HELP ME PLEASE - Tapeworms again 3rd time in 6 months

jennifersbar · Nov 25, 2014

I don't get it. i have had cats all y life and this is the first time in y life I have ever had a cat with them. I have 5 cats in my house.

I treated them with liquid stuff for 3 days and it was hell. The last time I went to the vet and it was about $85. I can't afford this.

I don't get why they keep getting them. They are on on advantage. My outdoor cat passed away in July and the other one that goes

out has only been out once and I keep telling my family to stop letting him out. I don't know what I am going to do cause this is

costing me so much. When my cat passed her vet bill was almost $500 and I just paid that off a few weeks ago.

Can anyone PLEASE help me.

stephenq · Nov 26, 2014

JennifersBar said:
I don't get it. i have had cats all y life and this is the first time in y life I have ever had a cat with them. I have 5 cats in my house.

I treated them with liquid stuff for 3 days and it was hell. The last time I went to the vet and it was about $85. I can't afford this.

I don't get why they keep getting them. They are on on advantage. My outdoor cat passed away in July and the other one that goes

out has only been out once and I keep telling my family to stop letting him out. I don't know what I am going to do cause this is

costing me so much. When my cat passed her vet bill was almost $500 and I just paid that off a few weeks ago.

Can anyone PLEASE help me.

Advantage will not prevent this (except to help control fleas) and if you're family won't listen to you about letting the cat out, maybe they should offer to pay some of your vet bills :-). Seriously though, if the cat goes outside it can be exposed, not just through mice but through fleas as well.

Willowy · Nov 26, 2014

You can buy Tradewinds Tapeworm Tabs OTC. They aren't very cheap but they won't be $85 either! I know Tractor Supply Co has them, I'm not sure of other stores but of course you would be able to find them online. Also, some vets will let you buy Drontal from them without seeing the cats. Doesn't hurt to ask, and shouldn't cost more than the OTC tablets.

If they have fleas, you have to get rid of the fleas or they'll just keep getting tapeworms. Having fleas and eating wildlife is how cats get tapeworms. If the fleas are already gone, after treatment the tapeworms should be gone too. You might have to do more than one treatment though.

jennifersbar · Nov 26, 2014

I am in Canada so I have never heard of that place. I am going to buy revolution next time around just for something different as maybe fleas can get immune to one thing. It is going to be a bit more but if that will help. I still have months worth of advantage. Plus this is the new advantage, the advantage 2. It is suppose to kill everything not just the adults when they bite the animal. So another reason why I am stumped. I have no carpets in my house just some throw rugs. I will be calling a new vet that just opened up to see what they have to say. My kid says to quarantine the 2 who have it for a week and only treat those 2 but I am worried one of the other's would get it and I would have to treat them all afterwards anyways. Why has this happened 3 times in 5 months when the fleas are under control and they all have advantage on? I have had cats all y life and this is the first time I have ever heard about any animal having worms. Ringworm, yes I have been through that with 6 kittens and that was hell and cost me almost $500. They barley ever get wet food, it's usually just for a treat.

Willowy · Nov 26, 2014

Revolution doesn't kill tapeworms. But it should work if your local fleas have become immune to Advantage.

The vet may have a spot-on called Profender (I'm not sure of its availability in Canada), that kills all kinds of worms. I'm not sure how much it costs though.

A farm store should have tapeworm tabs, most pet stores too. Maybe not Tradewinds brand but something. The actual drug is called praziquantel, so look for that. What products have you tried already?

jennifersbar · Nov 26, 2014

The first time was fenbendazole liquid. Had to give them each a different dose for their weights for three days in a row. It was a pain in the ass. Not sure what they got the last time from the vet but today I gave them melbemax from a different vet. I have vacuumed my house and am washing.

Vet told me today this time of the year if there is one flea in your house they will hatch and it takes one flea to get tapeworms. I have had a boyfriend who had flea infestation with 4 cats and 8 kittens and not one got tapeworm so this is such a huge *** to me. I can't afford this every few months.

Willowy · Nov 27, 2014

Fenbendazole only kills one kind of tapeworm, and it's not the kind they get from fleas :/. Hopefully the Milbemax will do the job! It has praziquantel so it should work.

Are you seeing any fleas around? Run a flea comb through ths kitties' fur and see if any fleas or flea dirt show up. The fleas might be gone now; it takes a few months for the tapeworms to get big enough to shed segments (the little rice grain thingies you can see). Don't want to put yourself through too much trouble if the fleas are already gone.

sarah ann · Nov 27, 2014

Canada vet has praziquantel tablets really cheap.

For the environment you can sprinkle down borax on any furniture or carpets. It kills flea eggs by drying them out. Or you could treat the environment with Precor

bonepicker · Nov 28, 2014

You need to worm them, not let them out, and use Revolution drops behind shoulder blades. If they catch mice or chipmunks they get tapeworms.

chromium blues · Nov 28, 2014

You can work on making the cat door-shy, too. Keep a Coca Cola can with a few pennies near the door and when you see it in the general vicinity of the door, give it one good shake. Bang on the bottom of the storm door before you come inside. Spray him with water if he's by the door. Make it a really unpleasant place to be. You can get Pawsaway mats, but they're not cheap.

snooshy · Nov 28, 2014

Diatomaceous earth is a 100% natural way to kill parasites and worms in cats...animals.

It has a lot of other benefits as well. Google it. There is a lot of info about what it is and how it works online. Also good for humans.

I use it in the garden to keep the worms off my cabbages. natural and organic.

Excellent for pets

Good luck

lamiatron · Dec 1, 2014

Snooshy said:
Diatomaceous earth is a 100% natural way to kill parasites and worms in cats...animals.

It has a lot of other benefits as well. Google it. There is a lot of info about what it is and how it works online. Also good for humans.

I use it in the garden to keep the worms off my cabbages. natural and organic.

Excellent for pets

Good luck

How did you give this to your pets?

snooshy · Dec 1, 2014

There is a lot of great information if you google it. I use it on their bedding and rub a bit on their fur. They will lick it and ingest it. All it is is crushed up fossils of a specific kind... microscopically it has sharp edges that kill worms and parasites in humans and animals...

The only caution is not to over use it because it is also moisture absorbing so it can 'dry out' your cat if you use to much. In other words don't cover your cat in it every day lol

Also apply it gently as to not cause a big cloud of powder in the air so they don't get it in their eyes or lungs.

There is a lot of youtube videos too

snooshy · Dec 1, 2014

Hope this helps...

detmut · Dec 1, 2014

are you able to import otc vet meds from the usa? amazon has tradewinds tapeworm tabs (praziquantel) for $10 for 3 tabs http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_kk_1...ts&ie=UTF8&qid=1417465685&tag=&tag=thecatsite or you can use a certified vet pharmacy (still otc): http://www.nabp.net/programs/accreditation/vet-vipps/find-a-vet-vipps-online-pharmacy

not sure how the prices on amazon.ca compare

detmut · Dec 1, 2014

Sarah Ann said:
Canada vet has praziquantel tablets really cheap.

For the environment you can sprinkle down borax on any furniture or carpets. It kills flea eggs by drying them out. Or you could treat the environment with Precor

http://www.canadavet.com/Wormers-C20.aspx

baileytc · Dec 2, 2014

Praziquantel is the only product that will kill the common feline tapeworm. Don't bother with a product that has anything else in it. Tradewinds Tapeworm Tabs are praziquantel and are effective. Little City Dogs also sells generic praziquantel--I haven't used it but it should do the job. Amazon and Little City Dogs have the best price online, at least in the U.S. Canadian pharmacies may be cheaper.

Praziquantel is a single dose, but you need to treat at least twice to kill the tapeworms in all the life stages. Dose the cat once once and then dose again in two weeks. To be really safe, treat again two weeks after that. Praziquantel is apparently very bitter, so it's best to try to give it as a pill rather than sprinkling it on food because the cat may not be willing to eat the food.

There is no need to quarantine the cats. Tapeworms are not transmitted from cat to cat. They come from fleas.

Tapeworms are not very serious, at least not for healthy, adult cats, and are relatively easy and inexpensive to treat.

pocho · Dec 2, 2014

There are good uses for food grade DE but some debate whether it can kill internal parasites. It works by destroying the exoskeleton of bugs that come in contact with it. But internal parasites aren't made with hard outer shells....not sure though. Also remember, the healthier the animal the better they can deal with the parasites. For instance, the cat that gets overwhelmed with fleas and dies of anemia most likely was already compromised health wise...parasites are a part if life. Eww......don't like that truth at all!

snooshy · Dec 2, 2014

pocho said:
There are good uses for food grade DE but some debate whether it can kill internal parasites. It works by destroying the exoskeleton of bugs that come in contact with it. But internal parasites aren't made with hard outer shells....not sure though. Also remember, the healthier the animal the better they can deal with the parasites. For instance, the cat that gets overwhelmed with fleas and dies of anemia most likely was already compromised health wise...parasites are a part if life. Eww......don't like that truth at all!

"Internal parasite are not made with hard outter shell" is right....that is why the D.earth kills them. D.earth is crushed up seashell fossils. Microscopic sharp edges...cuts them and dehydrates them. Exoskeleton just means the "outer layer: of the bug.

I LOVE d.earth!! lol

pocho · Dec 2, 2014

I use it for dusting straw in feral cat shelters and sometimes dust the kibble during rainy days. I have also read internal parasites have a mucous covering that renders the DE ineffective. ? Any thoughts on that? Have you seen it first-hand work on internal parasites? I know people even ingest it for many reasons.

HELP ME PLEASE - Tapeworms again 3rd time in 6 months

TCS Member

Thread starter

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

Thread starter

TCS Member

TCS Member

Thread starter

TCS Member

TCS Member

Animal Lover Extraordinare

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member

TCS Member