Dusty and Lucky Need a Home
False negatives make this pair positively adoptable … which they would have been even if they had feline leukemia. (But they don’t.) Confused? Read on and we’ll explain.
Dusty and Lucky came to RAPS with their brother Ned. Ned tested negative for feline leukemia (FeLV), while Dusty and Lucky tested positive – until they didn’t.
Ok. Let us explain.
The trio arrived at RAPS during the wildfires in the Okanagan last summer.
When cats arrive in our care, we SNAP test them.
SNAP tests screen cats for the feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) antibody and the feline leukemia virus (FeLV) antigen.
As the provider of the tests warns, the results may not be accurate in very young cats because the mother’s antibodies can affect the test results in kittens. Usually, tests are given to those over six months or so, although we don’t always know the precise ages of some of the animals who come to us.
When they first arrived, the pair were SNAP tested and Dusty was a solid positive and Lucky was a faint positive.
They were re-tested two months later, which is common practice when kittens, because it is known that the mother’s antibodies can skew the results. This time they tested negative!
First, even if these kitties were FeLV-positive, they could still make ideal family pets. FeLV is a manageable condition and cats with the virus can live long, healthy lives. They do, however, need to be kept away from cats who do not have FeLV, which means always being indoor cats or in catios – which is an undertaking we require of every cat adopter anyway, though in this case it becomes a significant health concerns because it is a transmissible condition. The RAPS Cat Sanctuary has a population of FeLV cats who are unlikely to find a forever home for the simple reason that, with so many completely healthy cats available, the law of supply and demand (to put it bluntly) means these will likely not be adopted. (Some cats who are FeLV-positive may have secondary characteristics that prevent them from getting adopted. Maybe they just don’t like people!)
Secondly … and this is the awesome news … these two are now looking for a forever home!
(To be clear, they were already looking for a forever home and would have made awesome companions even if they had FeLV. … But they don’t.)
Anyway, these two sleek, gorgeous and attention-loving cats are looking to go together to their new family! They are absolutely bonded and love each other, so will go to the same home. Because Dusty originally tested a solid positive, the RAPS Animal Hospital is offering a precautionary free of charge FIV/FeLV SNAP test to his new family six months after the last negative SNAP test.
If you are interested in adopting this pair, start the process here www.rapsbc.com/adopt/.
