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发帖数: 3641 | 1 http://www.neighborhoodcats.org/HOW_TO_RELEASING_FIV_FELV_POSIT
我喜欢最后那段的一句话：“it's about improving the situation, not about
making it perfect. ”
希望和在帮助小动物的路上还在犹豫的宠友们一起共勉。我不会再犹豫是不是给猫找到
了perfect的家，只要能达到threshold的，就比他们在外面流浪强。这就是improving
。但是如果我因为不忍心，不去做，那么他们仍然还是在流浪，有可能明天后天就不在
了……
Releasing FIV/FeLV Positive Cats
Neighborhood Cats opposes euthanizing any feral cat simply because he or she
tests positive for FIV (feline immuno-deficiency virus) or FeLV (feline
leukemia virus). If the cat shows no active signs of ill health, we believe
he should be released back into his colony regardless of the test results.
Because this is our policy, we don't test in the first place unless the cat
does show signs of ill health and our veterinarian believes test results
would be useful in diagnosis and treatment, or unless the cat is a candidate
for adoption.
The reasons for these policies include the following:
First and foremost, we don't euthanize positive, asymptomatic cats
because we believe they have as much of a right to live as any being.
Euthanasia is defined as the mercy killing of a suffering being, not imposed
death for purposes of convenience or concern about possible future
consequences. Too often, when it comes to feral cats and other animals,
euthanasia is resorted to as a solution to whatever may be the problem - no
place to house them, too expensive to treat, etc. In our view, such actions
demonstrate a lack of respect for life and ultimately cause damage to us
all. When euthanasia is eliminated as an alternative, other solutions are
found.
Initial test results are not always reliable, but with ferals, life or
death decisions are often made based only on the first test. Reliability
issues differ depending on whether FIV or FeLV is in question and what kind
of test is being used.
For FIV, most veterinarians use the ELISA (Enzyme Linked Immunoabsorbent
Assay) test, which detects whether FIV antibodies are present in the blood
- not whether the virus itself is present. As a result, the test is
completely unreliable for cats under six months of age who may have received
FIV antibodies from their nursing mother, but may never have been exposed
to the actual virus. For adult cats, because of the recent introduction of
the FIV vaccine, there is now the possibility a positive test result means a
cat has been vaccinated, not infected.
For FeLV, again the ELISA test is almost always the initial test used.
In contrast to FIV, the FeLV ELISA does not detect antibodies, but whether
the antigen of the virus is present in the blood. In other words, a
positive test result indicates the presence of the actual FeLV virus in the
blood. But, the test is extremely sensitive and is prone to false positives
from improper handling. In addition, a cat in the early stages of FeLV
infection can still fight it off. The disease does not take permanent hold
until it enters the cat's white blood cells, which only another type of test
, the IFA test (Immunofluoresence Assay, also known as the Hardy test) can
determine. The IFA test must be performed at a lab and is more expensive.
Consequently, if a cat appears otherwise healthy, a positive ELISA test
should always be confirmed with an IFA test. Only if other severe
pathological symptoms of FeLV are present should an initial positive ELISA
ever be relied upon alone.
Given these facts, the practice of killing cats based on a one-time test
inevitably leads to the death of animals who were never infected in the
first place or who would have successfully fought the infection off given
enough time.
FIV positive cats have been known to often live long lives and may never
get sick. The mortality rate is higher for FeLV positive cats, who usually
contract the disease as kittens. A study showed most die by the age of two
to three years old (33% at 6 months, 63% at 2 years, 83% at 3.5 years.)
Still, while they are alive, they can live symptom free if properly fed and
sheltered.
Euthanizing positives is ineffective colony management. Removing a
positive cat from a colony does not eliminate the risk of infection to other
cats, who have likely already been exposed to the virus, anyway.
The primary cause of infection relates more to proper colony management
than to a particular positive cat or cats. In our experience, colonies with
lots of sick cats are ones that are poorly managed - poor nutrition,
inadequate shelter and/or unneutered animals. These conditions lead to
weakened immune systems and susceptibility to disease. Indeed, some
veterinarians believe it is rare for a healthy adult cat to ever catch FeLV.
The best way to prevent the spread of disease is thus not by killing
individual cats, but by improving the quality of food, making sure the cats
have warm, dry shelter in winter and getting them neutered.
Neutering helps for a couple of reasons. The primary means of
transmission of FIV is deep bite wounds and neutered cats tend not to fight.
FIV can also be transmitted by an infected mother to her kittens if she
was exposed to the virus during gestation or while lactating. On rare
occasion, FIV can also be passed on to females through infected semen.
Neutering eliminates both kittens and sexual intercourse and removes these
means of transmission, too. With respect to FeLV, kittens are the ones most
susceptible to infection due to their undeveloped immune systems.
Neutering, again by ending the birth of new kittens, eliminates this
possibility.
Testing is a waste of resources. The literature shows the prevalence of
FIV and FeLV positive test results in the feral population is low - and the
same as in the domestic population (about 4 percent for FeLV, 2 percent for
FIV.) So to identify six positive test results means paying for the testing
of 100 cats. Even at a low cost of $12 per cat, that adds up to $1200 or $
200 per positive cat. And even then, it doesn't mean the six positive cats
actually have the disease, will ever get sick, or will ever transmit it. At
a time when there is a crisis in feral cat overpopulation, the money should
go towards neutering and proper colony management, not a dubious investment
in testing.
It isn't true that you are responsible for all the cats that die if you
release a positive. This is the "guilt trip" which is the primary argument
of those who still favor testing and euthanizing if a feral cat tests
positive. First of all, we have knowingly released FIV and FeLV positive
cats and have yet to see a colony wiped out or any empirical evidence to
support the "guilt trip" theory. As mentioned, a well-fed, well-managed
colony is going to have strong immune systems and a natural resistance to
the viruses.
But even assuming the released cat does transmit the virus and another
cat does get sick, this is not your responsibility. TNR does not mean
creating a world without risk for feral cats - it's about improving the
situation, not about making it perfect. The disease was present before you
came along. By getting the cats neutered and implementing a managed colony,
you've vastly improved the quality of the cats' lives and no one should
criticize your decision to let the animal return to his family and not
euthanize him because of a test result. | P******o
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