Do I need to get a FeLV booster for my cat?

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rewind
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Do I need to get a FeLV booster for my cat?

Post by rewind »

In February of this year, I rehomed these two little guys: http://www.catchat.org/shelter_centre/i ... 13&path=10. James has FIV which means they are both indoor cats. They have both been an absolute pleasure to live with and are very affectionate, healthy cats.

The records I got from the National Animal Welfare Trust showed that they were last injected on 11th December 2015 and are therefore due their next vaccination this month. The two injections appear to be Nobivac TRICAT TRIO and Nobivac FeLV.

My question is, do I need to get their boosters again? From researching online, it appears that if a cat is 3+ years old (James and Robin are nearly 4 now we believe) and live 100% of their time indoors, then they do not need boosters. However, I have e-mailed Medivet who advise for James as follows:
.... we do recommend to vaccinate with yearly booster cats positive for FIV, as in your cats situation, despite indoor lifestyle. The reason behind this is that FeLV and RC are viruses that can travel very easy in environmental, and it can be carried in household by air (if windows are open) or by shoes, or any other person that visits the household (which they can or not have cats). Prevent them for rest RCP and FeLV will reduce the risk of getting sick and boost immune system against them.
Now if the above is accurate, I am happy to get James vaccinated. However, I don't want to put him through the stress of being put in his cage and taken down to the vets (based on his history of being abandonded) if the boosters are not necessary.

So do both of the cats require a booster? Just James? Or neither of them?

Your help would be greatly appreciated.
booktigger
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Re: Do I need to get a FeLV booster for my cat?

Post by booktigger »

I've never heard of FeLV being easy to travel, I thought it was a fragile virus that didn't live long and wasn't easy to transmit as it has to be transmitted by a bite
Schmew
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Re: Do I need to get a FeLV booster for my cat?

Post by Schmew »

I used to get my FIV cats vaccinated when I was fostering but over the last few years since there have been no new cats coming in to mix, I stopped vaccinating. I've never had FELV vaccs as any cats coming in had always been tested for that and were negative, so that wasn't a risk to the existing ones. My cats have all been indoor cats - access to enclosed run but no contact with other cats outside. I've had FIV cats for 17 years now and although there have been plenty of illnesses, there's never been any that would have been prevented through vaccination.
My vets have been supportive of the decision but they've all been well educated on FIV over the years! However I do suspect some vets will always push for what the drug companies recommend, and also it brings them money. One thing to keep an eye on though if they are insured is that the insurance probably wouldn't cover an illness that could have been vaccinated against, if you choose not to vaccinate. But the likelihood of them contracting those diseases is very low if they're indoor cats and you're not bringing any others in.
rewind
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Re: Do I need to get a FeLV booster for my cat?

Post by rewind »

Schmew wrote:I used to get my FIV cats vaccinated when I was fostering but over the last few years since there have been no new cats coming in to mix, I stopped vaccinating. I've never had FELV vaccs as any cats coming in had always been tested for that and were negative, so that wasn't a risk to the existing ones. My cats have all been indoor cats - access to enclosed run but no contact with other cats outside. I've had FIV cats for 17 years now and although there have been plenty of illnesses, there's never been any that would have been prevented through vaccination.
My vets have been supportive of the decision but they've all been well educated on FIV over the years! However I do suspect some vets will always push for what the drug companies recommend, and also it brings them money. One thing to keep an eye on though if they are insured is that the insurance probably wouldn't cover an illness that could have been vaccinated against, if you choose not to vaccinate. But the likelihood of them contracting those diseases is very low if they're indoor cats and you're not bringing any others in.
Thank you for this, that was my thinking as well - it feels as if MediVet are trying to push the vaccinations onto me. I read another thread in this forum that also said some vaccinations can also make FIV more of a problem which is something I definitely don't want to risk happening!
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