Bad reaction to dewormer

Hey all,

I'm going to call my vet tomorrow, but wanted to see what any of you have to say about dewormer.

I purchased Sargeant's wormer at the grocery store for our indoor/outdoor kitty who enjoys eating dead things and getting worms. I saw that he was infected and gave him his first of two doses, but he had what I think was a bad reaction to the medication. He became listless and (dare I say this pun) catatonic. I stayed up with him most of the night for fear that he was going to need a speedy trip to the pet E.R. Fortunately he was up and eating by about 4:30 this morning, and has since improved. I'm just concerned with the way he became so sick with an obvious tummy ache.

I plan to call our vet tomorrow to determine if I should skip the second dose, or bring him in so the vet can give him a check up.

Poor little guy. It broke my heart to see him so obviously uncomfortable. Has anyone else had the same experience?

I don't recommend any over the counter flea/worm medications. Many animals become very ill or even die from some of these products. I think you should call your vet for sure, but please do not give him any more of it!

Poor kitty.

I've only had to use a de-wormer once. I got the med from my vet. I'm glad your guy seems to be doing better. I don't ever use anything from the store on my kitties. I just don't trust any of it.

OH NO.... How is your kitty today??? How scary and I never trust over-the-counter flea/worming products. There are alot of risks involved with those products and end up costing more because the animals have become ill. Yes, there have been other's who have used that product and the Hartz products with terrible effects. But, how would you have known. People think those products are safe because they are being sold in the big petstores. I get a twinge everytime I see them on the shelf and worry for the animals receiving them. Sending you lots of vibes that your cat is better today

Tippy is doing fine now and as spry as ever, but I will definitely NOT be completing the meds I purchased. Will call the vet this afternoon to see how they'd like to finish getting rid of the worms.

Thanks Feralvr for your kinds words. I was trying be a good cat mom by not stressing him out by hauling him to the vet, and thought that Sargeant's was a good alternative. It surely was not. At least in this case! From now on it's to the vet with him!

I keep telling him to stop killing innocent creatures and eating them, but he just won't listen. Nearly stepped on some poor animal's heart yesterday on our doormat.

If the vet says anything I can pass along to you all, I will certainly do so. And thanks again!

Your kitty is ok, so don't stress it. Many people have made that mistake. I gave my guy the Sergeants flea treatment and almost lost him. Th vet bill wasn't worth what I saved on drops and it certainly wasn't worth almost killing him

Sadly many people don't know about the dangers of this stuff being sold. It's a sad lesson to learn, but I just glad your kitty pulled through ok!!

OH Phew, glad Tippy is much better. You don't have to bring Tippy to the vet for an appointment. Just bring in a stool sample and they will run it and can dispense some proper medication to irradicate those worms from Tippy. So relieved to hear your cat is alright

Hi again, guys!
I talked to the front desk gal at our vet's office, and she agreed that over- the-counter dewormer is not the best. She said that she has heard of other cats having bad reactions to it, and recommended that I just come in and purchase dewormer from their office. It's easy to administer, so I won't have to drag Tippy to the vet's office twice a year, so that's a bonus!

Thanks for your advice and insight. Tippy is out and about, feeling good, and probably stalking some poor, innocent creature as I type this.