Feline AIDS: the immune disease FIV
AIDS is a well-known human disease. The fact that a similarly feared disease can also affect our beloved furry friends is often new to new cat owners. The feline immunodeficiency virus, better known by its short form FIV, is a particularly serious disease that spreads in cats' bodies and slowly but significantly weakens their immune systems. In common parlance, FIV is also known by the catchy nickname feline AIDS. Find out here how feline AIDS is contracted, what the disease means for your furry friend and what symptoms are typical for FIV.
What is behind feline AIDS?
As with humans, AIDS is a viral disease in cats too. If an animal is infected, FIV causes a slow but unstoppable weakening of the immune system , which ultimately leads to death. The virus belongs to the group of lentiviruses, which are characterized by the fact that the symptoms do not always become acute immediately after infection, but can also appear more slowly, i.e. with a significant delay . This is precisely what makes the incurable disease so insidious: if you notice physical changes in your cat, the infection may have already occurred quite some time ago. Conversely, this also means that an infection is not necessarily noticeable at the beginning because the outbreak may still take some time.
As an immunodeficiency virus, feline AIDS attacks the cat's lymphocytes - these are the white blood cells that normally maintain the immune system and fend off or fight pathogens and other invaders. When the lymphocytes are infected and their concentration in the body decreases, the cat becomes susceptible to all kinds of secondary diseases . The weakened body can no longer defend itself and diseases that it would otherwise cope with without any problems become a truly mammoth task to which the animal unfortunately all too often succumbs at the end of an FIV infection. Below we take a look at how cats become infected with FIV, how AIDS in cats usually manifests itself and what you as an owner can do to protect your pet or - in the event of an outbreak - to care for it.
How is FIV transmitted?
What's particularly bad about the fact that the disease can go unnoticed for a long time is the uncontrolled transmission . Infected cats can pass the feline immunodeficiency virus on to their fellow cats without the disease being diagnosed in them.
Since feline AIDS is transmitted through saliva and blood , cats that go outside are at an increased risk of infection . During territorial fights or wild games, a single bite can be enough to infect cats with FIV. But house cats can also contract feline AIDS. This can be caused, for example, by transmission from a pregnant cat to the unborn child in the womb. In contrast, the feline immunodeficiency virus is not transmitted during mating - at least there is no evidence of this so far.
Whether they're outdoor cats or house cats, more than 10 percent of all domestic cats worldwide carry the virus - and even larger cat species are not spared. In most cases, the outbreak only occurs after the affected cats have reached the age of five - but it is then difficult to determine when they became infected.
How does feline AIDS manifest itself?
Once in the bloodstream, FIV usually has serious consequences - and has a devastating effect on the health and well-being of infected cats. But how exactly does the disease progress and what symptoms occur most frequently?
As already described, AIDS also affects the immune system in cats. The course is basically always the same - even if symptoms and secondary diseases can vary. But one thing can be said: As difficult as it is to detect an FIV infection, the course of the disease can be reconstructed well. After infection, the virus travels through the bloodstream of the affected cat towards the lymph nodes . From there, it attacks the lymphocytes and begins to weaken the sick animal. This phase can last for different lengths of time, but ensures that the physical condition - and sometimes also the personality - of the infected outdoor cat or house cat changes sooner or later. Then the first acute phase of feline AIDS begins, which is usually noticeable through these symptoms:
Although the cat defends itself and tries to get rid of the intruder, the FI virus spreads throughout the body and causes an immune deficiency. This in turn causes a number of other symptoms and often other diseases to appear later . These include, for example:
- Hair loss
- Inflammation of the mucous membranes, especially around the eyes and mouth
- Loss of appetite and even severe weight loss
- Skin irritations and fungal infections
- Infections of the gastrointestinal tract
- Respiratory diseases
- Cystitis
- Behavioral abnormalities and neurological disorders
In fact, this list of potential symptoms and secondary diseases is almost endless: it ranges from classics such as fever and swollen lymph nodes to cancer, dementia and other serious diagnoses. The reason: in the final stages of the disease, the weakened immune system ultimately makes the entire body an attack target . Infected cats increasingly lack the strength to fight bacteria, viruses, etc., so that the cat will eventually succumb to the consequences of one or even several diseases.
How is feline AIDS diagnosed?
The variety of symptoms suggests that the diagnosis of feline AIDS is not always clear. This is why it is all the more important to see a veterinarian at the slightest suspicion , who will take a closer look at your pet. This is where the saying "better safe than sorry" really takes on a very special meaning. Once diagnosed, you may not be able to reverse your own cat's infection, but you can at least prevent others from suffering the same suffering .
If the vet also suspects that your cat's symptoms could be FIV, there is currently only one way to confirm the speculation - or at best to give the all-clear: a test for the antibody concentration in the blood. Animals that contract feline AIDS develop antibodies against the virus. Even if they cannot demonstrably help the cats to fully recover, they at least provide certainty as to whether or not a four-legged friend is carrying the virus. However, since antibodies have to be developed first, vets usually carry out at least two such tests at a certain interval of time in case the first one is normal. This increases the chance of a reliable result.
If the treating veterinarian actually confirms the fears of an FIV infection, it is initially a great shock. Despite all the concern for your darling, it is important to continue to give him a sense of security, safety and confidence and to enable him to live a carefree life as a cat as possible. Before the final stage occurs and the pain and restrictions become unbearable, the symptoms can at least be alleviated . Read below to find out how you can support your cat in this process.
Dealing with FIV: Treatment and Prevention
Even though there is no medication to treat or even cure sick cats, nor a vaccination to reduce the risk of infection to a minimum, we would like to put together a few tips that you can use to care for your cat if it has FIV or, better yet, to protect it from infection.
Dealing with sick cats: care and isolation
Sick cats need two things above all: intensive care and as normal a life as possible. Even if you are worried yourself, stress must be avoided at all costs , as it would endanger the cat's well-being and thus its health. If the cat has previously enjoyed outdoor access, one restriction cannot be avoided: isolation within its own four walls . This is the only way to ensure that your darling does not pose a danger to other cats who are roaming around outside and unsuspectingly enjoying their outdoor access.
Before the first acute phase begins, antiviral therapy - for example in the form of chemotherapy - can significantly delay the onset of the disease. However, since such treatment is not without side effects, you should definitely discuss this with a veterinarian . Together you can best assess what might be good for your four-legged friend and which aids are best avoided.
As soon as symptoms appear, specific care measures can be taken. For example, if conjunctivitis is present, specific medication can be administered that is intended for this condition. If your cat is suffering from a loss of appetite, you can try to motivate it to eat with cat drinks and other treats. In the case of diarrhea, however, a gastro-diet that is gentle on the gastrointestinal tract can have a soothing effect.
Basically, a diet that is easy to digest and, above all, rich in nutrients can help ensure that the cat is supplied with sufficient energy and regains its strength , at least temporarily. The KATTOVIT nutritional supplement, for example, was developed in close cooperation with veterinarians to prevent deficiency symptoms and to provide weakened cats with vitamins, proteins and calories so that they can go about their daily lives as cats without having to take supplements, for example.
