Has anyone on this board ever got Roundworms from their cat? Also, how long does it take for Deworming Meds to kill the Roundworms in cats? I am a first time cat (animal) owner. I took my cat to the vet yesterday. The Vet said that my cat had a small case of Roundworms and gave her Deworming Med. We started that yesterday. Today I could see the Roundworms in my cat's stool. It was my first time to a vet, and, a great deal of information! I want my cat to get well and hope that her deworming med kills the worms soon. I am concerned about my four year old son and my elderly parents getting Roundworms. It the passing of the worms from cats to humans common? I have known several cat owners and have never heard of them of catching Roundworms. Thanks for helping me!
-
Too many ads? Join our community of cat lovers now to reduce ads by 90%! Click here to join for free!
Roundworms
- Thread starter hokiegirl
- Start Date
Welcome to TCS! You have found the right place to learn all about your kitty and to ask ANY questions you've got about your kitty's health or behavior (or just share pictures.
).
I've never heard of a human getting round worm from a cat. I suppose it's possible... but it would be difficult - they have to be ingested.
But I'd think a good percentage of us have had cats with roundworm. It is very common with outdoor kitties or rescue kitties! If your cat is indoor only, it should not be an ongoing problem. If your cat is indoor/outdoor, your kitty should be treated either with Revolution or Advantage Plus (a liquid you squeeze onto your cats' skin between the shoulder blades) to kill fleas, ticks, and most internal parasites (including the two most prevalent, round worm and tape worm).
I don't know which med your vet gave your cat. If she gave your cat Drontal (a pill), I wouldn't trust that the round worm is being treated. It's usually done with Panacur or StrongidT (those are the brand names - your vet may refer to all of them with their generic names). Either of these usually require being given to the cat each day for 10 days.
Any deworming med is actually a poison - and all of them kill only the adult worm. So any deworming must be done again - some vets use 2 weeks as a guideline, others use 3 weeks. We do it after three weeks.
During the entire 5/6 week period (10 days of initial meds, three weeks of waiting, another 10 days of meds), it is a really good idea to empty the litter boxes completely each week, bleach them, and refill them with all new litter.
Also, scoop as often as you possibly can. The cleaner you keep the box, the lower the risk of reinfestation. (Cat jumps into box that has poop in it, cat moves litter around, gets worm egg from poop on foot then cleans itself...)
If you scoop frequently, bleach the boxes weekly, and administer the dewormer again in 2-3 weeks (unless the vet used Revolution or Advantage Plus - then it should be administered again in one month), you should have seen the last of the problem (if your kitty is indoor only).
I've never heard of a human getting round worm from a cat. I suppose it's possible... but it would be difficult - they have to be ingested.
But I'd think a good percentage of us have had cats with roundworm. It is very common with outdoor kitties or rescue kitties! If your cat is indoor only, it should not be an ongoing problem. If your cat is indoor/outdoor, your kitty should be treated either with Revolution or Advantage Plus (a liquid you squeeze onto your cats' skin between the shoulder blades) to kill fleas, ticks, and most internal parasites (including the two most prevalent, round worm and tape worm).
I don't know which med your vet gave your cat. If she gave your cat Drontal (a pill), I wouldn't trust that the round worm is being treated. It's usually done with Panacur or StrongidT (those are the brand names - your vet may refer to all of them with their generic names). Either of these usually require being given to the cat each day for 10 days.
Any deworming med is actually a poison - and all of them kill only the adult worm. So any deworming must be done again - some vets use 2 weeks as a guideline, others use 3 weeks. We do it after three weeks.
During the entire 5/6 week period (10 days of initial meds, three weeks of waiting, another 10 days of meds), it is a really good idea to empty the litter boxes completely each week, bleach them, and refill them with all new litter.
Also, scoop as often as you possibly can. The cleaner you keep the box, the lower the risk of reinfestation. (Cat jumps into box that has poop in it, cat moves litter around, gets worm egg from poop on foot then cleans itself...)
If you scoop frequently, bleach the boxes weekly, and administer the dewormer again in 2-3 weeks (unless the vet used Revolution or Advantage Plus - then it should be administered again in one month), you should have seen the last of the problem (if your kitty is indoor only).
It doesn't take too long for you to get rid of the round worms. Your vet should have given you medication, that will need to be given again in about 2 weeks. Reason being, is that the medication will only kill the worms that are in the intestines, not the ones migrating through the body to the intestines. Our one female bobcat Natasha, had round worms a few months ago. As for humans, we are not a suitable host for the feline round worms, but you can catch them, but the symptoms are not the same in humans as in cats. However, your 4 year old son can also pick them up by playing in contaminated soil outside. When cleaning the cats litter box, just be sure to wash your hands well. You are not going to catch round worms from your cat, but you can from coming into contact with contaminated litter (fecal matter) or soil outside. (this is one area where your cat may have gotten the worms) Just be sure to wash your hands well after cleaning the litter box and you, your son and parents will be fine and worm free
You can read about round worms here http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Con...&S=0&C=0&A=498
Some info on humans and round worms http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body...in_humans.html
You can read about round worms here http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Con...&S=0&C=0&A=498
Some info on humans and round worms http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body...in_humans.html
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #4
Thank You LDG! My vet did give me the Revolution or Advantage Plus. I put that on my cat last night. Her medicine is a liquid and I give it to her with a syringe every night. The first time last night, and her second dose was tonight. Today when my cat pooped, I could see the worms in her stool. This has been the first time since I got her on December 24. She was 12 weeks when I got her and was rescued. She is a very loving cat! Yesterday was the earliest appointment I could get to the vet after getting my cat on December 24. The vet said that she had a mild case of Roundworms and to treat her with the deworming liquid medicine for 10 days. Then we will go back and give the vet a stool sample. My cat was unable to get her vaccines that day because of her small weight and worms. I have given my cat wet food. However, she does not eat it and sticks with the Purina Kitten Chow. I bleach out her litter box everyday, and, give her new litter. I was going to do that until we went to the vet but now that she has worms I will continue to due so. THANK YOU for answering my question DOES ANYONE ON THIS BOARD KOW A HUMAN THAT HAS GOTTEN ROUNDWORMS FROM CATS. I am very worried about that because I have a four year old son and my elderly parents live here too. I really hope that the deworming medicine works and our cat can feel better and gain weight! Do you know how long it takes for an animal to start to feel better after being successfully treated for roundworms? I would like my cat to start to gain some weight! Going to the Vet made me very scared! I was doing my best for the two weeks that we had to wait to get into the vet. The Vet said that most cats with roundworms bounce back. The Vet said that brown worms are very dangerous because they can cause blindness in humans. MY CAT IS AN INDOOR CAT AND SHE WILL NEVER GO OUTSIDE. After this trial with the Roundworms and low weight, I HOPE THAT MY CAT STAYS WORM FREE FOR LIFE! Thank you so very much! It is hard being a first time cat owner!
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #5
Thank you Amber! I'm glad to hear that my son and parents and cat will be fine and worm free. I put rubber gloves on and clean out my cat's litter box daily washing it out with bleach. I do wash my hands after doing so. I wash my hands frequently. I hope that these next two weeks go by quickly for my cat. Without the worms, she should be able to gain weight. She is the sweetest cat, and, I hate that this has been her life so far. My cat keeps her spirits up. Looking at her you would never know that she has roundworms. She is playful and very loving! I can use and need all of the information I can get about cats. I am very happy to have found such a great group of people to help me.
Check out the life cycle of roundworms. I seem to remember that it's not a direct infection from the animal, and the eggs have to develop for a while in the environment.
Ah, here it is:
Roundworms in cats
Do some more research on human infection. Apparently, it can happen, but not easily and humans never develop the actual roundworm in their digestive tract or airways.
We see roundworm infections all the time in cats in the shelter, and we routine treat them as soon as they come in, without even checking.
Ah, here it is:
Roundworms in cats
Do some more research on human infection. Apparently, it can happen, but not easily and humans never develop the actual roundworm in their digestive tract or airways.
We see roundworm infections all the time in cats in the shelter, and we routine treat them as soon as they come in, without even checking.
Well, dry kitten food will put weight on her a lot faster than wet food will - but in the long run, at least including a meal of wet food is healthier for her for a number of reasons - I don't know them all. I do know it helps with hydration, which is often a problem in cats. We let our cats free feed on dry food, and we give them dinner of wet food every day, and we have a water fountain - and lots of water bowls - to encourage them to drink.
With a mild case of round worm, part of her problem was likely just that she was malnourished wherever she came from. It's also a fairly standard problem with rescue kitties.
(We just rescued a cat that weighs just 4.5 pounds and he's about 8 months old. He should weigh somewhere between 7 - 9 pounds!!!! )
To help her gain weight, there are a number of things you can do. You can boil chicken (in nothing but water), and see if she'll supplement her dry food with the boiled chicken - and some of the broth. We give our cats Gerber's chicken baby food as a treat - they BONK OUT for it! You can try feeding her this once or twice a day. (I think both Gerber's and Beechnut have no additives). You can see if she'll eat kitten glop - there are various recipes. Here are several different recipes for it: http://www.hdw-inc.com/glop.htm
You can add an egg yolk to any food you find she's eating. Try mixing one in with her dry food (obviously this wouldn't get left out for her) - see what happens.
And yeah - round worms - especially if a mild case - are really no big deal as far as the cat is concerned. But getting rid of them will certainly help her gain weight!
You can learn a LOT about cat nutrition here - our cats are on a prescription diet because our males are prone to crystals in their urine (not really a problem for most females). But there are so many high quality foods available now for cats, if you can afford them.
BTW - your kitty should eat a high protein food (kitten food is higher protein than adult cat food) until she's a year old.
With a mild case of round worm, part of her problem was likely just that she was malnourished wherever she came from. It's also a fairly standard problem with rescue kitties.
To help her gain weight, there are a number of things you can do. You can boil chicken (in nothing but water), and see if she'll supplement her dry food with the boiled chicken - and some of the broth. We give our cats Gerber's chicken baby food as a treat - they BONK OUT for it! You can try feeding her this once or twice a day. (I think both Gerber's and Beechnut have no additives). You can see if she'll eat kitten glop - there are various recipes. Here are several different recipes for it: http://www.hdw-inc.com/glop.htm
You can add an egg yolk to any food you find she's eating. Try mixing one in with her dry food (obviously this wouldn't get left out for her) - see what happens.
And yeah - round worms - especially if a mild case - are really no big deal as far as the cat is concerned. But getting rid of them will certainly help her gain weight!
You can learn a LOT about cat nutrition here - our cats are on a prescription diet because our males are prone to crystals in their urine (not really a problem for most females). But there are so many high quality foods available now for cats, if you can afford them.
In humans, round worms can infect the eye. But again, hand washing will prevent this. Your son is not going to catch round worms, just because you have an infected cat. He would have to handle the infected litter, soil or the fecal matter, then put his contaminated hands in his mouth. It can happen, but I do not think it is very common. We are not a suitable host for the feline round worm.
