Ringworm

callielu

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I have already read your post, thank you so much. I'm doing the best I can to keep the environment clean and I have the two symptomatic fosters isolated and being treated. Unfortunately, paying to have five cats dipped even once a week is beyond my budget. I can do the two fosters and two of my own cats myself, but three of my cats are not very social and handling two of them is almost impossible. One of those would go into a complete panic and would probably never allow herself to be caught after the first time. The other one can't be handled at all. A third one can be handled but he's very, very skittish and untrusting. I'm in the process of building a relationship with him and I fear that if I dip him that relationship will be permanently damaged.

To be honest, I'm not overly concerned about my cats or even myself. My cats have suffered only minor lesions and are currently not showing any symptoms (although I realize that doesnt' mean they're clear). I've also had the occasional lesion but it doesn't really bother me.

My main concern is curing my foster cats since they can't go up for adoption until they are clear.

What anti-fungal solution did you use?
 

sadie's mom

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Ringworm is just plain nasty! Sadie had a bad bout of it as a kitten and it took some time to rid the house of it (I will never bring another pet to a pet store ever again). Sadie's vet put her on oral medication (2 months of fluconazole (so Sadie didn't become a carrier). Vet would not give Program for ringworm as she said it is hit or miss as to whether it really works - some studies claim it works, other claim it doesn't work). In an effort to speed up the healing, I also purchased this product (http://www.petsbestrx.com/PetRingworm). I am not an agent of this company nor am I saying it is a miracle product. But, I can tell you that it worked so well for Sadie that her vet (who also worked at shelters) began using it as a precautionary measure in the shelter. My vet was shocked at just how quickly and effectively it worked for Sadie. Sadie had good results within 3 days and hair regrowth within 1 week.

Remember, ringworm looks worse before it gets better and it can take months to run its course. Also remember that the spores can live in your environment for up to 2 years, so it's imperative that you practice good housekeeping (vacuuming everyday, throwing away the bag after every use) as a good defence.
 

bunnelina

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Originally Posted by callielu

To be honest, I'm not overly concerned about my cats or even myself. My cats have suffered only minor lesions and are currently not showing any symptoms (although I realize that doesnt' mean they're clear). I've also had the occasional lesion but it doesn't really bother me.

My main concern is curing my foster cats since they can't go up for adoption until they are clear.

What anti-fungal solution did you use?
I used HealthGuard Laundry Additive, diluted acc, to directions. It has triclosan, aka Vibax, which is a very iffy chemical, but it is supposed to kill fungus spores (and possibly all other life forms, like humans).

Unlike you, I was paranoid about ringworm. If you get it on your face, it's truly disgusting. On your scalp, you get long-term bald spots. And if there's enough of it in the house, you can spread it to other people as well as animals even if you don't have lesions. That's why I worked like a demon to get rid of it. My sister was so paranoid about us bringing it to her house, out of state (and we didn't HAVE it, only two kittens did, in tiny spots) that we were banned from celebrating T'giving and Christmas with my family. We survived.


I understand your issue with dipping the cats. Even nice cats loathe it, and I have no idea how people manage to do it in their homes. It stank up the whole vet hospital when the groomer did it.

As you probably know, they only way to be sure your cats are clear of ringworm is to do a series of weekly cultures. If you can do a couple of the asymptomatic cats — the vet just brushes them all over with a new toothbrush and puts the combings into a culture — that might put your mind to rest, at least about the ones that don't have lesions.
 

bunnelina

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Originally Posted by Sadie's Mom

Ringworm is just plain nasty! Sadie had a bad bout of it as a kitten and it took some time to rid the house of it (I will never bring another pet to a pet store ever again). Sadie's vet put her on oral medication (2 months of fluconazole (so Sadie didn't become a carrier). Vet would not give Program for ringworm as she said it is hit or miss as to whether it really works - some studies claim it works, other claim it doesn't work). In an effort to speed up the healing, I also purchased this product (http://www.petsbestrx.com/PetRingworm). I am not an agent of this company nor am I saying it is a miracle product. But, I can tell you that it worked so well for Sadie that her vet (who also worked at shelters) began using it as a precautionary measure in the shelter. My vet was shocked at just how quickly and effectively it worked for Sadie. Sadie had good results within 3 days and hair regrowth within 1 week.

Remember, ringworm looks worse before it gets better and it can take months to run its course. Also remember that the spores can live in your environment for up to 2 years, so it's imperative that you practice good housekeeping (vacuuming everyday, throwing away the bag after every use) as a good defence.
How soon did you start doing cultures after the fluconazole and PetsBest? Two months of the meds is a long time! And how often did you culture Sadie to be sure she was clear? I was curious about that Petsbest, but I didn't see a single piece of clinical research on it anywhere, and only first-name endorsements on the website so I worried that it was bogus. But my Possum had an ugly black spot on his nose for WEEKS. I would have loved to get rid of it sooner.

Spores can live in your environment FOREVER! Yes, there's a two-year lifetime, but I suspect they are reproducing in the meantime.

I have my doubts about most vacuum cleaners. If your vacuum doesn't have a HEPA filtration system and a self-sealing, multilayer bag, chances are you are blowing spores back into the environment as you vacuum. If you have a self-sealing bag, you don't need to throw it out until it's full. If your vac is so leaky that you have to toss the bag, I think it won't do you any good when you're using it, either. I used a Miele and changed the HEPA filter after we were through the worst of it.
 

sadie's mom

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Within one week of starting the fluconazole, cultures were done. But, still not clear. After 2 weeks, still not clear. That's when I started to get frustrated so I decided to try the healing spray on Sadie's coat. My vet wanted to see if it worked so she did a culture after 3 days of using the spray. That's when we got a clear culture. However, doctor was still not convinced it was the Petsbest products that were working so we did weekly cultures. All were clear (vet left her on the meds just to be certain).

Must admit, I used the spray on myself too. I ended up with a large spot in the middle of my back and couldn't reach it to put on cream. So, I tried the product and it worked on me within 2 days. I ended up buying the jug size and sprayed the entire house with it. For me, it was money well spent.

The only product I wasn't keen about was the Sulphur cream -- I didn't have good results. But, I swear by the healing spray. In fact, I'm bringing home a new adoptee tonight and I plan on giving him a spray before taking him in the house.

Regarding vacuum cleaners and ringworm, I unfortunately had an old one so I tossed the bag every night and literally hosed the vacuum down with bleach.
 

bunnelina

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Originally Posted by Sadie's Mom

Must admit, I used the spray on myself too. I ended up with a large spot in the middle of my back and couldn't reach it to put on cream. So, I tried the product and it worked on me within 2 days. I ended up buying the jug size and sprayed the entire house with it. For me, it was money well spent.

The only product I wasn't keen about was the Sulphur cream -- I didn't have good results. But, I swear by the healing spray. In fact, I'm bringing home a new adoptee tonight and I plan on giving him a spray before taking him in the house.

Regarding vacuum cleaners and ringworm, I unfortunately had an old one so I tossed the bag every night and literally hosed the vacuum down with bleach.
Didn't ringworm leave us with some wonderful memories?
At least we have terrific stories to silence our fellow cat owners when they are freaking out over something easy!

I'll have to look at that healing spray and see what's in it. I thought their white sulfur could be a great alternative to the stinky yellow stuff we had to use on the cats, but I couldn't find a single medical authority who had anything to say about it, positive or negative. And I wasn't in the mood to experiment, if you know what I mean....

Bleaching the vacuum cleaner would certainly do the trick, but what a nightmare! I'm afraid my experience has scared me off from ever becoming a foster mom! I think you're REALLY brave!
 

white cat lover

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Originally Posted by Bunnelina

How soon did you start doing cultures after the fluconazole and PetsBest? Two months of the meds is a long time!
6 weeks is how long the shelter here puts cats on Fluconazole. Technically 4 weeks is long enough, but we would sometimes see re-occurances of ringworm when only treating for 4 weeks. So we go for the full 6 weeks. In the shelter situation, Fluconazole has worked well for us in combination with Conofite cream. Obviously it would be even better if we never had any cats come in with ringworm or develop it.
 

bunnelina

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Originally Posted by white cat lover

6 weeks is how long the shelter here puts cats on Fluconazole. Technically 4 weeks is long enough, but we would sometimes see re-occurances of ringworm when only treating for 4 weeks. So we go for the full 6 weeks. In the shelter situation, Fluconazole has worked well for us in combination with Conofite cream. Obviously it would be even better if we never had any cats come in with ringworm or develop it.
We used terbinafine (or is it terfinabine, can never remember), a fairly new generic version of oral Lamisil on the older cats. The pills were too tricky to cut down into kitten doses, but the big cats only needed to take it for two weeks. The kittens were stuck with four weeks of liquid Sporanox. It was cherry-flavored and they hated it. It was a very long month. The terbinafine is supposed to be very effective even in that short time period. Depending on the situation, you can do pulse therapy, two weeks on and two weeks off, until the cultures are clear. It wasn't outrageously expensive for a two-week dose. And my elderly Persians never developed ringworm, and the breed is supposed to be highly susceptible.
 

white cat lover

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I was just doing some reading on the Terbinafine - interesting reading! If 2 weeks is all it takes to treat, that would be wonderful. But everything I read said further studies need to be done....they don't know for sure the side effects because not enough studies have taken place, etc.
 

bunnelina

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Originally Posted by white cat lover

I was just doing some reading on the Terbinafine - interesting reading! If 2 weeks is all it takes to treat, that would be wonderful. But everything I read said further studies need to be done....they don't know for sure the side effects because not enough studies have taken place, etc.
I'd say ask your vet to investigate. They have access to more online research than we do. My vet knew all about it and told me this was the newest recommended drug for ringworm. She won't use anything else now on adult cats because of the side-effect issues with the other drugs. So she must have found enough research to convince her that it was a safer drug than Sporanox. And anything is safer than griseofulvin, although some Boston vets still use it. While you give it for two weeks, you may need to do it again, after a two-week break. By then you should be getting culture results, negative ones!
 

callielu

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Originally Posted by Sadie's Mom

Within one week of starting the fluconazole, cultures were done. But, still not clear. After 2 weeks, still not clear. That's when I started to get frustrated so I decided to try the healing spray on Sadie's coat. My vet wanted to see if it worked so she did a culture after 3 days of using the spray. That's when we got a clear culture. However, doctor was still not convinced it was the Petsbest products that were working so we did weekly cultures. All were clear (vet left her on the meds just to be certain).

Must admit, I used the spray on myself too. I ended up with a large spot in the middle of my back and couldn't reach it to put on cream. So, I tried the product and it worked on me within 2 days. I ended up buying the jug size and sprayed the entire house with it. For me, it was money well spent.

The only product I wasn't keen about was the Sulphur cream -- I didn't have good results. But, I swear by the healing spray. In fact, I'm bringing home a new adoptee tonight and I plan on giving him a spray before taking him in the house.

Regarding vacuum cleaners and ringworm, I unfortunately had an old one so I tossed the bag every night and literally hosed the vacuum down with bleach.
If I'm reading the website correctly, I can't purchase just the healing spray. It seems to come in packs that bundle the sulphur cream with the healing spray (in one pack), or also with the disinfectant in another pack.

Did you use the disinfectant? I need to use something that is safe to use on the environment (furniture, etc)
 

callielu

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I'm trying to make sense of all the ointments, creams, sprays, medications, that people are referring to!


I'm currently treating two adult foster cats. One is on the griseofulvin that everyone says not to use but it's not my cat - I was just given the medication (although I had to pay for it since it's outside of the shelter's treatment protocol because of the expense). The other is on a different med but I'm not sure what it is (again, it was just given to me). If they continue to be infected, I'll ask the vet about the fluconazole.

I am doing the lime sulphur dip for each of them once a week.

I will probably purchase the Pets'BestRx stuff that was recommended by "Sadie's Mom." Unfortunately, you can't seem to buy just the healing spray so I will have to buy it in a pack bundled with the sulphur in the Ringworm Pack, or the sulphur and disinfectant with the Super Ringworm Pack. Is the disinfectant worth it?

What cleaning product should I use for cleaning the environment? I have the cats isolated in a bedroom and am cleaning the floors, bedding, etc. I can't use bleach on the floors or the few pieces of furniture so what else can I use? I also have newly installed floors (for which I will be paying for the next couple of years!) so I just can't invest a lot of money in a high-quality vacuum cleaner now that I no longer have wall-to-wall carpeting.

Bunnelina referred to something called "HealthGuard Laundry Additive." Where do you get that?

What is "Conofite cream" that White Cat Lover referred to?

What is "Terbinafine" and "Sporanox"?

As I said in a previous post, dealing with my cats and the rest of the house is another issue. I have five adult cats and a dog. Last fall, most of the cats and the dog developed one or two lesions that actually healed on their own. Currently, only one of the cats may be symptomatic (I realize that the others could easily also be infected).

The challenge is that of the five cats, two could be medicated and dipped; one could be with a struggle but he is very wary and skittish and the process could cause irreperable damage to the trust I am trying to build with him.

One cat lives outside most of the time (not to get into a debate about indoor/outdoor cats - she's a former foster who was not adoptable because she won't allow herself to be touched and she really, really wanted to go outside. I basically kept her because her only other option was euthanasia). Medicating and dipping her would be very difficult. I would have to catch her first (she would never allow me to touch her unless I corral her somewhere against her will) and she is not very tolerant of being handled.

The fifth cat is actually the one that might be symptomatic. The problem is that she only allows herself to be touched when we are on the bed together and then if I move to quickly or give any indication that I'm going to confine her in some way, she runs away. Catching her would basically require that I terrorize her until I get her corraled somewhere. Handling her would probably be dangerous. She absolutely panics and freaks out if she thinks she will be confined in any way. Holding her is next to impossible, much less putting her under water, and then putting her in a carrier while she dries off, etc. Even being in a room with a closed door freaks her out.

Anyway, I would appreciate any clarification about the products that I listed above so that I can devise a continuing plan of attack.
 

callielu

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Originally Posted by callielu

I will probably purchase the Pets'BestRx stuff that was recommended by "Sadie's Mom." Unfortunately, you can't seem to buy just the healing spray so I will have to buy it in a pack bundled with the sulphur in the Ringworm Pack, or the sulphur and disinfectant with the Super Ringworm Pack. Is the disinfectant worth it?.
Actually, I think I figured out how to buy the products individually. I'll probably go for the 8 oz since I can't afford the larger amounts.
 

sadie's mom

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Originally Posted by callielu

Actually, I think I figured out how to buy the products individually. I'll probably go for the 8 oz since I can't afford the larger amounts.
I actually called the company direct and was able to buy individual products. Yes, I did use the disinfectant but couldn't tell if it was my daily cleaning that worked or the diinfectant.
 

levi68

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I know this is an old thread.. but I just ordered some Pet's Best...I'll let you know how it works on my foster kittens. :/
 

aegisrose

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Hey Levi~ how did that Pet's Best work out for ya? I'm dealing with this madness also (I just wanted to curl up on my fungus infested floor and cry over this...)
 
 

aegisrose

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Side note, the Pets Best Rx stuff can be bought individually...  took a little digging around. 


PuraCleenRx Disinfectant Spray: http://shop.qbased.com/non-toxic-environmental-disinfectant-spray-32oz-p/pc00097.htm

Pets'BestRx Healing & Protection Spray - 2 oz: http://shop.qbased.com/promotes-pet-healing-relieves-itching-2oz-p/pb00010.htm

Pets'BestRx Sulfinex Cream - 2 oz: http://shop.qbased.com/pets-non-toxic-medicated-skin-cream-2oz-p/pb00059.htm

****please note that I have not tried these products yet***  I just wanted to post these links for everyone's convenience

Healthguard Laundry Additive: http://www.healthguardproducts.com/LaundryAdditive.html

also available via amazon.com via Ed-Med http://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&fie...index=pets&search-type=ss&tag=&tag=thecatsite
 

krysta

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Levi68, I am also interested in how the Pet's Best worked for you.  You, too, aegisrose, once you get a chance to use it.  I just ordered the pack containing the cream, spray, and disinfectant today.  My 2 kittens were completely clear of lesions after a round of griseofulvin from the vet (I didn't want to have to use it, but one of them had it really bad, and nothing topical seemed to help).  It's been a few weeks and now one has a place starting that I highly suspect to be ringworm again.  The griseofulvin was effective the first time, but I don't want to give it to them again. I'd rather use something safer, preferably just topical, but since the topicals didn't work the first time, I'm doubtful.....I really hope this Pet's Best works!
 

aegisrose

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Well~  I did an in-depth cleaning yesterday with the Pet's Best Rx disinfectant. The ENTIRE apartment!!! Moved furniture, vacuumed couches/chairs along with a/c vents/grates, moved all items off of shelves and misted a cleaning rag with the disinfectant and wiped EVERYTHING down including baseboards (a horrible 9 houor debacle).  In the mean time, the cats were at vet getting their lime sulfur dips.  Note: the disinfectant warns that it needs to dry or be wiped up after 10 minutes, which I did.  I also wore a face mask. The stuff smells hospital-ey, but it fades quickly.

I will be vacuuming daily, and mopping every other day for at least a week.

I will be spraying the healing/protection spray on them once a day until their next dip next Wednesday.  I'm thinking of getting cultures taken BEFORE their next dips so I can see where I stand in 3 weeks from that point.  I truly believe that this will be it.  Please pray for me!
 

krysta

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I will pray for you!! This stuff is really a nuisance!  As of now, we all seem clear ( I had it on me too at one point).  I am vacuuming, steam-mopping, and wiping things down with the Pets' Best.  Sometimes at night before bed, I'll close the kitties off into a couple of rooms, and spray down the rest of the house-- couches, carpets, and all.  I'm using the healing spray daily on the kitten who seems most prone to it, just as a preventive measure.  They also get baths once a week in a chlorhexidine shampoo (my fiance is very allergic to cats, but manages ok if they are bathed regularly, so they'd be getting the baths anyway).
 
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