momo's FeLV blood test result

our baby momo is a FeLV (Feline Leukemia Virus) carrier. she's only 17 month old or so. she hasn't had any contact with other cats since she came under our care, so it's quite possible that she got that virus from her mother or other cats who shared some time with her at pound or her rescuer's place when she's still very young.

After looking after her for one year, tim and i thought we were ready to welcome another cat to our strange little family. so we contacted the same rescuer then learnt one of the cats she rescued around the same time as momo had died from FeLV.

anyway, we took her to a vet for the test and the result was something we (well, at least i) were''t expecting.

FeLV positive.

it was just a screening (inhouse) test, and we took her to another vet - cat hospital - for a second opinion. they did the same screening test on her and the result was unfortunately the same, though we hoped the first one was a false positive.

a couple days after, momo had to go through another blood test which sample was sent to lab and our vet called tim today to discuss about the result. here are what our vet melissa told tim.

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• vaccinate her as soon as we like - but the vet　(melissa) said she is going to think about it some more because it it risky for momo so she will get back to us and tell us her opinion about whether she should be vaccinated or not.

• multivitamins are a good idea to make sure she is getting what she needs as long as we dont overdose her - she doesnt recommend any particular brand (i dont think she is allowed to recommend any brand) - nothing else she recommends here other than the most healthy diet we can give her.

• we can check all over body with our hands esp under her chin and on the neck and check in her mouth for any ulcers - then we can see what is normal now and then notice any changes in the future.

• weighing her is a good idea.

• counting her breath is also a good idea (anything higher than 20 breaths a minute is not a good sign - but be careful as this isnt always a good indication of something wrong) - count the number of breaths over 15 seconds then multiply by 4 (for an average over a minute).

• her liver/kidneys and blood suagr are all fine at the moment.

• her CBC white/red blood count level is relatively normal at the moment.

• the test shows the virus is in her bone marrow so lymphoma is very possible.

• she expects her lifespan to be about 4 years but is hopeful that she is an exception.

• there may be a possibility of reactive lymphocytes in the sample but she is waiting for more detailed results on this and will letus know.