For six years, my leukemia postive cat lived with my other cats and none of them caught it from her. She died at 7 years, over five years ago, and they all died of age-related disorders in their late teens. One is still alive, Ginger, and turned 20 last June. However, and it is a big however, they were all adults when they shared space with her, and they were all vaccinated yearly for the first 3 years they shared with her.

Kittens and young cats are very vulnerable to transmission of this virus and I would not place a cat under 2 years with a FeLV+ cat, even one who was healthy and not shedding the virus heavily. Like your friend's cat, my Seshat was healthy which is the reason my vet approved her being with my adult cats. However, when the leukemia virus took hold of her system, it was extremely distressing and very, very fast - not something I would ever want to experience again unless I adopted a FeLV+ cat.

Also, the test they do at the vet is not conclusive. I can't remember what it's called, but there is a lab test that they need to do before giving a conclusive answer. A little research online will give you the test info.