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Treatment

Unless your cat is severely dehydrated, it will be treated on an outpatient basis. Your veterinarian will first work to manage any secondary infections. While secondary infections will not usually cause disease, your cat’s weakened immune system will given them entrée and they will cause further complications in your cat’s overall health. Surgery may be necessary for dealing with infected teeth and for the removal of tumors. A special diet plan may also need to be put into place.

Living and Management

How much monitoring your cat will need from you depends on secondary infections and other manifestations of the disease. You will need to watch for the occurrence of infections in your sick cat, and be aware that wasting may occur, and that your pet may die of this disease. But, in general, the earlier FIV is detected, the better your cat’s chances are for living a long and relatively healthy life.

Within 4.5 to 6 years after the time of infections, about 20 percent of cats die; however, over 50 percent will remain without clinical signs of the disease. In the late stages of the disease, when wasting and frequent infections are most likely to occur, life expectancy is less than a year. Inflammation of the gums and mouth may not respond to treatment or may be difficult to treat.

In order to prevent this disease from occurring in the first place, you should vaccinate your cat against the virus, and protect your cat from coming into contact with cats that are FIV positive. You will also want to quarantine and test new cats that are coming into your household until you are sure that they are free of the virus. It is important to note that some cats will test positive for FIV if they are carriers, although they may never have symptoms of the virus, and that cats that have been vaccinated against the virus will test positive for it even though they do not carry it. Euthanasia is not normally called for when a cat has tested positive in part because of these reasons. If your cat has tested positive you will need to talk to your veterinarian about what to do to prevent possible transmission to other cats, and what symptoms to be watchful for, should they occur.