Cats got ringworm. In over 30 years I've never encountered this. Any advice is appreciated.

[elocs]

I've been keeping my goddaughter's cat and kitten for the past few weeks. A couple of weeks ago the nearly 5 month old kitten quickly got a patch between his eyes that was crusty and the fur was off. I didn't know what it was, tried to go to the vet on a Saturday but they were full so I treated it with some antibiotic ointment and it got better.

Now her 7 year old car suddenly has gotten a patch below her eye. I told a friend about it and he suggested ringworm. Then I thought of the patch on my let that I thought was a spider bite and it was classic ringworm.

I realize this is not normally serious and can be treated with ointments. I didn't have any last night so I just used some apple cider vinegar. But I'd appreciate any other suggestions cat owners here who have dealt with it may have.

[Alenne]

1. I have dealt with it in a shelter situation only

Clean and if possible bleach anything the cat has been on. Vacuum everything. Throw out anything that can't be cleaned. We treat our cats with twice a week lime dips for 4 weeks and intraconazole until the hair grows back and the DTM culture is negative. I don't know if that is possible for you. Try a miconazole cream. It's not as effective but you aren't in a shelter situation so it might be okay.

Keep them confined to one room.

[elocs]

2. Thank you. I'm sure this is good advice, but little of it is possible.

I'll have to disinfect the best I can and use available OTC remedies. There's no going to the vet because there simply is not the money for that.

The kitten healed quite quickly and it's fur is growing back where the scab between his eyes had been. The 7 year old cat suddenly got a scab under her eye. I bought some athlete's foot cream at Walgreens this morning and it is for ringworm as well and it says it is full prescription strength with 1% Terbinafine Hydrochloride cream.

On my leg I've put on a cotton swab soaked with apple cider vinegar and put it on with a bandaid and it seems to be working well already.

[Alenne]

3. That'll probably work

It's just 2 cats. I'm usually dealing with anywhere from 6 to 20.

You can also try your local animal shelter to see if there medical department can help you if it doesn't get better. My shelter does.

[stuntcat]

4. I hope you can find ways to treat them.

and get rid of it altogether too.

I've always had cats and never had any with worms until just about 2 weeks ago I saw 2 long white worms in the poop of one of the ferals I brought in. I don't know how easy they can spread to the other cats. Her sister who I brought in last year and my two old housecats never had them, I'm pretty sure they still don't. I'm trying to feed the new one some over-the-counter medicine but it's not easy. And of course the vets won't help me without an expensive visit which I can't do anyway because she's a wild cat, getting her into a carrier or even trapping her again will be impossible. I'm trying to think of a plan to treat her and keep the others healthy, cleaning the litter boxes a LOT.
I'm sorry this isnt helpful. This worm stuff is all new to me too.

I hope you can help yours!

[elocs]

6. Fortunately ringworm is a fungus and not a worm.

With no money for a vet I'm going to have to try the best I can with what I have. Fortunately it doesn't seem to be too serious as of this time.

[ceile]

7. Not contagious for the others

Once the worm is out of the body it will die. Although the length of the worm is odd. Usually worms are caused by fleas and they're about the size of a rice grain...

[stuntcat]

8. good!

Ok good. my biggest worry was about my oldest cat getting them from her. Dolly's only 2 but my oldest is 12 or 13 and very small. I've image searched online and found it's definitely roundworms, like this: I've got some o.t.c. meds I'm trying to trick her into eating.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

9. Ringworm isn't a worm; it's a fungus.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dermatophytosis

[hamsterjill]

5. That'll work.

It may take some time, but the athlete's foot cream will do the trick.

[Kaleva]

10. Don't rub the cat all over your body.

It's best to be on the safe side.

[elocs]

14. How can I tell which side is the safe side?

:shrug:

[TorchTheWitch]

11. first, get it properly diagnosed

It may be ringworm and it may be a dozen other things. Only a vet can tell you exactly what it is and how to treat it. Skin conditions in both cats and dogs can look very similar to each other and be different things.

[elocs]

12. It's perfectly clear on me, a textbook picture of what ringworm looks on a human

and it is contagious and often passed on by cats which coincidentally I have 2 which have scabs on their faces. There is no money to go to the vet so I think I have accurately diagnosed the problem and reading online it is clear how it can be treated. I don't, even if I could, have to pay a vet $100 for that.

[TorchTheWitch]

16. vets themselves often misdiagnose skin problems

That's how difficult they can be to properly diagnose. And what you found on yourself doesn't mean it's what's wrong with your cats. "Classic" ringworm can also very often look exactly like "classic" some other skin problem, and ringworm can often look like nothing more than "classic" bacterial skin infection that may be caused by a variety of different reasons and may be something else entirely.

The only way to know what it is and how to treat it is professional diagnosis and proper professional treatment. A "classic" ringworm looking skin problem particularly in cats can end up being something as serious and incurable as sebaceous adenitis. The dog I had before the one I have now had SA and the one I have now might... guess what "classic" symptoms he had?

Skin problems in both dogs and cats are VERY tricky to diagnose and can be so even for vets. Contagious skin problems need to be diagnosed and treated properly ASAP for the safety of anyone that may come into contact with the infected animal, and with ringworm especially, where the animal has been.

Treating only the spots on the cats is an exercise in futility and so is treating a fungal problem (which is what ringworm is) with an anti-bacterial such as Neosporin. The entire cat, all other pets in the home, and the environment have to be disinfected to kill the spores or you'll never get rid of the problem.

Sometimes you have to suck it up and find the money. I've been dealing with this same financial issue since May. Borrow it, scrimp elsewhere to come up with it, but get the pets properly diagnosed and treated especially if a contagious problem is suspected.

[Lisa0825]

13. OTC miconazol or lotrimin are safe to use on kitties...

I volunteer at a rescue and that is the first thing we try. It may take a couple weeks for the fur to start growing back, but as long as the patches aren't getting WORSE, don't worry about it. If they get worse instead of better, you may need to go to the vet for an oral treatment or a dip. Sometimes they just clear up on their own too.

[davsand]

15. Tough actin' Tinactin is your pal.

We had a go-round with ringworm when we brought Chaucer home from the shelter a few years ago. The shelter had given him a "physical" and our regular vet checked him over as well, and nobody caught it. The first I realized we had a problem was when the pre-school called and asked us to come collect our daughter because SHE had ringworm.

:wtf:

The vet claimed the kid gave the cat ringworm, and the family practice doc said the cat gave it to the kidlette.

Either way, the kitty got the spot shaved and we used an anti fungal spray on him (had to be safe for cats because they are kinda "licky" don't ya know...) The kid got an anti fungal cream and a bandage to cover the area. I was at a loss as to what to do with the sofa and the chairs because this particular cat loved (and still does) to sleep on the furniture. I'd been told to wash and bleach EVERYTHING the cat came in contact with, but it is kinda tough to get a couple of recliners and a sofa sleeper in a regular home washer.

A buddy of mine who does rottie rescue told me to go buy some athlete's foot spray, and spray the furniture! (Talk about a revelation!) He also told me that they'd had a LOT of problems with ringworm coming out of the local shelter--that it is VERY common.

Anyhow, I did use the spray, and the cat and the kid both cleared up with a bit of time and some scratching.

Good luck. They really are worth the headaches and the hassle.



Laura