Ringworm Treatments

Ringworm can be devestating in a multiple pet home. I have been treating for ringworm for 6 months.

I'm starting a new thread about ringworm treatments that work. Please post your experience with dealing with ringworm. I have posted in other ringworm threads but have been asked to start a new thread. I am copying some of what I have posted in the other thread to save time. Here is a link to the thread. A lot of info is in this thread.

Ref: http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...15#post2719115

A kitten was bought from a breeder and brought into the home with a 24 hr health guarantee and clear vet check only to find out 3 weeks later he was a carrier of ringworm. All the cats had lost hair and one of my dogs did as well. I have treated with topical meds, fungus baths, itraconazole (4 months) for the last 6 months. Treating the home as well. Finally none of the pets had lesions that I could find. Did some fungus tests. I purchased fungassays 10 pack fungal test for ringworm and had the vet check the kitten 1 time. The test came back negative on the kitten. My home tests came back negative on all the cats. Both dogs tests after 7 days had the white mold growth then on day 10 the gel turned red. Not sure but I think that is negative because it started with an overgrowth of mold. The kitten was nurtured 2 weeks later. On the 10 day back from the vets he had a bloody red sore on his neck that lost all the hair except for a few strands in the middle. I'm treating him for ringworm again. Have isolated him in an extra bedroom. From what I can see he has no other sores or bald spots. I have no idea if this is ringworm but treating for it out of fear. The vet said bring him back in but I do not have the money to do this. I have maxed out credit cards buying ringworm meds and vet bills.

Copying from other post with update:

The ketoconazole arrived yesterday. I'm treating the one kitten with that to start because I had already started to use the Malaseb Shampoo fungus baths and topical spray. Don't want to mix the fungus meds with bleach. His raw blood red lesion has hair growing back already (it's been a week on malaseb and 2 days on oral ketoconazole) but the lesion still looks raw in some spots. He is scratching the spot raw around the lesion. You would think the malaseb spray would stop the itching! He is shedding a lot. I found a loose plug of hair on his tail yesterday with what looked like a scab, not good. I'm out of the Malaseb Shampoo and was considering using nizoral shampoo if I can find it or give him a normal bath to clean off the anti fungal and use bleach. I don't know what to do. Will I have a bad interaction?

If other animals get lesions I will probably use bleach on them to see if it works first because it does not do the damage to the liver that the ketoconazole and other oral meds can do and it is affordable and it works faster then anything else???

http://www.siamese-kittens.com/Ringw..._treatment.htm

I have researched bleach. The animal would have to drink a lot of it to do harm or inhale very strong fumes to do damage to the lungs. I believe diluted bleach if fine to use.

UPDATE: After malaseb spray treatment this morning the kitten scratched the lesion on his neck so bad he scratched of a lot of the new hair growth. I panicked. Rinsed the area off with water and applied 1-7 deluted bleach to the area let sit for a minute and wiped off.

Note for those reading: Keep in mind, this is not a forum full of vets.

Always always seek the cousell of your veterinarian before trying something you read on the internet.

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Personally, we beat ringworm via topical treatments, Program, Housecleaning and time. I am against many of the oral antifungal treatments, and my vet has said that while bleach is great for surface cleaning, it is NOT great for skin (human or animal)...even diluted it can break down normal skin cells which is not a good combo for something that thrives on lowered immune systems, etc.

Ringworm itself is typically a stress oriented fungal infection.... best thing to do under times of stress is try to ease the stress so that the cat can keep their immune systems strong so they can fight it on their own.

If you do a search on here, you will find many peoples experience on this topic, and what they've done/read/were advised by a vet to do.

I treated for 6 weeks - all the cats in my home whether they exhibited symptoms or not - with Fluconazole. Anyone with visible lesions had Conofite cream applied. And I bathed every 2 weeks with anti-fungal shampoo.

You will find a variety of opinions - some say don't use oral anti-fungals, some don't even use vet prescribed things.

Applied diluted bleach for a minute to the spot 2 days ago. The spot got worse that night. He lost 1 inch diameter of almost all the hair around the lesion. Have been alternating ringworm cream and iodine since, making sure to clean the spot each time. He is on ketoconazole for the 4th day today. I'm using this treatment from this site: http://www.showcatsonline.com/x/keto...ringworm.shtml

I have to wait to get something to boost his immune system and more fungus shampoo until payday in a little over a week. Also need to try bene-bac (learned about that on this site) for the runs he has had since we brought him home. Vet tested for common worms and giardia. Negative. Not always 100% conclusive though.

STOP using the bleach! Have you ever gotten bleach in a raw cut on your hands? Remember how much it burns? And you're putting it on that poor baby's neck. No wonder he's scratching at it. Bleach and Kitties do not mix. It's poison.

For ringworm, try alternating between a topical application of clotrimizole antifungal foot cream and tolnaftate antifungal foot cream. I had a cat with an outbreak of a ringworm strain (tineas versicolor) and with an application of one in the morning and the other kind at night, the infection cleared up within a month. It was slow going and you're not going to get an immediate fix. It does not take much at all to cover the area. Just try not to let him lick it.

An added plus is that these creams moisturize the area instead of drying it out like bleach will do. If you have a bandana or something that you can cover the infected area with, that might be even better to keep him from scratching at it. If the sore/lesion continues to get the scab scratched off, there's a god possibility of infection, and he might need an antibiotic shot. Watch diligently for oozing or puss. If he gets either one of those a vet trip is needed.

good luck for your baby, and I hope he gets better soon. And again, stop using bleach. If you must use something, dilute Hydrogen peroxide as you did the bleach -- 1to7-- and use that as a rinse, then rinse it off with clear water. Betadine would work as well, (with iodine) but it too shold probably be rinsed off to prevent him from licking it off. These will both kill opportunistic infections.

I had not used any bleach when the scratching started on the 6th day of using the malaseb fungus spray for animals. He was losing hair at that point so I stopped on the 7th day using the malaseb fungus spray. Applied the diluted bleach in hopes of riding the fungus for good asap Going by this advice: http://www.siamese-kittens.com/Ringw..._treatment.htm I felt it was too harsh for his skin and stopped after 1st application. Understand I have used bleach on myself when the creams were not working.

Keeping my fingers crossed the last post I made of treatment for him will work.

Hi,
I also had a "visitor" come into my cattery and found out too late that he was a carrier of ringworm. I had just had three litters of kittens and my mothers share their babies...needless to say the fungus spread like wildfire! Here it is 5 months later and I finally have a handle on it. The steps it took to get here were many and expensive!
First off the thing I was told to do was to shave the hair away from the lesions, even shave the cats down to minimal fur if needed. So 14 kitties got shaved and partially shaved. What a ragged looking bunch of show kitties they were! Next, they had to be washed in chlorhexederm shampoo and then dipped in Lyme/sulfur dip which is left on to dry. (and SMELL!) Orally they were given Sporanox (itraconazole) at $200 per bottle...times 14 cats...need I say more?
After many baths and a lot of topical tolnaftate and miconazole sprays/fluids I have done the fungus tests and they are NEGATIVE! Thank goodness! Weird though, a few kitties (fur has pretty much grown back) have some small bumps with scabs. They came back as "yeast" growths. Is this a reaction to so many bathes?
So, that is my ringworm story.....and I hope to NEVER have this little visitor again! ( I only got one little spot out of it and used Fungoid tincture, worked great!)

Hi jandkds. I have no idea what the scabby bumps could be from. I can tell you my shelti and most of the cats skin or fur has not been the same since this ordeal. The miconazole spray and shampoo made 2 cats chew and scratch. I have another cat that her fur feels rough almost like oily at the base of the hair like its all going to mat up. I'm changing shampoos. I don't like the malaseb.

Was the carrier cured?? You are lucky you only got 1 spot. I was the first one to have the outbreak. The Doc said it was staph. Then a cat had lesions that I took to the vets. He diagnosed it correct. I had 13 or so total spots some blood raw. 1 on my face.

Be Careful not to put any animals through surgery like I had to after the ringworm was freshly healed. The kitten was spraying because my first vet refused to neuter him. I had to do it and never thought once the stress could possible cause a relapse. Building up the cats immune systems is another thing to help prevent a relapse. I hope you, me or anyone else don't ever have to deal with the ringworm again.

Has anyone had success with TRUE COLLOIDAL SILVER? That is something I'm going to try as a preventative when I can afford it.

So, I am the owner of 5 healthy, pampered, strictly indoor pets.

My sister adopted an adorable kitten that, apparently, was a carrier of ring worms. Bless his sweet heart, of course I loved on him immediately. Now my right arm is covered with several lesions, and one just appeared on my leg. I am absolutely terrified that my cats are going to get this and have only touched them minimally since I broke out. This is dificult when you have loving cats that desire a lot of attention like mine do. They just don't understand. *sigh*

I constantly wash my hands with alcohol, antibacterial soap, and have even rinsed them in bleach a couple of time. I lysol my furniture, my pillows, and my clothes. It has become an absolute obsession. I pour bleach in my bathwater (not much, though)

Today, I cleaned my carpet with a mixture of carpet cleaner and pine sol.... twice.

Neither of my kids have this and I keep bandaids over the lesions as much as I can, which actually seems to make the healing move along faster.I

With five cats, I know that the expenses would be huge and hard for me to pay.

I can't really quarantine myself from my cats. That is impossible.

I don't even know why I am posting this except that I am totally stressing out. Does anyone have pointers on how to avoid disaster here?

Remember that ringworm can be caused by three different fungi. If you look at the athlete's foot topicals, you'll see they have different ingrediants - to fight the different fungi. You're not going to get better results with more of the stuff that isn't working! So first of all, figure out what topical seems to work the best on what sore and stick with that.

Also - ALL fungi are killed by UV rays - so just a few hours in the sun can start them on the way to healing. Get a large cage and let them stay in it for a sunny morning. Keep plenty of water handy and check to make sure they aren't overheated but the sun does work.

Additionally, try adding lysine to their food - it helps boost the immune system.

Using antibacterials won't help at all - you're attacking the wrong bug. Ditto - Lysol. The antibacterials only disrupt the balance on your skin, which the fungii loves.

FINALLY - stop cleaning so much. Honestly. My vet told me that vacuuming helps get rid of the spores more than anything. Vaccuming every day won't hurt nearly as much as all those harsh chemicals. Make sure you get rid of the bag every day, too. I know its a waste but ...

ps - the sun works on people's ringworm, too.

Thanks for the tips! I have a bagless vaccuum, so dumping it daily is no problem.

I am going to see if a friend might have a large kennel I can borrow. I think they would love to be in the sun for awhile. The sleep in my windowsills every day.

I have been cleaning like crazy. My house hasn't been this clean in forever, so I guess there is at least a little good in that.

Hi 4fluffycats. Sorry you caught that nasty fungus. I know how you feel. Here are a few things that might help you.

I agree with the sun/heat killing the fungus. I have used bleach on my lesions after the generic cream was not working. Bleach worked but it is also very harsh and it stinks. After a few bleach dabs I started using Tinactin cream found in most grocery stores has worked very well on me. I covered my lesions with band aids or clothes to avoid spreading ringworm. I too wash my hands all the time. I found online iodine is supposed to work on ringworm (vet agreed). I squirt soap into my hands lather then I put 2 or 3 drops of iodine and finish washing.

Vet also said lysol in the spray works. I don't know. It's on my to do list to call the company to see what they say. I mainly use bleach and health guard to clean with. Bleach is so much cheaper so I use it when ever possible. I have had to cut costs and no longer put the health guard in my laundry but I wash all laundry in hot water and bleach when I can. I dry all laundry till hot. I mop every other day, vacuum,wipe things down w/ bleach and sweep daily for my peace of mind.

Boosting the cats immune systems would be a good thing to do. All my pets but one are seniors. The ringworm caught ahold of us before I could try to prevent it. I am still using fungus shampoo on the cats every other week as a preventative at this point. If you read my post, my cats were treated w/ oral meds, fungus baths,creams and I have been doing all the cleaning. The ringworm seemed to run its full course on the animals no matter what I did. After reading how others did not do all the cleaning I had, I cut back Some on that.

I hope none of your Babies catch it. Wishing all of you well.

I have read TRUE COLLOIDAL SILVER can help prevent ringworm in animals. Anyone have experience with this?

I have a horrible break out of this on my arm. I have had these before, but nothing as overwhelming as this. It is actually much better today (I tried switching creams- thanks for that advice!). I was glad to see that some areas that were showing signs of breaking out had simply vanished. Yay!

We are animal lovers and can't resist a furry face. My daughter loved on a stray a few years ago and had a few places break out. I had one cat that ended up getting a few lesions, but they went away fairly easily with minor treatment. We were lucky.

I think this is why I am finding this so perplexing. This must be some other strain because it is taking me much more effort to get control of it. If I am this uncomfortable and reacting this strongly, what might it do to my kitties?

Thanks for all the great advice.

You can use Tea Tree Oil on your lesions or anti fungal ointment.

Shari Flanders said:

You can use Tea Tree Oil on your lesions or anti fungal ointment.

Click to expand...

Be aware that tea tree oil can be toxic to cats, so it has to be inaccessible to them if you use it on yourself.
Tea Tree Oil - Toxic to Cats