What are the symptoms of feline aids?

I noticed on the pet channel that there was a black cat with an eye infection and diahrea similar to what our stray cat has. Again it also has diarhea and both eyes are watering. It certainly has a good appetite and moves around like any normal cat but I suspect it has more than the suggested upper resperatory infection. If there anyone out there that has worked in a vet's office maybe they might know the symptoms. We certainly can't afford to take all the strays we feed, close to a dozen, to the vet everytime they're not well but we might have to take this one to the shelter if the illness is serious enough.

my little kitty had feline leukemia and if I remember most of his problems were resperatory and he would not eat. I do not rmember his eyes watering or diahrea. some vets will give you a discount if you let them know it is a stray, well at least ours does, you should give them a call and just see if they help people that help strays. good luck w/ your cat, sorry I didn't have the right answer.

I just found out my 7 week old kitten had Feline aids and she also has had diarrhea and watering of the eyes but she wouldn't eat or drink as well. She is at the veterinary hospital now on IV's. She is not expected to make it. I don't think the vet could tell you what is wrong without a blood test. Report It

Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) causes an infectious disease in domestic cats and cheetahs similar to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV infection) in humans. It attacks and weakens the body's immune system, making the animal susceptible to infections and diseases that don't affect healthy cats. There is neither a cure nor a vaccine for FIV. Though eventually fatal, an FIV-positive cat can live for many years without any signs of illness.

FIV is transmitted primarily through deep, penetrating bite wounds. A mother cat may transmit the virus to her newborn kittens during gestation, passage through the birth canal, or nursing. FIV can also be transmitted through the transfusion of contaminated blood.

Symptoms may vary, but the most common appear to be severe gingivitis (gum disease); frequent and recurring skin infections; weight loss; fatigue, and frequent and/or recurring infections of the gastrointestinal tract, respiratory tract, and uro-genital tract.

The FIV bloodtest only takes about 10 minutes to run at a Vet Office, so results are pretty much immediate. The symptoms you described does not sound like FIV (it would be better if I could see him!!) and there is really no way to diagnose it unless you go in for the bloodtest.

Hope this helps!

Vet tech has given you a good explanation of the FIV and the other poster has told you about the feline leukemia.

Symptoms are just that - symptoms. Since the cat is a stray the chances that he is infected with those two (especially if not neutered) is high and testing for those is important to rule them out for a diagnosis. If he tests positive for either his chances are very slim for a healthy life long-term. Also if he has either one he will infecting other cats.

FIV and Felv can both be vaccinated against. There is a vaccination and your Vet with require a blood test prior to the Vaccinations, the reason for this is because if your cat is infected with either virus and then given the Vaccination it will bring on the disease even faster. The first set of shot require 2-3 injections a month apart, some Vets do their vaccs different so it depends on yours. Feline Leukemia and Feline Aids is usually easy to diagnose because the wounds are strange in the sense that they never heal and are abnormal looking. They get infected and never get better, their breath smells horrible due to their gums rotting and they just look sick. Kittens born with Felv will not last to their 2ND birthday, If they get it as an adult the disease can stay dormant for quite a while. Until an illness develops you may never know they have it. My best advice to you is to take you "sickest" cat to the vet to have the blood work on as a cat not showing symptoms may only show up a weak positive on the test. You want to know for sure. If a cat has either disease they should be put to sleep, as they won't have to suffer and they won't infect other cats that are around. An animal has to be very sick inside to look how they feel, so by the time they are showing symptoms they are already in pain and have been a while. There is not a cure but a preventative. Good luck.