Worming and pregnant kitties...

I have a question that may be important for me to know in the very near future.....

Can a pregnant cat be dewormed, and deflead???

I know pregnant humans can't do anything, is it the same for cats?......

Thanx

Yes, you can deworm and deflea pregnant cats. Make sure you use Program, Advantage, Revolution or Frontline and only get the deworming meds from the vet. It's much better to deflea and deworm the mother while pregnant so she doesn't pass on parasites to her kittens when they're born.

Originally Posted by Kumbulu

Yes, you can deworm and deflea pregnant cats. Make sure you use Program, Advantage, Revolution or Frontline and only get the deworming meds from the vet. It's much better to deflea and deworm the mother while pregnant so she doesn't pass on parasites to her kittens when they're born.

Click to expand...

I had a feeling that would be the case, since most parasites are passed tranplacentally.......But wanted to check...

And no worries I know all the horrors of OTC flea/worm meds.....

Thanx for the info

Strongid, at least, is perfectly safe for pregnant/nursing cats and for kittens over 2 weeks of age.

There are relatively few meds that are truly unsafe for pregnant/nursing mammals (including humans), though often doctors (vets and MD's) won't prescribe anything out of fear of liability. It's silly IMO because it's not whether or not something passes into the placenta or the milk, it's whether or not it's harmful to the babies that matters. Pretty much everything crosses the placenta and many things pass into milk to some extent but most things are safe.

However, it can be very surprising to find out what is not safe. For instance, my vet researched whether antibiotic eye ointment was safe for my pregnant foster cat who had a slight URI. Apparently all of the available antibiotic ophthalmic ointments have the potential to cause brain damage in the kittens if used in the last 2 weeks of pregnancy. Who would have guessed that eye ointment would cross the placenta and harm the kittens? The vet sent us home with oral Clavamox and instructions to irrigate the eye with saline drops to flush out the infection instead.

On that note I have another question......I would assume that vaccinating the cat while pregnant is ok too.....

Am i wrong in that assumption??

Now that's somehing you cannot do. Never vaccinate a pregnant cat as it can cause the kittens to be deformed or die in-utero. This is because the live vaccine is passed on via the placenta and the kittens receive that live vaccine virus.

Originally Posted by Kumbulu

Now that's somehing you cannot do. Never vaccinate a pregnant cat as it can cause the kittens to be deformed or die in-utero. This is because the live vaccine is passed on via the placenta and the kittens receive that live vaccine virus.

Click to expand...

ooo Geeze thats good to know....thank you

Originally Posted by Nebula11

On that note I have another question......I would assume that vaccinating the cat while pregnant is ok too.....

Am i wrong in that assumption??

Click to expand...

You cannot give a modified live panleukopenia(FVRCP) vaccine. This is extremely important. It can cause cerebellar damage or even death in the kittens.

Killed vaccines are safe, per the package label. I give my pregnant cats a killed FVRCP.

Originally Posted by semiferal

You cannot give a modified live panleukopenia(FVRCP) vaccine. This is extremely important. It can cause cerebellar damage or even death in the kittens.

Killed vaccines are safe, per the package label. I give my pregnant cats a killed FVRCP.

Click to expand...

And I would assume rabies would be good as well...since it is killed

I don't vaccinate pregnant cats period. I wait till the kittens are weaned and then do it.

Originally Posted by hissy

I don't vaccinate pregnant cats period. I wait till the kittens are weaned and then do it.

Click to expand...

It would probably be best to do it that way...Just to be safe.....

My only worry was the colostrum that the babies recieve during the first 24 hours of birth, without her being vaccinated, they will not recieve those immunities......

However I am sure that w/ the kittens being raised in a safe enviroment, rabies is unlikely.......

My worry was the FVRCP...as I know those kinds of URI can be brought into the house via humans.......

But I can see that it is probably better to be safe than sorry.....Thank you all for your responses....

Call your vet and ask when its safe to deworm or deflea the cat. You might be able to deflea it before the kittens are born, but ask your vet.

My vet recommends any deworming BEFORE the cat is pregnant, not during the pregnancy.

Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45

My vet recommends any deworming BEFORE the cat is pregnant, not during the pregnancy.

Click to expand...

Anyone who is not a breeder will not have that privilege. It probably is better to avoid medication at all in a pregnant cat but those of us who are taking care of pregnant strays and ferals don't get to deworm before pregnancy. If we had any say in the matter the cat would not be pregnant in the first place!

Originally Posted by Nebula11

It would probably be best to do it that way...Just to be safe.....

My only worry was the colostrum that the babies recieve during the first 24 hours of birth, without her being vaccinated, they will not recieve those immunities......

However I am sure that w/ the kittens being raised in a safe enviroment, rabies is unlikely.......

My worry was the FVRCP...as I know those kinds of URI can be brought into the house via humans.......

But I can see that it is probably better to be safe than sorry.....Thank you all for your responses....

Click to expand...

I had exactly the same feeling and did a ton of research before deciding on my current protocol. I've lost kittens to distemper and my feeling was that if there was anything that could be reasonably done to prevent this, then it was worth doing.

Since all the research (and the package label itself) indicates that it is safe to give a killed FVRCP to a pregnant cat, that is what I used to make my decision. I know that there is no guarantee that the cat will develop a titre in time to pass any antibodies on to her kittens in the colostrum, but I reasoned that if that did indeed happen, it was probably the best gift I could give the kittens for their first 6-8 weeks of life. And if it didn't work, the evidence was that it would at least not be harmful.

As for the rabies, I think it is just as safe but unnecessary provided that the cat has no access to the outdoors. In general, on that matter my feeling is that if there is no compelling reason to give any medical treatment immediately, during pregnancy, then it is better to wait.