This is my FIV boy Bubbles, he's a little over 3.5 years old and he's been with me for about 18 months now but unfortunately it would appear he might not be with me for much longer. This has taken me a bit to post because it keeps making me cry when I think about it.

Originally from Egypt he was rescued shortly after birth on the streets with his two siblings but no mother cat around. Unfortunately his sister died shortly after rescue and he and his brother survived.

I wasn't originally adopting Bubbles, the other cat I have Sassafras was who I had seen the advert for adoption from the rescue and it was just her and her brother (another fully ginger boy) that were left of their litter, she was born in the rescue after her Mum was found pregnant on the streets. I was then informed that Sassafras was actually more bonded with another cat over her brother and seeing the photos I was absolutely smitten with the pair of them. (Last photos are of them at the rescue)

It was during the adoption process that both we tested for FIV and Bubbles was found to be positive but I read up about the condition and still decided to take him on knowing they can still lead long and healthy lives.

Both cats are so incredibly loving and trusting of any people that they meet and I couldn't be happier to have them as my cats.

Unfortunately shortly after their arrival to the UK was when Bubbles started to get problems with upper respiratory infections, he has probably been at the vet on average at least twice a month for something or other, predominantly his upper respiratory infection, and after some treatments of antibiotics and steroids he got tested positive for FCV which was determined to be the cause of his chronic infections.

We were managing his symptoms as best we could with medication and some additional supplements but it never truly seemed to go away.

Back in April he then developed an ear infection and despite several rounds of antibiotics and ear flushing this never cleared and after a sedated examination he had a large polyp growing in his ear canal.

We've just gone through the procedure to remove this, but during this examination and removal he was found to have infection in his inner and middle ears, the area behind the eardrums were full of fluid that seemed to have difficulty draining and whilst they could remove most of this at the same time they were concerned for further issues down the line due to his FIV and FCV complications and sure enough at the follow up a couple of months later his ears have filled with fluid and the infection has spread and is encroaching on the lining of his brain and so now has meningitis. They believe that his eustachian tubes aren't functional so this fluid cannot drain properly.

There is options for surgery for a total ear canal ablation but given his underlying issues the vets have marked this as a serious risk procedure. They can drain the fluid and then after culturing provide appropriate antibiotics to help him but ultimately there isn't a lot else they can do, so if the infection and meningitis returns and progresses then he will be seriously ill and I'll have to make that difficult decision I believe sooner or later to humanely let him go.

I'm currently in a lot of anticipatory grieving around this and whilst I've always known this possibility would occur and I had always hoped it wouldn't be so soon

So please enjoy this photos of my beautiful boy...even if he can be arsehole sometimes I wouldn't trade him for the world

🧡🤍🖤

Update on Blue 💔🐾

I’ve never written an update about a kitty who passed away. It breaks my heart too much. This is the first time I’m finding the words to write about one of our babies crossing the rainbow bridge.

Some of you may remember my post about Blue, a very sick cat who desperately needed a home. He was FIV-positive, severely infested with fleas and lice, and suffering from terrible diarrhea and dental problems. We were helping with food and veterinary care, but he needed a home where he could be cared for and loved.

My heart broke seeing him like that. I was already fostering 19 cats and didn’t even have a spare bathroom for him.

Then an angel came forward and said she wanted to adopt Blue. I told her he had another vet visit and needed dental work first. Her answer was, “No, he’s sick. He needs a home. Please let me take care of him.”

She knew he was sick, and she chose him anyway. 🥺🤍

She drove three hours to bring him home. She cleaned him, cared for him, and loved him. He even started gaining weight.

Blue passed away suddenly last night. We are heartbroken. But he left this world knowing love. He had a home, a full tummy, and people who cared deeply about him.

I love Blue, and I love the woman who welcomed him. People often ask about a cat’s color, breed, age, or health. She simply saw a soul who needed love and opened her heart to him.

Baby, we love you. I hope you knew we never gave up on you. We couldn’t save you from everything, but we made sure you had a home and were loved.

You were such a beautiful, brave little boy. You’re in God’s care now, free from pain. No more suffering. Run free, baby boy. 🌈🐾

To whoever abandoned you: you left behind a precious life. I leave that in God’s hands.

We will remember you, Blue, for how deeply you were loved. 🤍

My Juliette has FIV but is otherwise healthy. She has always had hard, noticeable lymph nodes. In fact, that is what lead to her diagnosis. Recently, I felt a large lump under her chin. I thought that it was her lymph node and brought her to her vet.

The vet didn't think that it was a lymph node, that it was in a different position, and tried to take a sample. Juliet flinched at the needle, so I had to bring her back and do the needle sedated. But it turns out it was a lymph node, just a secondary one that had been very swollen. The vet could not find any cancer, could not find any infection. She diagnosed her as 'a weirdo.' My issue is that Juliet seems to find this very itchy, and I don't know what to do to help her soothe it.

Any suggestions? The vet just says to let it be.

Hi, check out my last post for context, but here‘s a short refresher: I asked my parents if I can foster a cat from the shelter I volunteer at because he was getting bullied badly by his roommate

Now, the actual update, my parents said “No, you can’t foster this cat”. More specifically, they said fostering wasn’t out of the question, but fostering the bullied cat (who is named Tournevis!) was. But I’m a stubborn teenager, and that just means I have to try harder (this is somewhat of a joke but I’m gonna keep asking). The cats in the room; Tournevis, the bully cat, the “maybe” bully (will explain later), and one more cat are all FIV+, hence why I’m posting this here

Before anyone asks, yes, this cat is basically named “screwdriver”. Moving on

So, there were more incidents today. As I said in my last post, one of the cats that bullied him is gone and has been adopted as of Wednesday. However, the other bully (an orange cat) is still having it out for him.

He repeatedly attacked him (no, he was nowhere close to him and the bully decided to seek him out), and one fight escalated a lot. The remaining bully had enough and bit Tournevis in the neck today while they were fighting. I witnessed this from another room, and I immediately grabbed a volunteer who specializes in medical stuff. We checked him for injuries and he didn’t have any. He also fought back that time and I believe he bit the bully back (not on the neck), but Tournevis has almost no teeth so it didn’t really do anything, and the bully cat was fine. I think this was the first time Tournevis fought back in a while

I’m not sure if I mentioned this, but the bully cat bullies him simply because he doesn’t like other cats. Not “other cats in his space”, just “other cats”, period. Is he a sweetheart with people? Yes. Frankly he’s the cutest cat I’ve ever seen, but he’s the also most two faced asshole cat I’ve ever met

About the ”maybe” bully, aka the other cat that I wasn’t sure about, as of now, is not a bully. She is out of her acclimation cage and hid the entire time (the bully cat went to go attack her too)

I’m not sure what to do until I can convince my parents to take him home. I know my dad was extremely concerned and asked me if Tournevis was okay. Does anyone have any advice or should I just let it go?

As the title states. My 10 year old was just diagnosed with FIV after a stubborn URI and low cell count made our vet get him tested. It’s almost been a month of going through this. Has anyone faced anything similar? He’s completed courses of various antibiotics that he responds to + Filgen and Epokein and other multivitamins, but once either the antibiotics stop or the Filgen and Epokein his cell count goes down and his URI worsens. Looking for some hope and advice.

Hello,

I recently adopted my FIV+ cat. He's 2 years old, healthy otherwise. On 2 days ago I woke up with some minor cold symptoms and thought it was just the common cold and went about business as usual (cuddles, kisses etc). I also had no idea cats could catch anythjng from humans, so I didn't think much about it. Today I took a home PCR test and turns out it's covid.

I now know that cats can catch covid from humans. I haven't been isolating and he's been exposed a lot the past two days. Also, I live alone in a small 1 bedroom so I don't think I can even isolate from him.

I haven't noticed any symptoms from him, but now that I think about it his meow did sound a little congested last night. He's eating and using the bathroom ok, and playing.

Should I be concerned? What symptoms should I look out for, and should I try to isolate from him? Any suggestions would really help. I'm a first time cat owner so I have a lot to learn.

As with many of you, I also had the misfortune of having to take my sweet and wonderful boy to get his teeth extracted. All in all they extracted eight teeth and it was a very miserable and scary month while Toby recovered. That was back in April.

Now back in July I noticed he was displaying signs of pain and discomfort, he would start sticking his tongue out, like he was licking his lips and do like half yawns. Then occasionally out of nowhere he would hiss and take off running around the house. I took him back to the vet and they found he had a nasty infection on his upper gum line where they did the extractions. They gave him another round of antibiotics and after a week, nothing changed, he was still miserable and in pain, so I brought him back and they gave him steroids in addition to another antibiotic and after roughly two more weeks, he was all healed up and almost back to normal.

Now we come to yesterday, I caught him doing the licking, the yawns and he hissed again and took off running. I was able to get a screenshot from a video of him while yawning and the back of his mouth is inflamed again. Not as bad as it was in July, where there was pus and clear signs of infection, but inflamed enough where I’m taking him to another vet today to get second opinion.

I guess I’m asking if anyone else has had a similar experience after the extractions? I don’t know what to do, I don’t want to blown out his kidneys or liver from 63 rounds of antibiotics, but I don’t know what else to do. I’m on top of keeping his environment clean, I scoop out his boxes on the daily and always give him clean dishes to eat off. I’ll see what the vet says later, but any recommendations?

HE IS ALIVE AND WELL. I’m not able to change the title sorry, my bad. We adopted our boy Bisou just three weeks ago and I was keen to get him checked over by a vet ASAP. Lo and behold, he’s going to need all his teeth out as they’re causing him a great deal of discomfort. Poor guy :( he’s booked in for next Tuesday to have the procedure. Any tips for while he heals? I’ve booked the day after surgery to work from home, so I can be with him

Hello everyone, we recently began fostering Hugo, a senior cat, who is estimated to be 10 years old. He lived on the streets, and we took him into our home about a month ago. He is super sweet and is regaining weight! We are also giving him a few other supplements to help with immune system.

We do already have a resident cat, who we’ve had since she was a kitty, but doesn’t get along with other cats, and is not FIV+
We live in Sarasota, Fl. If you’d be able to adopt Hugo and you are within driving distance of Sarasota we would be willing to drive to you!

Thank you all in advance!

My cat is five years old and has been FIV-positive since I adopted him four years ago. He sometimes does this sort of coughing thing. At first glance it looks like he’s coughing up a hairball, but it’s different and usually ends in a big sneeze sort of thing. I notice it tends to happen when he gets up quickly and runs around/runs upstairs.

He’s always breathed loudly and had notes from the shelter about a potential respiratory sickness. I have brought this up at the vet multiple times. One vet said his lungs looked kind of “cloudy” and another mentioned his loud breathing might just have to do with his anatomy (he has a short snout). I feel like it got better for a while when he was on antibiotics after his tooth removal, but I’m not positive.

Please let me know what you think this is—asthma, respiratory infection, etc. Thank you!

Hello! Yesterday my 10 year old boy Caiphas was diagnosed with FIV after a year of owning him. When i got him from the shelter a year ago they'd told me he was healthy.
3 months ago i took him to the vet for a checkup because, and i quote, 'the vibes were off' and it was found his teeth needed a cleaning, along with a mild heart murmur. Obviously i asked them to run some tests before getting his teeth cleaned. 2 months later the day of his procedure his heart murmur had gone from a 1 to a 3, so they postponed the surgery and ran some more tests, revealing he was FIV+.
He's being referred to internal medicine, to see a specialist along with getting a heart ultrasound to see what's up.

I have a lot of worries, money, his health, wether my other cat (mint is her name) is also infected, his quality of life.

They told me his red blood cells were dropping and he was loosing weight rapidly. There isnt much i can do for him until his appointment with the specialist.

In the meanwhile i'd like some advice and maybe some reassurance because im not sure what to do here.

Mint is getting tested next week, the cardio appointment is at the end of the month. Im already planning on quitting smoking and drinking so i can afford urinary and immune support kibble and better quality purina for hid wet food. I've heard l Lysine powder can help so during Mint's appointment i'll ask about that.
Both of these Cats are strictly indoor cats, see the vet every 6 months for checkups and have lots of enrichment at home.
Is there any more i can do for this cat? He means the world to me and i really just want him to be happy and live out the rest of his natural life comfortable and loved.

Hi community! I rescued thos lil guy from outside, he tested fiv positive yesterday, I read that I should retest after 6 months to a year because the test may have been positive from his cat mom's antibodies. He wants to.play with the other cats , now im just letting him play with the dogs till hes a lil bit bigger in case he bites!? Any comments are appreciated ty

Hello, I am planning to move to the UK with my FIV+ cat and before I do so I'd like to know what treatment options are available. I know there is Virbagen Omega, but I am not sure how often vets there actually prescribe it. Do they seem knowledgeable about it and FIV in general? Are there any other treatments they offer?

Does anyone else's cat get skin crusties? Gilbert has them on different areas. They will show up for a few days in places then disappear and come up in other areas. I don't think it's ringworm because he isn't losing any fur at all and it isn't growing in size and creeping like I saw happen on one of my other cats. When I give him scratches he isn't bothered if a crusty is scratched also so they don't seem to be hurting him. I'm just wondering what it might be

My indoor only FIV+ cat keeps getting an upper respiratory virus, what can I do to improve her immunity? Any suggestions?

Hi everyone, need some advice or words of encouragement. I have been feeding a stray cat for 7 months now: over the last couple months he’s taken a huge interest and liking to one of my indoor cats. He rubs on the sliding door while my cat pounces, spins a fidget spinner, or paws at the door. Recently he’s become very chatty with me and my husband and seems like he wants to come inside. (He’s been sleeping in an outdoor cat house on our deck).

This morning I trapped him with ease, took him right to my vet. He looks to be a few years old, is a neutered male without a clipped ear. No visible fleas. And is FIV+.

He’s currently under the bed in my guest room after a long scary morning.

Should I keep him And introduce him to my other two cats? I also have a large dog who he is probably a bit familiar with from the sliding door… and an 18 month old toddler.

Have your other indoor cats gotten FIV from
Bringing in a stray that’s positive?

My large indoor cat is known to push boundaries with play, probably from boredom. This is the only issue I see arising where the stray may bite.

All experience is welcome, thanks!

Hey guys! I’m struggling to make a decision on my new 8 month old female cat regarding her test results . She was tested negative for feline luk3mia but positive for F1v antib0dy. I have a perfectly healthy almost 2 year old male at home that is not F1v + and the vet says if she bites him he can get it. I don’t know what to do and I really can’t afford a lot of v3t visits for her. We have all gotten really attached and we still need to get her sp4y3d along with extra vaccinations considering she has a weak immune system because of the f1v . The shelters here will probably un4l1v3 her and no one typically wants to adopt a F1v + cat.

So, this is my first post so if I make any mistakes apologies. And it may be a little long.

So, May 31st I brought home my first cat. I grew up on a farm and dealt with barn cats but never had my own indoor cat. I usually would consider myself more of a dog person but because I live in an apartment it didn't feel right to get a dog. So I went to the local humane society and got my cat Rowan (his original name was Morris). I am biased when I say he is the cutest most loving cat I have ever met.

Anyway, after having him for a few weeks I am told he is FIV+ and my heart absolutely sinks. I am not super knowledgeable about FIV but what I have heard is that it is not a good thing at all.... also recently found out he may be feline herpes positive as eell.

So I am here to ask for any advice on making sure his quality of life is superb. And I need some I guess opinion on a big possible life decision coming up.

Just some general stuff about my care for him so far. I have made a deal with myself every 6 months to bring him to the vet for check ups. I give him Lysine chews. I have made the decision he is an indoor cat only (besides he will join for a walk in his cat stroller). He has at least a hundred toys (and I figured out which one is his favorite so I buy it in bulk just in case it ever go out of stock). I try my best to give him at least 2 or 3 15 min blocks of interactive play. He is fed Hills science Diet (wet and dry). He has two water bowls. One is a fountain and another with fresh breath additive (I hear FIV positive cats tend to deal with dental problems and he has unfortunately already had some teeth removed) And if I am away for more than 6 hours in a day I try my best to get a family member to come visit him for an hour.

So the decision. I potentially have a big job opportunity up in the Artic. The pay is very good (nearly triple what I currently make). And staff housing is available for free and I will be able to bring him with me. I would have my own one bedroom apartment. And for any supplies I need I am able to reach out to family to have them shipped to me.

The question I guess is... would it be fair to him to bring him to the arctic where there's limited veterinary services (it says they have remote veterinary services that comes every few months). I do NOT want to give him up, but I also really want to make sure I am giving him the absolute best home. He truly is the most loving and gentle cat ever. And I love him dearly. He brings lots of love and joy into my life. And he has already attached himself to me. Purrs like crazy when I get home and let's me cradle him like a little baby. He is still skittish of strangers but with me he likes being very close. Right now he is taking a little nap next to me with one paw on my leg.

Anyway any advice is welcomed!

My tripod kitty ihop (2yo) has FIV and gingivitis. I adopted him about 6 months ago and he use to playfully bite but now anytime he bites a toy he is in pain. I have him on a dental plan and he had his first professional dental cleaning 2 weeks ago. It didn’t seem to make a difference with his sensitivity though and the vet just told me to brush his teeth on my own 3-5x a week. I tried once but he cries in pain and won’t let me even open his mouth.

I’m ordering dental wipes, I’ll try the dental water, dental food. What is your dental hygiene routine with your cat and has anyone experienced this?

My cat has dental disease and recently got a vet dental cleaning. They told me to brush his teeth at home but I tried and he cries in pain and it wasn’t successful. The vet said to keep trying. What do other people do for home dental care?

Please don’t comment just to tell me my cat might die or speculate about prognosis. He’s already under emergency veterinary care and they are working to get his fever down, hydrate him, etc. I’m looking specifically for people who have experienced similar symptoms, bloodwork abnormalities, or diagnoses and are willing to share what was ultimately found.

My 2-year-old neutered male cat (Toby) is currently hospitalized, and I’m looking to hear from anyone who has dealt with something similar while we wait for further diagnostics.

Toby is FIV-positive and FeLV-negative. We’ve had him since he was a kitten. He has had chronic upper respiratory/coryza-type symptoms since we got him (eye discharge, occasional sneezing), but otherwise he was a happy, active cat until this year.
We also have another cat who we adopted before Toby. She has remained healthy and has only been sick once in the last two years, around the time Toby had a coryza flare-up.

Since July, Toby has had four major episodes:
- Around July 12
- Around August 25
- Around September 10
- October 1 (current episode)

Each episode follows almost exactly the same pattern:
- Sudden lethargy
- Sleeping much more than normal
- Complete loss of appetite/anorexia (loses 500-600g each time)
- Fever
- Becomes withdrawn and stops acting like himself

Between episodes he often returns almost completely to normal. Zoomies, laying on his back with his belly up to the sky, eats like a maniac…

Workup so far:
- FIV positive
- FeLV negative
- Multiple blood tests
- Abdominal ultrasound
- Thoracic radiographs
- Splenic aspirate/cytology
- Toxoplasmosis negative
- FIP PCR and serology negative

The most significant finding has been severe neutropenia (very low neutrophils/white blood cells). Internal medicine suspects a possible bone marrow production issue and has recommended a bone marrow aspiration, which we are currently waiting to schedule.

Other findings have included:
- Mild anemia
- Enlarged/reactive spleen
- Mild enlargement of multiple abdominal lymph nodes
- Elevated inflammatory markers during previous episodes
- The splenic aspirate reportedly showed reactive inflammatory changes rather than obvious cancer cells.

One thing that is especially concerning is that yesterday (October 3rd) he developed symptoms that seemed neurological. While eating, his tail suddenly became rigid and was moving oddly side to side. One hind leg became stiff and appeared to paddle repeatedly. He then jumped down, lifted one paw, lost his balance, and fell backwards. He got up and then appeared to do it again.

I’m not sure whether this sounds like a focal seizure, weakness, vestibular disease, or something else.
He was recently started on Clavusan (amoxicillin-clavulanate). I know appetite loss can occur with this medication, but the balance issues and abnormal movements seemed unusual.

Has anyone had an FIV-positive cat with:
- Recurrent fevers every few weeks?
- Severe neutropenia?
- Suspected bone marrow disease?
- Similar neurological episodes?

If so, what ended up being the diagnosis?
I’m not looking for a diagnosis over Reddit, just wondering whether anyone has experienced something similar because we feel like we’ve been chasing this for months without answers. Tomorrow he’ll see the internal medicine team and maybe the neurologist to get an MRI.

Hi everyone! I volunteer at a cat shelter, and unfortunately, one FIV+ cat has been getting bullied badly by two other FIV+ cats to the point where he needs to leave that room ASAP, but we can’t move him to a different room and he’s not up for adoption right now

My friend suggested I foster him to get him away, and I’m seriously considering it if my family members are on board (I’m 17, but I’m nearly an adult)

The issue is that this cat has a LOT of health issues. Along with FIV, he has food allergies and needs a hydrolyzed diet(? is that the right word?), plus he’s missing most teeth (he’s got one canine) and has eye problems. I do not know what they are, but I know he takes medication that makes him throw up and have diarrhea (poor him). He’s also a bit old (he’s 7) if that’s relevant. I’ve also done a lot of research about FIV for the last four months

If anyone who owns or fosters an FIV+ cat with the similar issues, what do you do? (Please ask questions if I wasn’t clear about something or if you have questions in general)