Ringworm... Nightmare?

About 3 weeks ago my husband and I got 2 new beautiful siamese kittens (from different breeders) one was loving, the other hid and cried for 2 weeks. She has come around a lot! (Ty for the support in the behavior forum) problem is since she was hiding, we had no clue she had ringworm, and the other kitten did not have it. When cocoa (the scared kitty) finally started coming out we were cuddling her, playing with her etc... The two cats got along great and always slept together side by side. Then the other kitten started to get red patches. We had no clue what they were at the time, until I finally saw that it was ring shaped. Oh no! Now my husband and I and multple ringworm spots plus two kitties that have ringworm! We took them to the vet, got what we needed to get and started treatment. The vet told us contrary to what people think you don't need to go crazy sbout cleaning. Just vacuum pet hair, put blankets over chairs or couches and beds, changing them frequently. Has anyone else had a similar experience? I feel like these two kittens are such anightmare even though I do love them so much. Ty for the suppOrt and info ahead of time!

I know some people have had nightmare experiences with ringworm, but the only time I've had to deal with it, it was cleared up very easily. So it's not always terrible. Keep your kitties' stress levels low as possible, and feed them a high-quality food. . .strengthening their immune systems will help them to kick the ringworm faster. I hope it's easy for you, too!

My experience with ringworm is that it clears up very easily when the animal is healthy (I've had kittens/cats, puppies/dogs and humans with it). If a cat is stressed, they are not healthy. I agree with Willowy's advice - a good diet and a stress free environment will go a long way. And stick with the medication from your vet.

It's been a while since I've had it - don't you use the stuff that you use on athlete's feet on people? Ringworm is a fungus and so is athlete's feet.

I experienced ringworm brought in by a kitten, and it spread to 3 people and all 5 of the cats we had in the house at the time. On the people, it cleared up just fine with an OTC anti-fungal cream. For the kitten, my vet initially recommended daily bathing with a medicated shampoo. A week later, when all 5 cats had it, I called him pleading for another solution since I could not imagine bathing 5 cats daily who were not accustomed to baths. He prescribed an oral medication, which cleared up the ringworm promptly. We never had a reoccurence.

I know it seems like a nightmare! Just follow the vet's recommendations. I hope it clears up for you soon!

I'm sorry you have to deal with this, I know how frustrating it can be. I had ringworm on 8 cats and multiple spots on my body (over 50... yes, my immune system is a mess). The most important part of the treatment were oral medications for both me and the cats, but the cats also got 2 lime sulfur baths and I showered a few times with antifungal shampoo. Actually 2 of the cats were suspected to be pregnant so they only got lime sulfur baths, and it looks like it was enough for them. Their last culture came back negative, and I have been ringworm-free for a month so I suppose it really is gone, because with my immune system I am sure I would have got a few patches if there were still ringworm spores in my house. Which brings us to the cleaning.

I am really lucky to be allergic So there are no carpets, curtains and upholstery in my home. That made cleaning and vacuuming a breeze. What I would definitely suggest is that you have all carpets steam-cleaned, and then store them somewhere until the ringworm has cleared up. It is much easier to clean wooden floors. For upholstery, your vet was spot on, protect your furniture with blankets and that will be enough. (Though paranoid as I am, I would still steam-clean it first, in case some spores got on it before you went to the vet). I washed the floors a few times with disinfectant, and all tiles in bathroom and kitchen with bleach. You don't really have to do it often but I would do it once during the treatment and once after it. Just to cover all bases. I also washed all clothes and bedding I could in hot water, and what I couldn't I let it sit in disinfectant overnight before washing... not sure if that was taking it a bit too far, but I was in a very fragile state of mind back then!

Good luck to you and your kittens!

As of right now I've got 15 spots on my body, my husband has 18. Every few days it seems that more pop up. It's been 5 days and the OTC cream hasn't really shown much improvement other than 1 spot that cleared up. We don't have carpets either. Wood floors. And they have been confined to 1 room since they've been here. They have 3 sleeping spots - Bed and two computer chairs.

I had a bit of anxiety and OCD when it comes to things like this. So this is a nightmare to me.

The day I found took them to the vet and got the shampoo for them, I gave them their bath and let them sit in the bathroom while I deep cleaned the room they stay in. I vacuumed every inch of floor, sanitized the floor with lysol wipes, sanitized computer cords/power bars etc... I however didn't wash the walls :S I basically sanitized everything including all dvds, books magazine covers etc... I freaked out because one day before I knew they had ring worm I was making the bed and they jumped onto the actual matress! AHHH! so I got oxy clean laundry spray and used that all over it. Of course washed all the laundry. Washed the Wood floor with some oxy clean dish soap or something, I can't remember. But I haven't mopped it since. Maybe I should? I still vacuum everyday and sanitize area's I know get touched by both the cats and the both of us.

Thank God that they were just confined in this room because we have 4 other older cats always hovering near the door. My only concern is have my husband and I givin it to the older cats before we knew we had it. This I am unsure of, but the older cats haven't seemed to show any signs of itching or spots. Although we don't really pet the older cats anymore knowing we have so many spots. Talk about stressful. My Hydro bill will probably be so high for this month. I know these kittens will get better. and after they do, I will be stressing about my own Ringworm Lesions!

I rescued a litter of kittens a few years ago. All of them had ringworm, which then spread to my fiance at the time and me. It was HORRIBLE! But the good news is, it won't last forever. I lost count at over 100 spots on my body. My fiance had less than me, but still quite a few. The anti-fungal creams weren't working for us either, so we researched just about every remedy possible and tea tree oil was our miracle cure. The kittens all got bathed in a shampoo that the vet gave us, so make sure you don't use the tea tree oil on them (I can't be sure, but I remember reading somewhere that its bad for cats). But for us humans, we bought some at Walgreens (you can find it in the Vitamin section) and just dabbed it onto every spot on our body. It cleared up VERY quickly that way. If it ever happens to me again I'll skip the anti-fungal creams completely and go straight to the tea tree oil! Good luck. I know its a pain. I don't for a second regret taking those kittens in, but that may have been one of the most miserable times of my life!

ETA: I had 2 other cats in the house that I never stopped touching during this time and neither of them ever got any ringworm spots. I don't know if that was smart of me to do, but I do know that it never spread to them, and they slept on the bed that I was sleeping on, so they were definitely exposed to it through me and my fiance.

I don't have any experience with ringworms, but I do hope that everything clears up for you and your kitties soon.

Thank you all for the stories and support. The kittens are getting better everyday. It's only been a week. I can't wait until this is all done and over with, and I can start loving them like crazy again. I feel so bad not being able to pet them a lot or let them sleep under the covers with us (they love it under there) I'm guessing thats why we got so many spots. Ours aren't really going down, we were using some Monistat Derm and an off brand anti-fungal topical cream and it wasn't working at all. We started to use diluted bleach, it burns but theyare going away fast. Only problem is more spots keep showing up, and I'm guessing they will for maybe another week. I also got some Tea tree oil 100% pure.

I do have 1 question though. It's hard to keep these girls seperated, and we don't have the option to put them into seperate rooms, as we have 4 other cats. They always cuddle each other so I'm pretty sure he sores touch one another all the time. Is this bad? Will it keep spreading if they keep laying like this?

Ringworm is one of those annoying problems that always feel worse than they are - especially skin diseases/infections that somehow make you feel as if it is your fault for not being cleaner! But it will go away. I had it in my cats (and on myself) about four years ago, and although the vet and the doctor treated it at the start with all the creams and shampoos you have mentioned, we did not get rid of it till we all had oral treatment. So I think you are going down the right road. Good luck - there is light at the end of the tunnel, and then you can enjoy your lovely new kitties in total harmony and peace.

Hi Sarah,

I'm so sorry you are going through this when you should just be enjoying watching your kittens grow. The same thing happened to me in 2009, when we adopted two feral kittens. We already had two elderly Persians and none had been isolated, so I had to treat all four cats and disinfect the whole apartment day after day. It went on for many weeks.

But I did it, and we survived, and we can even laugh about it (a little) now.

I wrote up what I learned from my experience in this post. I hope some of it may be reassuring or helpful to you.

I was lucky that our vet spotted my kitten's lesions only about two weeks we got her, so it hadn't had much chance to spread to us. I started cleaning before we got the culture results and we managed to avoid getting any lesions ourselves. Some strains of ringworm are more virulent than others, and it sounds like you have a bad one. You might consider asking your doctor about oral medications to help your and your husband's situation, if it keeps spreading on you. They're the same ones used for cats, actually. They are very powerful drugs and must be monitored, but they also really work.

Good luck. You WILL get through this and everyone will be healthy and healed! Hang in there in the meantime!

Although I am not dealing with ringworm, I also have two precious kittens that are battling issues right now (Giardia) and they can't be together and I can't love on the one with the most issues. It breaks my heart to keep him locked up in the bathroom and go in like a hospital nurse all the time. I am praying this passes fast. Just a little "I feel ya" support here.

Just an update on how everything is going, because I'm probably not the only one googling any type of information on Ringworm. It's been 3 weeks so far. Cocoa has almost completely cleared up, except the back of her ears are still bald, but not red anymore, and she doesn't itch much if at all. Azshara isn't really doing well from what I can tell, but I'm not sure about the stages of ringworm, this is a first for me. Which is why this will be a good reference for other people in my current situation.

Azshara does NOT take the baths well. She screams, and flails around, even with 2 people in the room. SO that stresses her out like crazy. By the end of the day she is better, but still not 100% in personality. I've switched from bathing them everyday, to now bathing them every other day with the medicated shampoo. I really really hate giving her baths. She's got SO many spots. All over her body, and her face is a wreck. I'm not sure if it's getting worse, or if this is a side effect to healing. There is lots of hairloss, One day the ring worm went blackish, and fell off on her next bath, and now it's red underneath. Maybe it's coming off in layers, I dunno.
She's not happy at all with this experience, and I thought it would be the other way around with these cats.

As for the spots on my Husband and I, they are going away nicely.I wish they would completely disappear, but it takes sooo much time. Damn this ringworm. Why is this so hard to get rid of... /sigh

It reminds me of my kitten's first lime sulfur bath... she screamed and climbed on my shoulders like she always does when she seeks protection, and I cried my eyes out while giving her the bath, I felt like I betrayed her trust and she shouldn't be tortured by the only person she felt could protect her. It still breaks my heart to think of it That's why I quit the bathing and gave them just oral meds, well that and the fact that they had lesions all over the face and on the lips and I didn't think I could efficiently wash those parts.

Last year we found some kittys and tried to get them friendly and find them home, BUT waht we got were the worst case of ring worms we ever saw. I asked the vet and she suggested the foot rot medication at the Tractor supply for livestock. Its a antifungal (pink sray) We had tried EVERYTHING!! We used the jock itch meds and bleach (diluted) athletes foot meds the whole nine yards. I didnt think we would ever get ride of them. ALL the animals had them all 3 kids and myself. It took about 3 or 4 days and the foot rot meds had started working and I started to see hair growth back. It was amazing how fast it was, and no fighting to give baths. We also used it on us. We would all take showers with dandruff shampoo and then spot treat ourselfs with the meds. It was night and day. The dandruff shampoo has a med in it that also kills ringworm.
I hope you get it all cleared up so you can enjoy the new babys. Also the vet told us to bleach there common areas and there bedding. adn yours for that fact to kill the ringworm. Im not sure if she was just being careful or not but after we didnt have a it come back.
Best Wishes
Becca

Update--

Azshara's ring worm seems to have gotten worse. Her entire face is bald and covered. Looks like the treatment the vet was giving her (Just shampoo) hasn't worked. I wish he would have just givin her oral meds from the start. But he didn't, so now I'm still stuck in this nightmare. She's got tiny bald spots all over her body. probably about 6 or 7 on each leg, One decent sized one right near her (pardon me) Butthole. She's even got them in between her toes. Sometimes I feel like I know more than a vet does. I would have done the right thing from the start, not do a trial and error. Granted I know meds can be hard on kittens especially, but come on, she is clearly suffering. Her mood and personality has changed dramatically. She's depressed. She has no interest in anything but sleeping. Or sitting and watching Cocoa play.

To make matters worse, somehow the older cats got it (only two of them) I KNEW they had gotten it, I just knew. But my husband is stubborn and kept saying there is NO WAY. I'm thinking this probably happened when I would give them baths and the older cats would hang around and put their paws under the door. My careless husband also left the door to their room open one day. Cocoa didn't leave the room because she is a scaredy cat, but Azshara did. The older cats could have gotten it that way as well. I don't wish ringworm on any family. And to make matters EVEN WORSE, my mother in law (which has the very upstairs of this big house) babysits kids, and now they are getting it. I tried so hard to contain this.

I would definitely take Azshara to the vet! She probably needs more than the bathing meds. I'm sorry I don't have any experience with ringworm to help you, but I would take her to the vet asap and ask for oral meds for ALL the cats, as well as the topical treatments.

Good luck! I can't imagine how hard this is for you

I had two kittens many, many (25?) years ago who came from a shelter that had ringworm. If I am remembering correctly (I have a very good vet, and still use him today) the instructions were to shave the cat, short or long-haired, doesn't matter you have to get the hair off to get to those lesions and I think I remember about if the hair falls off in the environment, it spreads that way. So shaving will take care of any loose infected hair spores. LimeSulfur dips two times per week. Griesefulvin oral medication. And there was some oily miconizole liquid that I put on the lesions after the dip and they were dry. Poor kitties, it is such a trying time for you and I remember it all too well. I just wish your vet recommended the full on attack for the ringworm from the start. I never did get the ringworm from the kittens, and kept them in a secluded room too, and wore a nylon groomers jacket when I went in to play with them and care for them. It was a very difficult time, but we made it through and they were very healthy and never got it again. I would say it was about five weeks and they recovered well. So sorry you are dealing with this, but you can get this under control .

I've been in your shoes before just a few years ago, two cats w/ ringworm in a multi-pet household. Once my cats got over it a dog cropped up w/ it a few months later. IMO - nothing but oral meds works for ringworm! Having seen many cats be treated by vets only w/ anti-fungal baths or anti-fungal creams, I've seen just how bad the ringworm can get despite treatment.

Fluconazole has worked well @ the shelter here & doesn't seem to be as hard on kitties as other meds. Fulvicin can be very hard on cats (IMO), especially kittens/senior cats. Shaving in most cases in unnecessary, as it does nothing to aid in the healing of ringworm, many years ago they used to shave them. Lime sulfur dips my vet reserves for more severe things than ringworm (like mange & certain difficult to treat mites), because, as you are seeing, it stresses the cat(s) out more which can be more hindrance than help. (Baths/dips stress the cat & a stressed cat can have a weakened immune system.)

I'd honestly consider treating all cats in the household. If your vet won't give you meds, call another to find out if they will!

I've also gone through ringworm with a litter of kittens and it surely was a nightmare. I was lucky that it didn't spread to me or any of my other animals. I kept the kitten in a spare room and always wore a robe over my clothes and latex gloves whenever I went in to their room. If you wear gloves you can pet them and hold them which they need.

Like you my vet gave me a medicated shampoo to use every other day. It was a nightmare having to bathe six kittens who fought like their lives was on the line. I was wearing gloves when I bathed them but it didn't take long before they were completely shredded.
I only bathed them 2-3 times before I decided that there was no way that I could continue doing it. It was so stressful for the kittens and I just hated having to do it to them. So instead of the shampoo I started to use Lime Sulfur dips. Not only was it much easier and less stressful to use but I also didn't have to do it as often, only every 5 days at first and then every 7 days.
I really do recommend using the dip instead of tha shampoo when you are treating cats. It does not smell very good and it can stain the fur yellowish but the yellow goes away on it's own in a while and imo a yellow tinted fur is better than suffering with the darn baths.

With the dip you can just put it in a bucket and lower the cat in it for a few seconds. Put her on a towel and let her dry. You can also use a spray bottle to put the dip on them but that takes a little longer since they have to be completely saturated. To get it on the head you can use a squirt bottle and for the face you ca put it on with a soaked wash cloth. That's about it.

When I had my ringworm kittens I kept them all together and it didn't seem to affect them negatively. I think it should be okay for your kittens to stay together.
Like others have mentioned there is also oral medication fpr ringworm does exist so if the topical treatment doesn't work I think you should take the kitty to the vet to get the oral treatment.

I know this is a nightmare but remember that it will come to an end. It won't go on forever and you will get through this.

Good luck!