Worms, ick!

Thank you for looking at this post, since it's such a horrible subject. Daisy, our latest, has worms. We took her to the vet and have already done one course of worm medicine, but she is still having problems with diarrhea. Last night, she vomited but that may be unrelated. Because she is still having diarrhea, the vet suspects another kind of parasite. Now she is on two new meds, one liquid to squirt in her mouth and one powder that goes in her food. (BTW, she loves the food with the powder...so that's not a problem). I don't understand why these worms are so resilent. I want them dead and I want them dead now. She doesn't act sick or lethargic, but I am starting to grow concerned about her health. How long can something like this go on?

You said the vet suspected another type of parasite? Which type? Have they taken another fecal sample to thoroughly check?

Chances are the vet suspects a protozoa like guardia, coccida, or tritrichomonas foetus. These are not worms, and yes - are tougher to get rid of. You should also be taking a few more precautions sanitary wise because protozoa are very easily transmitted to other pets, and some types to humans. It's also easy for an animal to get reinfested.

Vomiting could have been because of the medicine not sitting well on her stomach, fever, and/or dehydration from the diarrhea. You should keep a close eye on her and if she vomits anymore get her back to the vet as it can quickly make a cat (and other animals, including humans) dehydrate quickly - and cause an electrolyte imbalance.

Thank you for your advice. She had her first vet visit about 4 weeks ago, when we adopted her. They did all the routine shots and treated her for worms at the time. We took her back to the vet 2 weeks ago and she just completed a course of medicine. DH called the vet today because of her continued problems, but I don't know what type of worms we are dealing with. I think I'll call the vet in the morning to find out. I looked at the powdered medicine a bit ago, and I think it is maybe something to restore the good bacteria to her intestines? It's called FortiFlora. Oddly enough, the liquid medicine has no name on the bottle.

Originally Posted by nurseangel

I looked at the powdered medicine a bit ago, and I think it is maybe something to restore the good bacteria to her intestines? It's called FortiFlora. Oddly enough, the liquid medicine has no name on the bottle.

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Yes, that's a probiotic and nutritional aid. Strange that the liquid has no label on it.

Personally, I've never had a cat get diarrhea from worms. It's usually something that happens because of medicine/intestinal flora problem, illness, food problems, or another type of parasite.

It's just my guess that it's not worms you're dealing with at all. It could very likely just be a food/good bacteria/stress problem, but you won't know for certain unless the vet does more thorough fecal checks. I suggest you ask your vet about checking instead of just repeated courses of medicine.

Oh, my, how difficult for you and your new cat! I think you're on the right track in calling the vet. Get specifics about his diagnosis and find out what's in the mystery bottle.

Then come back here and tell us what he said. I, personally, have not yet had a sick cat *frantically finds some wood to knock on!*, but TCS has lots of members with a huge variety of experience. Someone will likely have some info for you!

Dumb ?? what type of tests for worms were done?? ie stool samples??

There was a little bit of background here that I didn't mention...I actually saw a dead worm which prompted the vet visit 2 weeks ago. I was unable to describe it to the vet (there was a lot of gagging and retching going on when I saw it; nurses aren't immune to getting grossed out when faced with such a gruesome discovery. ) We let them keep Daisy all day for a thorough examination. I called today and the receptionist said the diagnosis was coccidia. She was treated with Profender that day (a topical solution they put on the back of her neck) and sent home with AlBon which was given daily for 2 weeks. When DH called back to report the continued problems with diarrhea, the vet started her on metronidazole and the FortiFlora. I just hope she gets better soon.

I had a kitten years ago when I first got married. He was properly vetted (we're firm believers in taking care of our pets) and seemed very healthy. Then my sil called and asked if we could keep her kitten while she went away for vacation. Her kitten was my kitten's brother, so I thought it would be nice if they could play together. However, her kitten had severe diarrhea, which we only learned after our kitten had been exposed to him. We took him to a boarding kennel because we didn't want further exposure to our pets. Her kitten recovered...mine became sick. He stayed at the vet's for approximately 2 weeks, gravely ill. Then they called and said he could come home. My husband requested that they keep him one more day, just to make sure he was healthy. He died that day. The vet was so surprised that he discounted our bill heavily and sent the kitten to Raleigh for a necropsy at his own expense. It turned out that my kitten had been exposed a very rare illness that could come from eating/close contact with another cat who had it. I still feel guilty about this to this day, because I feel like I killed my kitten by bringing his brother into our home. Sorry this is long...but I just wanteed to explain why I get so freaked out in a situation like this.

I'm sorry to hear about your other kitten. You couldn't have known, though sadly you do now. I suggest you use your story to warn others about making sure their kitties are well before boarding and to be careful about bringing new cats into the home (or after being around other cats themselves).

Most former strays will have worms simply because they were either outside and ate/drank/clean their paws and ingested them or because they've had fleas. Coccidia is different from worms, and harder to treat as you've learned.
Try searching some past threads. Up cleaning, watch exposure with other animals - no litter box sharing, and make sure you washing your hands. ...basic stuff you should know as a nurse.

Keep in contact with your vet and if Daisy looks a bit off or feels hot call them and take her in since there's a chance of dehydration. If you're feeding her wet maybe mix a little extra water in with it to ensure that she is getting fluids. I hope the coccidia is gone soon.

I'm so very sorry you had to suffer through that, Nurseangel, that's awful.

And your concern now is perfectly understandable. I hope Daisy gets better soon!

Thank you for your support. It was awful with my first kitten, and now I stress whenever I introduce a new cat or kitten to my current feline family.

Daisy has her own food and litter box. We're very careful about cleaning up after her, completely changing the litter each time she uses it, etc. Unfortunately, she is showing no signs of improvement. She only eats dry food, but she won't touch the expensive kind we purchased at the vet's office. She is drinking and eating well, though, and is playful.

Do you know of any medications that might work that we haven't tried? I'd be happy to make a suggestion to the vet.

Originally Posted by nurseangel

nurses aren't immune to getting grossed out when faced with such a gruesome discovery.

)

the vet started her on metronidazole

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LOL, I hear that, I am a Respiratory Therapist and I have seen stuff come out of lungs that would frighten FISH, LOL... I don't know about nurses, but we would sit around the table at lunch talkin about who got the most disgusting sputum sample for the day!

As for the meds, I think that is for tape worms. Little white, rice looking creatures. My cat had them BAD, it was so bad that my DAUGHTER got them too. She was put on a med called Mebendazole.. looks like it might be in the same family as the one your cat got!

Go forth and heal, my friend!