Round Worms! URGENT/EMERGENCY

HELP!

Penny, my 7-month old female is not feeling well! I just found a a small worm exiting her anus. I think it's a round worm. here's the story:

She is always begging for food. We thought it was because she was a stray and has a thing about getting food. Thursday, she vomited 2 times. She's not done that before. Last night, she started sneezing, one right after the other. She kept me up with the sneezing it was so bad. She also crawled into bed with me; she's never done that before either. This morning she was fine, ate her food as usual, played with Bailey the new kitten for a bit then crashed in her bed. The problem, she hasn't left the bed since this morning. She's become quite lethargic, doesn't move, and her 3rd eyelid is showing. I tried to get her to eat, but she refuses food. So unlike her!

I'm afraid that she has a bad infestation of round worm and now her health is in serious jeopardy. I'm very worried for her. Is there anything I can do to help out until I find a vet that may be open tomorrow?

i don't understand, when she was "dewormed" a few months ago, wouldn't that take care of round worm? She does not have obvious signs of other parasites such as fleas.

I'm really in need of help here, I'm afraid she might die during the night.

Yikes.. why didnt you take her in sooner? It should never get to the point where you think they're going to die Can you find an emergency vet hospital?? She needs to be looked at ASAP!

Good luck and keep us posted!

I just found the worm a few moments ago.

honestly, she was perfectly fine ... no reasons to worry until earlier this evening when she wouldn't come out for her dinner.

A cat vomiting is not unusual, a few sneezes is not unusual. I thought perhaps she had come down with a URI until I found the worm just now.

7 months is very young. Your problem sound like it might be a virus. I hope I'm wrong. But a non eating cat is always a problem, no matter what. When did she poop and pee last? If you don't know the difference between one worm or another, don't guess.

Also, never deworm using home kits, always have a vet do it. Use the wrong med, or too much and kiss the kidneys or other body parts good bye.

Did you use any chemicals on her lately?? Get them off her. Cat collar, take it off...
Did you feed her bad food?

At the very minimum- keep kitty's temp at normal degree and keep her hydrated. Don't let her brain get overheated. Keep cold cloth on her head, and allow head to also breath, so as not to allow heat to stay in the head. If she has seizure, you might have to ice her head and body down. It's best to just see a vet, it might be nothing and you'll be happy, or it could be bad and if you wait, it might get worst.

Keep her away from other cats and in quiet and calm place, so she can rest. Watch her closely, let her know you are there.

Is the other cat new to the house? Are you sure it doesn't carry a virus. Was your cat given shots lately, if so call the doctor asap, and tell them. Your cat could be having an allergic reation.

Either way, if you know your cat pee'd and pooped lately, keep her hydrated. Make sure water is clean, I would buy purified or distilled water- not tap water(too many poisons like chlorine), dehydreation kills, and it don't have to.

You have to see a vet for your problem.

Your biggest clue is the appearance of the third eyelid. Your kitty needs to see a vet as health concerns are a real issue here. I would get her to an ER clinic now if she were mine. She has to many things working against her at this point and time. Roundworms can be persistant and sometimes more treatments are needed. Being lethargic, having the third eyelid and not eating are all signs to get off the computer and pick up the phone and call a vet.


Good Luck!

A cat that young shouldn't be let outside, or even go outside by self. Are you sure she didn't eat something? Is something stuck in her throat; is she breathing normally??

At 7 months, she should be eating all the time, she's a baby in need of constant available nutrition. At that age, some cats are still weaning. She may not be ready for the food you are feeding her, or might be allergic to it.

Feed her a quality baby kitten food, lots of water and if needed to get her eating kibble, a quality friskies soft food can be fed. Give her choices... Until you know what to do. You got to make sure she's eating right. Wet the hard food and hand feed her.

Don't think cause you saw one little worm, or most likely a tapeworm egg sack coming out of her pooper, that that is the end of your problem.

If she's as bad off as you made sound, then she should be checked.

As far as deworming goes; they sometimes come in a three series, in order to kill the offspring. So, the Vet might need to see her again in order to get all the worms etc.

Barfing that young might be hairballs, but she shouldn't be as inactive as you stated. When they won't play, it's a sure sign of something wrong.

Do some research on the web.

Good luck to your kitty. Keep her hydrated. Sneezing, could be a cat flu- or allergies. Or blocked cavity. But the third lid concerns me. She should be checked over.

My vet once prescribed only a single dose pill for deworming of my previous cat

At 7 months a kitten is not still weaning. By 7 months they have their full set of adult teeth, if she is not spayed she should not be outside until she gets spayed. It is still kitten season and she could be mated with at 7 months.

As for her not eating, kittens are just nibblers and they can actually go 12 hours without eating before something begins to happen to them but they shouldn't go that long.

Please just call your vet, wake him up, that is what they get paid for and tell him your concerns. If the cat is lethargic and showing the third eyelid you should be concerned. Take her temperature first, that will be one of the first things the vet will ask you to do.

I just got back from the ER Vet. Penny had a fever of 107. They iced her down, then bathed her in cold water and got her temp down to 103. The ER vet isn't for sure what the problem is at this point. They are keeping her overnight for IV fluids, and tests. I will call in the morning.

I am a responsible pet owner. My animals do not go outside without supervision. Except for the grasshopper I let Penny eat the other day, they are each fed a diet specific to their individual needs; they do not go hungry. Penny was spayed in June, so no one need worry about that. She sees her vet regularly for care of her missing eye. She was just there the other day and weighed 6 pounds. A one pound gain from the last time she was there.

Until today, Penny was a normal, active, playful kitten. She eats good, drinks good, and has good potty habits.

I am so sorry to hear the fever was so high but I am relieved you went to ER vet for assistance. Without knowing all the story about your cat, I try to cover all bases when a cat is in trouble. I am glad she is spayed, and I do hope that they find out what is causing the problem. Being that she was outside, she could have gotten into anything basically. I will say a prayer for her recovery tonight- try and get some rest now, she will need you in the morning.

Good morning all,

I want to thank everyone for posting their thoughts and concerns. You are a sage, Hissy, and I love you, (all of you,) for giving your time and level-headed advice to this board. Please forgive my grumpiness; I was exasperated, nervous, frustrated, and extremely tired when I got home at 2:30 A.M..

I checked on Penny this morning. I am told she ate and drank about 7 a.m.. Otherwise, they don't know anything yet. Her WBC is 24.4, and her glucose is slightly high, everything else is normal. They have not been able to do a fecal, so a DX pending that. They weren't concerned about the glucose level because they felt it was elevated due to nervousness. They are supposed to call me after they test a fecal.

I have spent more time and money at the vets office in the last 2 months! Including last night's visit (which isn't over with yet,)I have spent $950 on animal care since May. That's a lot of money for a widowed, non-working, full-time college student, living on a tight budget! Let's hope and pray that this was just a 24-hr flu-bug thing and it's done and over with.

Again, thank you all for your ideas. I'll post as soon as I receive a DX and treatment plan.

P.S. After thinking through yesterday morning, Penny was outside for only a moment or so. She never left the deck. My neighbor was having a family reunion, and the activity from setting up made her nervous.

I hope Penny is continuing to improve. I may probably just turn out to be the diagnosis that makes all cat owners want to rip the hair out of their vet's head "fever of unknown origin!" At any rate, you did the right thing, you got her in to be seen and treated and I commend you for that. To many times I sit in frustration as someone whose cat is apparently quite ill spends precious moments typing away on the computer when they should be calling the vet!

Your vet will not be deworming Penny until she is stronger, for worm pills are just poison and the cat has to be in pretty good shape to handle it. While she is gone, take her litter pans and dump out all the old litter and soak the pans. Use Teresa's method of immersing them in vinegar first to loosen any hard residue, and then clean them with a bleach and water mixture. The room where Penny was last, give it a complete cleaning with bleach and water and open the windows and let it air dry. (just in case something is lurking) wash her cat bed if she has one.

Best of luck- and don't use Pine-sol or lysol to clean. Toxic to cats- so keep your cleaning ingredients simple.

I will be hoping and praying your kitty gets well soon.

I hope your kitty is better soon.

Penny is home from the ER vet. They didn't have a whole lot to say other than take her to her own vet tomorrow morning.

They were not able to get a fecal sample, so I will get one today. They swabbed the rectum and anus, but came up clean. The vet didn't think the roundworm was too terribly intrusive.

I've cleaned out the isolation (laundry) room and bleached a litter box. I've washed her bed, however, it's one of those nesting beds that retains body heat -- not something she needs right now. I gave her a fresh cotton sheet for snuggling on, but hope she'll just lay on the cool tile floor. I'll let her decide which she prefers. I've given her fresh water with an ice cube, fresh chow, and several tablespoons of feline a/d canned. She scarfed down the a/d.

They did de-worm her, and she got an antibiotic injection, and was sent home with oral antibiotics.

She's certainly acting better, but she looks awful. poor thing. We'll make a trip to her vet tomorrow morning when I get home from my class.

I'm glad that Penny is doing better, and I hope that it's nothing serious...just a little flu bug or something. Good luck at the vet's tomorrow...keep us posted.

Wow that's a high fever, very scary. Congrats on being such a responsible owner. I hope she gets better soon!

I'm sorry to say there's been no change. She ate pretty good when she got home. She's urinated several times, but no bowel movement. It felt like her temp was rising, so I wrapped an ice bottle in a dish towel and put it in her bed. She laid her head against it. Her head feels cooler now. She just doesn't move. She doesn't even look up when I go in her room to check on her.

Her rear end looks clean; no sign of parasite activity. She isn't vomiting, or sneezing, or anything. She just lays there all curled up in a tiny little ball. She doesn't even purr.

I'm really worried about her. I don't know what else I can do for her until we get to the vet in the morning.

It is so strange how she just laid down yesterday and basically never got up. Her blood chemistry was normal, heart and lungs sounded normal. Her WBC was 24 yesterday, 21 when they tested this morning. I understand 19 is normal.

Do you suppose she could have an intestinal blockage? I think I will ask the vet to do a full body x-ray.

I also wonder if this condition could be related to that missing eye of hers. She's been on antibiotics for several months now, I wonder if they depressed her immune system so bad that a slight cold set her off? Perhaps that infected eye socket is more infected than the vets thought? It's been cleaned out so many times, you'd think it would clear up by now. I'm not passive when it comes to asking questions, they just don't really know what to do to clear up that eye socket.

I would appreciate any and all ideas.

The other thing is that I'm out of money. The ER visit costed me $340.00. I anticipate tomorrow's visit to cost $50-$100 depending on whether they want to redo lab work.

check your PM's please!