my kitty has Giardia

I took him to the vet a week ago and found out he does have mild URI which he is on medication for. But I did his fecal test and few minutes ago, I found out he has giardia. I have no idea how he could have gotten it. I did adopt him from the Toronto Human Society so its possible from there?

I wonder if I had caused it? This is just making me so helpless & scared. I was reading how Giardia is quite uncommon for cats to get so I have no idea.

Does anyone else's cat have it? Does it go away? He is going to be on a 2-week medication but what else can I do? I was reading it can be also infectious, as in I can get it as well. How do I protect myself? He sleeps with me & everything

I don't have any personal experience with it, but from what I understand giardia is fairly easy to catch in a shelter (humane society) environment.

From reading this article, it sounds to me like infection is common, but most infections are asymptomatic. The less common occurrence would be to show symptoms from it.

I would think that with good hygeine practices, clean litterboxes, etc...you should be fine.

Giardia and Coccidia are very common parasites found in shelters, pet stores, or anywhere where a large amount of animals are kept. It is very contagious, and spreads very easily. The parasite is infectious as soon as it is passed out of the body, so treating it can be tricky. I've dealt with a few cases of giardia (in puppies though) and its a pain in the butt, but is treatable, and now that the cat is being treated, I would not worry too much about it.
IT IS TRANSFERABLE TO PEOPLE! If I person gets it, it is much more severe! Make sure to be extremely careful around the animal, and its feces.
I find that Fenbendazole works great to treat it. You want to keep the area that the cat is in very clean. The parasite is resistant to bleech, and the best thing that kills it is boiling hot water. If you can, I would try to confine the cat to a room(bathroom maybe?) something with a floor that is easy to clean. Clean out the litterpan, and soak it in hot water, as well as clean the floor with hot water. Try to scoop out the litterpan as many times as possible throughout the day, and once or twice a day I would give the cat a quick wipe down(especially the paws) and wash the floor with hot water. Pretty much try to keep the place spotless. I know it sounds like a pain in the butt, but if you do this, you can get rid of the parasite very quickly, if not, it may take weeks since the pet will keep re-infecting itself with the parasite.
I would also call the place you got the cat from, and let them know that your animal has a case of giardia. They may already know, but if not then they should check their animals since in a setting like that, things can get out of hand very quickly.
Giardia's a pain in the butt, and I wish your cat a speedy recovery. Take care of yourself. You don't want to catch it. (My friend caught it and was in the hospital for a few days...explosive diarrhea and vomitting....not nice at all)
Oh, and I wouldn't let the cat sleep with you until its treated. If you're worried at all about contracting it, just where gloves while handling the cat, or wash your hand in hot water afterwards.