Viral diseases in adopted kitties

[CathyBogart]

Not a kitty I adopted, but one I was planning to...I was house-sitting for my boss, and she told me about a teeny feral kitten she had been feeding and trying to trap. On the last day I was there he was asleep next to the food and I was able to pick him up and stuff him in a carrier (Red flag #1). I immediately took him to the vet where he tested positive for FIV and FeLV and was euthanized later that day. I wish I had had some treats to give him or a heated blankie or something to make his last hours more comfy.

[smokey the elder]

My fosters are always quarantined at first. I have been fortunate in that the worst they've had is upper respiratory, worms or the dreaded ringworm.

[aki]

I got Chuck from a breeder who was giving away the "not perfect" ones.

He ended up having a horrible respritory (sp?) infection soon after he came home. Poor thing was so sick.

[Craftlady]

Adopting through Petsmart they are tested before being made available for adoption. Skinny and Cindy (who were neighborhood strays) were tested before being introduced to the others. It just makes SMART pet owner sense to keep everyone confined from each other until tests are done.

[lv4dogs]

All of the cats I have or have had or rescued all were rescued by me not from a shelter or the like.

I always take precautions & keep them seperated in a quarantine room until they are checked by a vet and have the leuk/fiv tests done. If I happen to get them to the vets right -away (within the first day or ) I still keep them seperated for days just in case they have a URI or another contagious illness that isn't showing symptoms yet.
And I always have my cats checked for luek/fiv yearly, in case it wasn't showing up yet on the first test and also to make sure they haven't caught it. They are vaccinated for Leuk but not FIV.

[Kfamr]

A reputable shelter/rescue generally will NOT adopt out a cat with diseases to a home with current cats. In fact, yesterday when my brother was looking for a second cat, he had to turn away and was denied to adopt a very precious cream/orange colored kitten because she has some sort of disease and it's contagious.

I know there are a lot of people who don't bother to test for certain diseases and adopt them out to homes with other cats leaving them at risk. Personally, i'll never get any animal from a shelter/rescue that works out of their home.

In other words, it's never happened to me (although i've never adopted a cat myself, my friends/family always ask me to come along and help them choose pets to adopt.)

[Kirsten]

It's encouraging to see that so many of you made positive experiences.

Cathy, that's very sad about that kitten you wanted to adopt!

Kirsten