Interview! Niki Cochran, Program Manager at Alley Cat Rescue

"Just because you're getting the [positive] combo test … that doesn't mean 'death sentence'. That means 'OK, now I have to go and educate myself about what that combo test result is.' "

Niki Cochran, Program Manager at Alley Cat Rescue in Washington, DC, has been a cat lover her whole life. Her career in animal welfare began when she took a job as an animal control officer, and included time spent at a large, open-intake shelter. At that shelter, she worked with a team of progressive veterinarians who challenged long-held beliefs about Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) and Feline Leukemia (FeLV) — including the belief that cats who test positive for these diseases should not live with other cats.

In this episode, Niki and Stacy debunk several commonly held myths about FeLV in particular, including the idea that FeLV is extremely contagious, and that cats and kittens with it always live shortened lifespans. They also talk about the idea that FeLV and FIV+ cats can in fact co-exist with negative cats in home (and colony) environments. Niki herself has a cat with FeLV who is healthy, happy, and living safely with non-FeLV cats. Those cats are properly vaccinated and combo tested regularly, and have always remained negative.

Niki feels that changing attitudes about FIV and FeLV is all about education. She encourages people to educate themselves and others about the diseases, and to refrain from thinking that a positive test result is necessarily a death sentence. She and Stacy discuss why community cat colonies should not be combo tested, and they encourage all of our listeners involved in rescue and adoption to give the next FeLV+ cat they come across a chance!

To learn more, visit Alley Cat Rescue's website at saveacat.org or email Niki at [email protected].