Ringworm

My sister had been fostering kittens for the ASPCA for 3 weeks. When she went to return them yesterday, she found out that one of them had ringworm. Now she has come home for Christmas (to our house with my mom's 3 cats). I am also home for Christmas and have my 2 cats with me. She has brought home all of her clothes that the kittens had played in, and the suitcase they had slept on, etc. All 5 of the cats here are healthy (although they might be under a bit more stress since they are around new cats, but they are getting along great), but I am seriously concerned about my cats getting sick. My mom does not seem concerned at all and has no problem with all of my sister's stuff in the house, and the cats playing with it, but I am worried. Nothing has actually been disinfected. I am seriously considering going home tomorrow (although my mom started to cry when I told her this), but is it worth it? Since my cats were exposed to my sister's stuff and my sister herself, will prolonged exposure (for another week) increase the risk of contracting ringworm (opr once they are exposed they are exposed?)? I am so frustrated that they don't seem to be taking this seriously, but am I being overly concerned?? I see that it is not overly contagious supposedly if all the people and pets are healthy, but how likely is it? Any advice would be wonderful. Thank you.

I should clarify, just in case it was not clear. My sister was fostering the cats at her apartment, and now she has come home to our house. The infected kittens were never in contact with our cats and our cats were never at the apartment where the infected kittens were. It is just all of my sister's stuff from her apartment that has come here to the house.

If your sister washed all her clothes in hot soapy water and took a shower- I think your cats would be pretty safe. Would she do that for you?

The spores can be everyhwere but mostly in her apartment. I agree wash all the clothes. Cats are exposed to ringworm frequently if they are outdoors therefore a cat iwtha healthy immune systme should be able to repel it. Kittens and older cats have weak immune systmes therefore catch it very easily. Humans can catch it pretty easily too sometimes.

Under the circumstances it would probably be better to stay. Can your sister shut her door? She must be wearing clean clothes so that should be fine for exposure to her. If you can minimize risk that would be best.

Wash all clothes and vacuum and you should be fine. Ringworm is not a big deal anyway (it's basically athlete's foot) so no matter what, it's not the end of the world.

True ringworm is just a fungus infection of the skin and your adult cats most likely not have any problems with it. Just relax and enjoy your stay as the spores are everywhere anyway.

For some reason I seem to be very supseptable to ringworm. When I brought kittens home from the humane society neither of them showed signs of having RW but I still managed to catch it. It's a really annoying thing to deal with so just make sure everything's clean and don't wear any of your sisters clothing! Lol The first cases I got broke out into HUGE rings and I have permanant scars. If you do end up getting it this is what I do to get rid of it... I buy the athletes foot spray and spray the RW until my skin freezes and turns white. After a day or so it'll heal back over into a scab but won't be alive anymore. Never pick at the scab though because it will leave scars. Hope you don't get anything!

I am pretty sure that the ringworm your cats have and the ringworm humans get is not exactly the same. Same symptoms but if you catch it from your cats it doesn't last as long because it is a different ringworm, I want to say its not the same species of ringworm but that is not the right word I don't think. I am not even sure if I am correct but someone told me that at the shelter that I work at.

Hi all,
Just thought Id throw this in and then you can correct me if Im wrong.. My mother is under the impression that sometimes thats how you can tell if the cat needs worming..? She gets the occasional tiny one that goes away pretty quickly but she says it always seems to be around the time shes due to be wormed..

This is probably not the right place for this next question but are there any sure ways of telling when they do need worming.. as well as going by every three mths..? (there has to be a better way than getting a ringworm.. )

My mums cat is gorgeous, shes healthy, no fleas etc and is strictly an indoors cat.. so that eliminates her gettin it from outdoors or other cats..

Jodie

Originally Posted by blondieandtia

Hi all,
Just thought Id throw this in and then you can correct me if Im wrong.. My mother is under the impression that sometimes thats how you can tell if the cat needs worming..? She gets the occasional tiny one that goes away pretty quickly but she says it always seems to be around the time shes due to be wormed..

This is probably not the right place for this next question but are there any sure ways of telling when they do need worming.. as well as going by every three mths..? (there has to be a better way than getting a ringworm.. )

My mums cat is gorgeous, shes healthy, no fleas etc and is strictly an indoors cat.. so that eliminates her gettin it from outdoors or other cats..

Jodie

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I'm not sure I'm very clear on what you are saying but I'll try to answer if I understand you correctly.

First ringworm really isn't a worm. Its a fungus that you can see on the skin. The reason its called ringworm is because in early days when the circles were seen on the skin they looked like a worm and therefore doctors thought it was a kind of worm. Later it was discovered that alls it is a fungus but the name never changed. If your cat is healthy and indoors with little or no exposure to other animals then it is very unlikely to get ringworm and you don't need to worry about it. Just wash your hands if you have been petting other animals.

As far as worming for regular worms... Kittens coming from a shelter usually need to be wormed. Once the vet worms them then if the cat is indoors there is no need to continue the deworming. A stool check once a year will indicate whether the cat needs additional doses but in all likely hood that cat is not being infected. If your mother suspects your cat is getting worms every 3 months then I think whatever she is using is not working properly. A healthy adult should be less likely to get worms and usually only through outdoor exposure (which her cat is indoors). I would recommend seeing the vet and getting them to do the dose as not all over teh counter wormers work...

Signs of worms include a huge belly (usually in a kitten). Kittens with worms look like there bellies keep growing but the rest of their body looks under nourished. Worms suck all the vital nutrients out of the body so the cat can also become very thin and have an unhealthy look about them. A stool check from the vet (very cheap) is the best way to know but occasionally you can see them in the stool. Sometimes you can just bring the stool sample by without the cat for testing if you suspect something and money is an issue. If you ever see worms in the stool yourself then that is a sure sign but sometimes they are to small to see.