Help! Fleas!

So my two cats have caught fleas from my roommates dogs. Yesterday I treated them both with Sentry Fipro for cats in hopes that it will kill the remaining fleas and eggs I didn't get with the flea comb. Should I automatically assume that they will get worms as a result? I can take them to get dewormed if so, but I don't want to put them through that stress unless absolutely necessary. But I'm not home every time they use the litter box so I can't expect every poo for signs of worms. What should i do? Wait it out or treat them now?

The most common worm from fleas are tapeworms. Most of the time you will not see much at all, but what you do see of tapes would generally look like a small grain of rice (fresh segment) or dried sesame seeds (dried segments) on your cat's fur or where she's been sitting. The fresh segments dry quickly, and the dried segments are quite tiny. Thus you would need a pretty sharp eye and quite a bit of luck to spot a segment on your cat's poo or fur. Heck, even vets don't always find the segments during a fecal exam! That's because the segs are shed intermittently, and not with every BM.

The good news is, tapeworm medicine usually only requires one dose (Droncit or Drontal). Thus, the "stress" would be momentary as you give the pill. If you have a regular vet, s/he may even just let you call in an order for the medicine, and as long as you have a current weight on your cat and a current rapport wit your vet-- they can probably set you up with a dose to take home; no visit needed. But DO check with your regular vet re. their policies. If your ca's impossible to pill, you might have to just run her in for an injection of the same medicine. Again, it's a one-time dose, so you don't have the stress of repeated trips.

I would do it, honestly... since fleas are an obligate host, and cats groom so meticulously, and infections happen when the pet swallows a flea which is certainly possible. We had vets who would do just that on request. But again, most of the time it was a case of "Call the vet, get the pill, take it home to the cat... done!"

Hope that helps...

~MackieMac