Our shelter had been testing for FIV/FELV but on the recommendation of
University of Wisconsin Shelter Medicine Program, we no longer do that.
Essentially what their veterinarians told us was:
1. FIV/FELV test are not always particularly accurate. In some cases tests may only be 50% accurate and when testing in mostly healthy populations, even accurate tests might have as high as a 30% false positive rate.
2. The rate of FELV in cats coming into shelters is incredibly low, less than 3% nationally. FIV rates generally vary between 2-5%. In some areas it's even less than that, but depending on your region it might be higher and more worthwhile to investigate. It's also not incredibly easy to spread, so there's generally a low risk of transmission in and out of the shelter.
3. Test are expensive. FIV/FELV tests are relatively expensive compared to other types of testing and especially if you need to send out for results, this can delay an otherwise healthy cat's ability to get adopted. This is especially significant when most cats won't have FELV and the test may not be accurate.
4. Even if a cat is FIV/FELV positive, there's not generally much treatment that will be done in a shelter, and for FIV it's not necessarily a significantly life-limiting issue for the cat.
Eliminating FIV/FELV testing from our regular intake rotation has been great. We still offer it as a paid service for adopters if they're worried, but in the 2+ years we've been no longer testing I think we've had maybe 1 request. We also did take the recommendation to still test cats that come in with cat bite wounds or any potential clinical signs of FIV/FELV.
We have had a handful of FIV positive cats come in, but we've been able to successfully educate adopters and run adoption discounts, and while they do tend to stay for longer, they have pretty much all been adopted. Since transmission is almost entirely in bite or breeding contact, there's also not much risk in housing FIV cats with uninfected cats as long as the cats are behaviorally appropriate and spayed or neutered.
Unfortunately FELV is a little more complicated and would likely need to be housed away from uninfected cats, but if you're short on space, the adult and kitten could at least be housed together if they get along.
Some additional resource can be found here:
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Jeff Okazaki
Humane Society of Jefferson County
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Original Message:
Sent: 12-15-2022 02:13 PM
From: Kate Williams
Subject: Procedures
I just watched the video. That is very helpful!
I am creating a post tonight that I hope will get more attention as my previous posts have been largely ignored. If I do not get any kind of result, I will set up a meeting with you.
So far, what I have been taught about FeLV has been all negative. The adult cat in our care is so playful and makes us laugh often. But, we have no safe space for her to be at our shelter. Thank you for the information and I will get back to you soon.
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Kate Williams
Manager
Animal Welfare Friends
Original Message:
Sent: 12-15-2022 01:06 PM
From: Kelly Duer
Subject: Procedures
Here are a few resources--
Austin Pets Alive! has a large FeLV program-- in this 14 min. video a staff member talks about how they recruit fosters and adopters
They share a whole bunch of documents from the program here
Also, I'm happy to meet with you and brainstorm ways to recruit fosters for these two anytime. If you'd like to meet, you can can pick a time on my Calendly, and I'll add the Zoom link as soon as it creates the invite: https://calendly.com/duer/fosterconsult
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Kelly Duer
Senior Community Solutions Initiative Specialist
Maddie's Fund
Original Message:
Sent: 12-15-2022 12:40 PM
From: Kate Williams
Subject: Procedures
What procedures does your shelter/rescue have in place for dogs and cats that come into your care?
Our usual procedure for dogs is worming, flea/tick/heartworm prevention, shots, spay/neuter, and microchip before we place the dog in the general kennel room. For cats, we do the same but have added testing the kittens for FIV/FELV before they are placed with any other kittens (we have free range rooms).
Today, we had a kitten test positive for FELV and I am devastated. We already have an adult cat with FELV and have not been able to find a foster, adopter, or sanctuary that can take her. Our shelter is so small that we do not have a safe, isolated place for the cats to live comfortable.
So my question is; what does your shelter do in this situation? I know not every shelter runs these tests as the standard.
#AdmissionsandIntake(includingIntake-to-placement)
If anyone would be willing to share their procedure forms with me, I would appreciate it. I am trying to update the information regardless.
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Kate Williams
Manager
Animal Welfare Friends
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