Cats

[Rockerforlife]

My friend just asked me to take care of her cat for 6 weeks,she told me the cat has a cat virus,she didnt say which disease the cat had....but of course i had to say no because of my treatment im starting soon...anyone know what virus cats harbour....i did some googling and it seems that hiv in cats is common,,,no time for strange cats right now...sorry

[kitkat14]

Surprisingly, cats get many of the same ailments that people get.  As a result, lots of the treatments that veteranarians perform on cats and dogs were tried out on humans first.  Viruses are not interchangeable between humans and cats, so there is nothing to worry about as far as catching cat HIV is concerned.  The one exception I know of is that pregnant women should not clean litter boxes because of some microbe?that could cause problems to a developing fetus.

I doubt that you fit into the category of pregnant woman (lol) but I can understand you not wanting to take on the responsibility at this time.  You want to be able to save your energy if necessary for the times that you need it most, instead of expending it on cleaning the cat box.

k

[Rockerforlife]

Ive also read that you have to be careful of the kitty box if your white cell blood count falls too low...risk of infection.

[kitkat14]

You might be right, I hadn't thought about that.  Not my favourite task at the best of times!

k

[Kristina538]

I read the same;  to keep away from cat/dog poop if your WBC falls low and be careful when gardening (fungus etc).

I have a dog and cat; both of whom are going without hugs or pats from me these days;  my son is doing the grooming and I'm doing the walking!!!

Well done for not taking anything extra on!!  Tx is ALL about YOU!!

[Deb_c430]

i have had my cat for 17 years, through all three tx,  No problems here.   Always careful of cat litter, but imagine wash hands after cleaning?   I garden too, but wear gloves..

But I wouldn't watch someone elses kitty, you may have all the best intentions, but that will surely be when the sxs  hit the hardest.

[epiphiny]

I just want to say that my cats make my treatment bearable!  I have full body contact with all 3 of them and I have had the usual scratches here and there and so far no probs with infections despite my low white count.  I have a cat door tho so there is no indoor dirt box to contend with, not sure how I would handle that with my super sensitive sense of smell since starting tx.  God bless the furry little creatures!!!

[Deb_c430]

same here epiph, i love my kitty, he is sweet and cuddly and loves me even when i am a grouch!

my kitty is an indoor cat, we have moved around in different countries, a lot of his life, afraid he would of gotten lost.

[kitkat14]

I'm the same way in that I don't worry about my white blood cells around my cats.  I have four of the fuzzy little monsters and I wouldn't know what to do with myself without a good snuggle everyday from each of them.  

They really do make the treatment a lot more bearable as they like to keep me company even when I don't want to be around myself.

k

[Rockerforlife]

Think ill look into getting a black panther then....i may end up as a snack pack tho...never mind.

[Deb_c430]

lol i will stick to my CA mountain lion!  Except I am nemo mode today!