much if they were euthanized" I and the rescue explained at length the consequences of positive cats and the pros and cons of testing so she could have an informed opinion. Since the cats were all healthy looking and she had been "caring" for them longer I didn't take the rescue up on their offer which made them really irritated with me. I was subsequently left with trapping, transporting, vetting, and paying for the remaining cats as said feeder didn't seem too interested in doing it and now wanted to "let them flourish" Nice. Lesson learned, sort of. Only two momma cats were ever tested, negative for both virus, due to their kittens going into another rescue.
Fast forward. All the cats are vetted. In the event a new cat shows up they are trapped and taken care of. The place is clean. I along with some help from friends and family members worked hard to make the colony inconspicuous and a nice place for the cats to live despite their status in society. Months later after the mass TNR, one of the boy cats I vetted became ill. His gums started bleeding too and I knew it was bad. He was captured, tested positive for FeLV and was humanely euthanized not because I felt he was defective but because he was sick and did not belong outside. Feral cats don't really belong inside either so options were limited to me.
I made the decision not to retrap any of the remaining cats that had already been TNRed months prior because they appeared to be healthy and I just couldn't afford it. I continued to take care of them and monitor their health. Would any of you have done the same or would you have done differently? Yet another cat became ill a few weeks ago. It took 5 days for me to get her so she was in pretty bad shape with some severe complications from not eating. I did not test but did humanely euthanize her. She was one of the cats that had already been TNRed by someone else.
Fast forward again to now. One of the male cats that had been TNRed sometime before I showed up on the scene started losing weight despite eating like a pig. In his case this guy isn't actually feral. He can be pet and picked up. He might have been born outside but he has definitely had plenty of human contact. It was decided by me and another feeder (same one from above) that he should see a doctor to find out what is going on. She volunteered to take on that task which made me very happy since she doesn't do anything else. Again I explain FIV/FeLV and encourage her to have him tested because of the positive testing several months back but she was all la la la la. His blood work was normal but he tested positive for FeLV. Again more la la la la from her and how every animal gets sick and it's okay he is a part of her every day anyhow so she will take care of him despite his test results. I'm wanting to give this woman a medal for her understanding and then the other shoe drops.
24 hours after having him at her home she tells me he escaped, outside. He is still hanging around in her yard. Has been all night and day to my knowledge. He is eating and she says of course she will bring him in. Yeah well I think past behavior is a good indicator of future behavior and I wish I didn't make myself learn that the hard way but sometimes I can be foolish. In any case she is now talking about euthanizing him which is a complete turn around from her previous viewpoint but since I now consider him her responsibility I will let her decide his fate provided it doesn't involve her dumping him back at the colony. I really hope she wouldn't do that but she has proven unreliable and unreliable is worse than being a mean cat hater.
So I have that dilemma, a confirmed FeLV+ outside in a strange environment where there could be other cats with an "owner" that doesn't seem to eager to bring him back inside and has a history of not getting her hands dirty so to speak.
I also have the issue that two cats have now tested positive at my "B" colony. I have several cats left and they all look very healthy. I don't want to go through the stress and expense of catching them and testing them but I also don't want to leave any potentially positive cats outside to infect other cats. If any of you found yourself in my situation what would you do or think would be the right decision? I'm really curious to get other people perspectives before I decide what to do.
Thank you!!!
I've been on here before and you've always been so helpful so now I'm back for more ;-)
My "B" colony was a mess when I first showed up late Winter of 2014. Dead cat, skeletal remains of cats, kittens, trash, females in heat, you name it, it was there. Three cats were had already been TNR. I don't know who did or when or even if it was done at the colony or another colony and then the cats settled at "B"
A local rescue was going to foot the bill on all the remaining cats at the colony provided they were tested and euthanized accordingly if positive. Although I am not in the habit of testing unless the animal is ill or going for adoption, I agreed to the terms only to have one of the long time feeders become upset and claim she "would miss them too much if they were euthanized" I and the rescue explained at length the consequences of positive cats and the pros and cons of testing so she could have an informed opinion. Since the cats were all healthy looking and she had been "caring" for them longer I didn't take the rescue up on their offer which made them really irritated with me. I was subsequently left with trapping, transporting, vetting, and paying for the remaining cats as said feeder didn't seem too interested in doing it and now wanted to "let them flourish" Nice. Lesson learned, sort of. Only two momma cats were ever tested, negative for both virus, due to their kittens going into another rescue.
Fast forward. All the cats are vetted. In the event a new cat shows up they are trapped and taken care of. The place is clean. I along with some help from friends and family members worked hard to make the colony inconspicuous and a nice place for the cats to live despite their status in society. Months later after the mass TNR, one of the boy cats I vetted became ill. His gums started bleeding too and I knew it was bad. He was captured, tested positive for FeLV and was humanely euthanized not because I felt he was defective but because he was sick and did not belong outside. Feral cats don't really belong inside either so options were limited to me.
I made the decision not to retrap any of the remaining cats that had already been TNRed months prior because they appeared to be healthy and I just couldn't afford it. I continued to take care of them and monitor their health. Would any of you have done the same or would you have done differently? Yet another cat became ill a few weeks ago. It took 5 days for me to get her so she was in pretty bad shape with some severe complications from not eating. I did not test but did humanely euthanize her. She was one of the cats that had already been TNRed by someone else.
Fast forward again to now. One of the male cats that had been TNRed sometime before I showed up on the scene started losing weight despite eating like a pig. In his case this guy isn't actually feral. He can be pet and picked up. He might have been born outside but he has definitely had plenty of human contact. It was decided by me and another feeder (same one from above) that he should see a doctor to find out what is going on. She volunteered to take on that task which made me very happy since she doesn't do anything else. Again I explain FIV/FeLV and encourage her to have him tested because of the positive testing several months back but she was all la la la la. His blood work was normal but he tested positive for FeLV. Again more la la la la from her and how every animal gets sick and it's okay he is a part of her every day anyhow so she will take care of him despite his test results. I'm wanting to give this woman a medal for her understanding and then the other shoe drops.
24 hours after having him at her home she tells me he escaped, outside. He is still hanging around in her yard. Has been all night and day to my knowledge. He is eating and she says of course she will bring him in. Yeah well I think past behavior is a good indicator of future behavior and I wish I didn't make myself learn that the hard way but sometimes I can be foolish. In any case she is now talking about euthanizing him which is a complete turn around from her previous viewpoint but since I now consider him her responsibility I will let her decide his fate provided it doesn't involve her dumping him back at the colony. I really hope she wouldn't do that but she has proven unreliable and unreliable is worse than being a mean cat hater.
So I have that dilemma, a confirmed FeLV+ outside in a strange environment where there could be other cats with an "owner" that doesn't seem to eager to bring him back inside and has a history of not getting her hands dirty so to speak.
I also have the issue that two cats have now tested positive at my "B" colony. I have several cats left and they all look very healthy. I don't want to go through the stress and expense of catching them and testing them but I also don't want to leave any potentially positive cats outside to infect other cats. If any of you found yourself in my situation what would you do or think would be the right decision? I'm really curious to get other people perspectives before I decide what to do.
Thank you!!!