You can't ignore it and think it'll go away. We keep her warm and safe and love her as much as we can. And when the time comes, we know what we have to do. Dot has feline leukemia, one of two diseases that cripples the feline immune system, opening the patient up to death from causes that usually fall by the wayside-pneumonia, opportunistic infections. The disease has stolen not only Dot's health but also her freedom.
Feline leukemia is highly contagious.
It spreads through contact with bodily fluids-two cats that share a food bowl, or groom each other, or just touch noses through a screen door can infect each other. To prevent Dot from infecting other cats, Ms. Barnes has to keep her inside. FIV is a bit more difficult to spread-it's usually transmitted through saliva in bite wounds. Transmission through sexual contact is also theoretically possible. When a cat has either disease, pet owners need to make a difficult decision.