Feline Leukemia Virus

[Chinmama]

I am the "crazy animal lady" at work, so everyone always brings their pet questions to me, whether I know anything about it or not...

I have a friend who lost her cat last week to feline leukemia. She is interested in getting another cat (or kitten), but has gotten mixed responses on how long she should wait before bringing another cat into her home. How long does the virus live in your home after the cat is gone? Anyone have any clue?

Also, my vet said that she can have the cat tested at the shelter and if it is negative, it can be vaccinated against it and will be fine to take it home then.

I know absolutely nothing about cats, so I thought I would see if anyone here knew enough to help answer her question.

 

[threewingedfury]

FeLV doesn't live outside of the body for very long. The main thing is making sure that she throws away the litter boxes and bowls that were used and that she uses all new supplies. FeLV is spread through nasal secretions, saliva, urine, feces and milk. So unless the cat just recently died and has it's snot balls all over the house or has licked a bunch of toys, it would be fine. I don't think the virus would be active now that it's been a week either.

 

[Bethany]

Leukemia is in fluid and deep bite wounds is typicly how it gets transmitted. Tell her to bleach the litter pan and go get one.

Kittens have to be at least 10 weeks when they are checked or they could get a false negative on the test.

 

[Brittney]

She will need to wash down all surfaces a couple of times with bleach and water to kill anything remaining, but it should be gone as it lives maybe an hour tops outside of the cat. And she needs to vacuum well. It's transmitted to other cats though nasal secretions and saliva, feces and urine and it is passed to another cat through a bite or shared litter boxes. Her best bet would be to just get rid of the litter box and get a new one. They aren't that expensive. Her kitten needs to get vaccinated before she even brings it home.

She needs to disinfect everything she had from the other cat or replace them.

 

[Chinmama]

Thanks for the responses!

 

[equus_peduus]

Kittens are most susceptible. Vaccination vastly reduces risk. Vaccinate all kittens, regardless of whether it will be indoor or outdoor. It's a two-dose series. Boost at one year. Further boosters will depend on risk. One reason I recommend cats be indoors is because it's almost impossible to get FeLV if the cat never goes outside.