I’m sitting for two cats 1 at 17 years and another at 13 years. They both have breathing issues that seem located in their sinuses. The pet parents insist they are unrelated issues—one old and “struggles” and the other with a “possible deviated septum” and this may be the case. But I’m concerned that they both are exhibiting the same symptoms—difficulty breathing, body movements reflective of hairball purging, sneezing with mucus around nose and watery eyes. It feels peculiar that both have the same symptoms. I have been assured it’s how they usually are and am medicating with probiotics, vitamins and a cbd oil as per their instructions. The cats are no worse that when we visited them, are pampered in all other noticeable ways—
Why am I writing?
I’m wondering if they may have F-HIV and the pet parents are choosing not to disclose it. I know you can’t diagnose from this but my biggest worry since I can do little to change the situation of the kitties (but care lovingly for them while I am here) is when I arrive home with my belongings—are my own very healthy cats in danger of contracting F-HIV from my clothing and belongings (shoes, jackets, luggage—the less washable things)?
Thank you
(Topic title edited by Forum team to clarify situation)
I find this thread title a bit misleading.
Did you do any internet search because I found plenty of information quickly from reputable sources. It would seem there isn’t transmission risk wirhout direct contact between the sit cats and your own and even then the risk is slight . But I have attached resource for your review.
Agree with @MaggieUU. Your own cats aren’t in danger of transmission even if they were F-HIV+. I don’t think homeowners give complete medical records including, every virus the cats may or may not be carrying, so even if were positive for F-HIV, or herpes, or something else, not mentioning it could just have been because it’s not really relevant to how you would treat them as a sitter. What you are describing could also be many things: kitty herpes excacerbated by the stress of a stranger being there, allergies, etc. Lots of cats have occassional hairballs especially older ones.
Also, I wouldn’t consider probiotics, vitamins, and CBD oil “medicating” them. These are supplements that could help cats – especially older ones – with common chronic conditions and conditions related to aging.
As a sitter, in your shoes, I’d make sure to report the symptoms to the hosts, and ask them if there is anything else you should be doing.
@MaggieUU and @Marion are right. I understand that you are concerned for your own cats, but the likelihood is the owners didn’t disclose what you suggest because there was nothing of importance to disclose.
You’re not a vet and you’re not the owner, you’re a sitter, and neither of the cats health has worsened during your stay, whereas the owners, who obviously know-know them and love them, have told you that’s how they normally are. So that is much more likely to be the case, rather than what you are suggesting.
Please stop trying to diagnose the pets you are sitting, you’ll drive yourself around the bend. None of us have any idea about the medical history of the pets we sit, we only get to know about the things that are relevant to now, and to your stay.
Probiotics, vitamins, and cbd oil are very normal supplements when they’re 17 year old and 13 year old. They actually sound like good responsible pet parents, doing everything they can to help their cats as they grow older.
All this experience has really taught me is not to use this forum for community support as all 3 of the respondents have come across as condescending or snarky.
There are so many kinder or more thoughtful ways to relay the information you all have shared.
It’s disappointing.
As far as I’m concerned this thread is closed. I’m done with my fellow sitter community on TH.
This not vet, not pet parent, not capable of searching online, never should be concerned for the pets in my care—and oh so grateful I don’t use TH as a sitting community for my own pets (oh, I forgot to mention—selfishly only caring for the well-being of my own pets) fellow sitter hoping to have received some community wisdom who instead learned not to be part of this forum in the future…is done.
I believe if a pet parent knows their pets are carrying a life-altering (for other cats) virus, whether or not it affects or is relevant to the care, they should let the sitter know. As I sitter, I should know if anything I do could make these cats lives or other cats, ill. Knowing whether or not they have exasperated allergies or F-HIV could affect the “emergency” level of a conversation I have with pet parent several time zones away.
I usually trust my gut with TH, but this time it’s buzzing that I may not have been given the actual info. When one has to make quick decisions about decreasing help when the pet parents aren’t awake, it might be good to know.
As to the age of these kitties, one is certainly older and frail but with a frequent appetite for its dry food (not much interest in wet) and the younger one will eat any and everything—always hungry if it’s not asleep.
Litter boxes are seeing urine after each one goes to them. Infrequent stool.
Their eyes drip from their faces sometimes. Mucus stuck to their noses. Sneezing, breathing difficulties—that happened when the pet parents were here and showing us around. It has not worsened and I have been giving them photos, videos, and updates daily. It all may just be cats with very bad allergies that struggle all waking moments to be comfortable—but I’ve never been with an F-HIV cat (that I’m aware of) nor cats functioning with such breathing difficulties—old or young.
The kitties miss their parents but are interested and interactive with us as well as snuggling.
I read that F-HIV passes easily between cats. I worry for my own healthy cats (is that so awful of me?). It’s not clear if the symptoms can spread from sneeze spray or mucus on my clothing after several hours (although it is very clear that close contact can spread the disease). I’m not a cavalier person. I take my responsibilities to the pets in my care and to their pet parents very seriously but I also don’t want my time caring for other people’s pets to negatively affect mine with a life-long illness.
I appreciate your reply, and hopefully after reading all of this information, I’ll get some further information focusing on the issues I’ve been trying to collect information on.
What’s the point of being part of a community that just snarks on someone? Not very nice.
And you missed the point. I’m just guessing they both have F-HIV because it was never disclosed by the pet parent if they do.
Their symptoms match each other, they are totally indoor cats not exposed to others, currently, that I’m aware of.
They know the cats are unwell and said it’s just how the cats normally are.
I’ve never been in a situation in TH that I feel the pet parents have withheld info or been dishonest.
So, helpful responses might include:
suggestions of how to deal with this
support or advice from seasoned TH folks
if I’m traveling home in clothing, shoes, etc that these cats loved on the day I leave for home, should I take any precautions not to get their mucus or secretions from such items near my own cats several hours later.
Believe it or not, I do know how to look things up on the internet. If I wanted internet answers, I would not have put this out on a “community” forum of my “peers” so if all you’re going to do is snark back—just pass. You make a forum like this a bad experience for people seeking real input from one’s community.
I have read and always heard the opposite: FIV can really just be transmitted through bite wounds. FIP and FHV can be transmitted more easily but, in the US anyway, domestic cats are usually vaccinated against these diseases. Hopefully your own cats are vaccinated in case you bring anything home from this, or any other, sit.
That sounds like serious allergies or an upper respiratory infection that would concern me if I were the pet owner.
@Lassie
After getting frustrated with other feedback, I started looking into things myself again—In all my concern that the cats were not feeling well I started scrolling at around midnight last night—and I believe as I was scrolling through many sites and much information, I lumped/misunderstood the info for FeLV for F-HIV. You’re correct! FHIV—is less easily spread than I confused myself into thinking.
I’m relieved.
And a double positive—my cats are vaccinated.
Funny thing, both cats are asleep on me now and not making a sound. Mucus and snot covered faces and peacefully at sleep.
You addressed this remark to me after saying that my previous remarks were “snarky.” They weren’t meant to be.
Other sitters gave you factual information about FIV. Someone even gave you a website to look at so you could rest assured that it won’t in any way affect your cats. You keep returning to that and others continue to comment that that is not the way a blood borne virus works. I’m not sure what other answer you are looking for.
You sound in your replies like you are very concerned that you haven’t been given relevant information about the cat’s health or health history. Again, it sounded from what you described like you had sufficient history for the sit, but if you are concerned that they kept something from you, the only solution is to ask them. No one here is going to support you feeling that you’ve been somehow misled when there is no evidence that you’ve been misled.
When I sit I view my role as to follow the petparent’s instruction on feeding, and because cats (whether FIV+ or not) can sometimes go downhill fast, I let them know if I am seeing anything that concerns me in terms of whether or not the cats may need to see a vet during my sit. If you are seeing something that you think requires immediate attention that is something that is something you should discuss with the pet parents. I also leave a note that sitters could prevent to an emergency vet that gives an overview of each cat’s health. It is possible that there is a similar document left for you about the cat’s health. If it doesn’t mention FIV, that should settle the matter.
I’m going to be very frank. No snark here. Reading your thread, you sound to me like you have this scenario in your head. You are looking at some things the cats are doing – sneezing, hocking up hairballs, having runny eyes, and deciding that they are FIV, that this is being kept from you, and that this will hurt your cats. You’ve already reached a conclusion and are looking for support. That’s not support. The support you’ve been given is fact based with the intention of helping you to not spin this in your head to the point where you leave the sit early or lash out at the pet owners who likely haven’t betrayed your trust.
Also not a vet, but I do want to add the possibility of feline herpes or FVR which is very common and no reason to leave a sit, and which isn’t very serious but is more communicable, but even that might at most mean throwing your suitcase in a closet in case cats got some mucas on it and/or throwing your clothes in the laundry when you got home. As a sitter, these are precautions I would take if I were around any animals that might have been sick – regardless of diagnosis when I come back to my pets. Here is an article about that VERY common virus that almost all shelter cats have been exposed to: https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/feline-upper-respiratory-infection#:~:text="An%20infected%20cat%20will%20shed,live%20up%20to%20ten%20days.
I’m glad you’re feeling relieved. The comments made were not condescending or snarky in the slightest, they were totally fact based.
This forum is great for supporting people when their emotions are heightened, but sometimes clear facts are required to help calm someones mind, and it worked because you went away and did your own research for clarity, and ultimately felt relieved off the back of it.
It’s clear you love your own cats, and it’s clear you’re watching out for the welfare of the cats in your care too, and that’s a beautiful thing to see.
Whether it’s ‘normal’ for them or not, I’d be concerned if i found on arrival that sit cats have symptoms of URI which had not been previously disclosed. Are they both eating okay? Any evidence of mouth ulcers? You could possibly steam-up the bathroom once or twice a day and put them in there for a while to help them breathe more easily.
I’d suggest washing your clothing before going to another sit - or home to your own kitts - and don’t forget to wipe your shoes (including the soles) and bags, at least with antibac. Whilst your own cats may not be immunosuppressed and are probably vaccinated, there are many strains of calicivirus, for example, and no vaccine covers them all. I speak from experience of - many years ago - having a multi-cat household (our own) go down with a particularly severe URI, despite them all being young, healthy and vaccinated indoor cats. We suspect someone encountered a carrier whilst in their large outdoor run but, whatever the source, it was quite devastating and has made us super-vigilent about hygiene when moving between sits.
It may be an upper respiratory infection and will run it by the pet parents for their thoughts.
It also addresses my concerns about the potential exposure to my cats at it will be significantly less than 18 hours between leaving here and getting home.
Thank you for sharing this. It’s the kind of input I was hoping for.
“Reading your thread, you sound to me like you have this scenario in your head. You are looking at some things the cats are doing – sneezing, hocking up hairballs, having runny eyes, and deciding that they are FIV, that this is being kept from you, and that this will hurt your cats. You’ve already reached a conclusion and are looking for support. That’s not support. The support you’ve been given is fact based with the intention of helping you to not spin this in your head to the point where you leave the sit early or lash out at the pet owners who likely haven’t betrayed your trust.”
Not at all.
I never mention anything about leaving the sit nor any intentions to—you’re drawing conclusions that were never there.
I admitted to a different commenter (who somehow managed to be kind about their comments) that in the lateness of my searching online last night that I mucked F-HIV & FeLV spreadability. I’m (it seems in your opinion too concerned for my own cats) relieved—yes, I worried about the health of my pet-family.
The name of a vet but no health history was left for me.
Yes, I have been following the requests of the pet-parents for the care.
No increase in symptoms since when we were together—or I would’ve tried to get in contact even though we have hours (several) between us. My concern was caring for cats that may have had a complicating health condition without the knowledge.
My scenario came from the fact the animals were in much worse condition than conveyed in our conversations before the sit. The labored breathing, the wheezing, and the mucus were at levels I haven’t seen in cats—they are distressed (not vomiting or hairballs but retching as if they were)—seemed like more that just “normal” allergies to me. I’m not concocting scenarios—but I did feel misled and feel great empathy for the kitties.
Lastly, your comments quoted above were unnecessary and unkind.
I did a sit for 2 cats with FeLV, one had no symptoms and the other had some of the symptoms you describe. FeLV is highly contagious among cats. Since you don’t know if the cats have been diagnosed with anything, I would err on the side of caution regarding returning to your own cats. Add some buffer time in between leaving the sit cats and going home to your cats just to be safe.
I’ve had a look through this discussion, and based on OP’s comments, I think it’s time to close this discussion to new replies.
I did review the comments as I read through, I don’t think anyone in this discussion meant to be anything other than helpful, but I know it can sometimes be difficult to interpret someone’s intent when worrying about something.
