Kitten with ringworm- I messed up

[Erikab]

Hello. Maybe someone can help me.
basically I adopted two kittens about two weeks ago and it’s been a mess. I adore them to death but I feel so bad because they’ve had some struggles. The shelter told me they were fine and healthy but when I took them to the vet after adopting them, they really have been having a lot of issues.
One of them has a parasite that we’ve been treating and the other has ringworm. It kind of just popped up within the last couple days, and I know he got it from the foster home he was at because one of his siblings had it, but he got tested before we got him and was supposedly negative. The shelter have me lime sulphur to put on it with literally NO instructions. It said, apply once every 4 days for 21 days. So I tried it last night and the poor baby FREAKED out.
so I’m sobbing, calling the shelter, asking what to do and they are telling me that I was supposed to rinse it off within5-10 minutes and everything I’ve read now says it should be diluted , but I didn’t know because no one told me and I feel so guilty because I think it hurt him really bad.
his eye is swollen and it seems almost like it burned his skin, and he’s now bald in those spots and was bleeding. And the clinic at the shelter who I was talking to was no help at all. I just feel so guilty, but I didn’t know, I just trusted them. He’s acting normal now but I’m going to call my actual vet today. I feel like a terrible cat mom. I should have done more research, and I feel horrible. Does anyone have any advice? I’m so overwhelmed. I haven’t stopped crying.

 

[Morpheus1967]

You're doing the right thing in bringing him to your normal vet.

 

[danteshuman]

I agree a vet can help if his skin got irritated or
burned a bit by the ringworm killer. Also a vet can help you figure out when & how to treat his ring worm.

If you have other pets you should look up how you need to quarantine the kitten & what steps you need to take to protect your other pets from getting it.

I would honestly be much more concerned about the other parasite & demand a copy of the kitten’s medical records from the vet that treated the kitten in the past. How did they miss the other parasite before adopting the kitten out? Did the kitten really get vacinated against panlokemia? Or did they drop the ball on that to? How on earth did their vet miss ringworm and a parasite during the final pre-adoption health check?

 

[gilmargl]

Try to calm down and stop worrying. Nobody is purrfect and most of us have done something dreadful at some time or other. When I admitted squirting almost a whole tube of Panacur into some poor kitten, I was told "Don't think that you're the first person to do that!". It was entirely my mistake - forgot to set the ring to stop the injector emptying completely. Most people refuse to admit their mistakes but that doesn't mean they don't make any.

But in your case, the guilty ones are those who simply assume that we are all experts. I don't know why there is so much arrogance among volunteers at shelters. It no doubt makes some people feel more important when information is withheld or instructions not given precisely enough for the layman to follow. I have had this problem but have learnt to always consult my vet before administering pills or whatever provided by shelters who are often short of money, time and (sadly) commitment.

Try to comfort your kitties. Stop crying and concentrate on making them happy. You made a mistake - they'll forgive you. Kittens forget and they usually heal quickly, and, in the worst case, can live happily with three legs, one eye, no teeth .......... they are not like us, they have no regrets.

I hope all three of you recover as soon as possible.
By the way, when a kitten has ringworm, I always treat the whole litter and don't stop till all are cured.

 

[silent meowlook]

Hi. If you used the Lyme suffer dip full strength you need to take him to a vet now. No need to feel bad, it won’t help, but he does need to go to a vet now. Make sure you have rinsed it all off being careful to keep the water out of his mouth and make sure the water temp is a little warmer than room temp. Dry him by blotting with a clean towel and get him to the vet.
The shelter was negligent in not properly instructing you how to use the dip and they SHOULD be responsible for the results of this.
The concentrated dip can cause serious burns and have a systemic toxic effect, and if it got in his eye it can cause corneal ulcers and scarring. So, he must be seen but this isn’t your fault and you just have to handle what’s happened and deal with the emotions later.

 

[neely]

The shelter was negligent in not properly instructing you how to use the dip and they SHOULD be responsible for the results of this.

I agree! Technically they should reimburse you for your vet visit and medical treatment but unfortunately I doubt that will happen.

I'm very sorry you are going through this since you thought you were doing the right thing by giving two kittens their forever home. Please keep us posted on their progress.

 

[di and bob]

The next time you are not absolutely sure about the instructions, look them up on the internet. I use the internet constantly to get instructions and advice. you might get some wound spray FOR CATS at a local farm supply store like Tractor Supply or Orschelns and keep it around to soothe sores, and wounds. soak a small rag or cotton ball to apply it, cats hate the spraying sound. you didn't purposely hurt your little one, none of us are perfect. If you happen to get the ringworm, get a fungicide at Walmart or somewhere (usually for athlete's foot) and apply it, or get a prescription from the dr. Keep every lesion covered on yourself with a bandaid. This keeps it from spreading. Things will get better!

 

[Erikab]

I agree a vet can help if his skin got irritated or
burned a bit by the ringworm killer. Also a vet can help you figure out when & how to treat his ring worm.

If you have other pets you should look up how you need to quarantine the kitten & what steps you need to take to protect your other pets from getting it.

I would honestly be much more concerned about the other parasite & demand a copy of the kitten’s medical records from the vet that treated the kitten in the past. How did they miss the other parasite before adopting the kitten out? Did the kitten really get vacinated against panlokemia? Or did they drop the ball on that to? How on earth did their vet miss ringworm and a parasite during the final pre-adoption health check?


View attachment 400719

Thank you so much! Yeah it’s all been a bit of a nightmare. I don’t understand what is going on and why we were given such sick kitties after being told they were healthy. I’m so frustrated. Just because I was definitely not prepared! But of course it’s not the kittens fault and I still love them forever and always will.

 

[danteshuman]

What did the vet say?

 

[Erikab]

What did the vet say?

They told me that his skin is okay. They reassured me that he would be okay. They told me again to reach out to the shelter. Just to double check instructions and to also ask for an oral medication to give him. So I did all of that and they prescribed him terbinafine. And also a different medication just for precautionary measures in case he also has the same parasite the other kitten has. I’ve started deep cleaning everything.but needless to say I’m still very overwhelmed. I just hope they get better soon.

 

[Erikab]

The next time you are not absolutely sure about the instructions, look them up on the internet. I use the internet constantly to get instructions and advice. you might get some wound spray FOR CATS at a local farm supply store like Tractor Supply or Orschelns and keep it around to soothe sores, and wounds. soak a small rag or cotton ball to apply it, cats hate the spraying sound. you didn't purposely hurt your little one, none of us are perfect. If you happen to get the ringworm, get a fungicide at Walmart or somewhere (usually for athlete's foot) and apply it, or get a prescription from the dr. Keep every lesion covered on yourself with a bandaid. This keeps it from spreading. Things will get better!

Thank you! Yes I know better now to double check everything. I had read a lot, but I just assumed that the instructions I got were correct but they weren’t! So I know now to double check better. And thank you for the advice about the wound spray! I haven’t been able to find one yet. Do you have a recommendation?

 

[Erikab]

Try to calm down and stop worrying. Nobody is purrfect and most of us have done something dreadful at some time or other. When I admitted squirting almost a whole tube of Panacur into some poor kitten, I was told "Don't think that you're the first person to do that!". It was entirely my mistake - forgot to set the ring to stop the injector emptying completely. Most people refuse to admit their mistakes but that doesn't mean they don't make any.

But in your case, the guilty ones are those who simply assume that we are all experts. I don't know why there is so much arrogance among volunteers at shelters. It no doubt makes some people feel more important when information is withheld or instructions not given precisely enough for the layman to follow. I have had this problem but have learnt to always consult my vet before administering pills or whatever provided by shelters who are often short of money, time and (sadly) commitment.

Try to comfort your kitties. Stop crying and concentrate on making them happy. You made a mistake - they'll forgive you. Kittens forget and they usually heal quickly, and, in the worst case, can live happily with three legs, one eye, no teeth .......... they are not like us, they have no regrets.

I hope all three of you recover as soon as possible.
By the way, when a kitten has ringworm, I always treat the whole litter and don't stop till all are cured.

Thank you so much for your kind words. It meant a lot! It’s definitely been a learning process for sure. I knew when I was adopting them I would have to deal with Heath problems most likely at some point or that I was always a possibility but I didn’t think Thai would all happen so soon! So I’m definitely learning. He is much better after everything that happened. I am getting him an oral medication and will get an anti fungal shampoo to hopefully get him better soon. Thank you again for all of your advice. You made me feel much better!

 

[danteshuman]

I’m relieved to hear the kittens are ok!!! Please don’t freak out. This will pass, they will survive & thrive! You are doing great & are not a bad guardian for this mistake (I would say the shelter is at fault.) Take lots of pictures and videos.

For what it is worth fortiflora helped my 6 month old kitten’s occasional diarrhea. So maybe after all the oral medication you can give it a try if you need to. I gave it to him for a couple of months to use it up; but a month made a difference.

a lot of the deworming medications give the kittens the runs, so don’t freak out.

 

[di and bob]

On the kind of wound spray, it really doesn't matter which kind, just make sure it says you can use it on cats. I have Vetricyn and Nutri-vet, both work as a cleaning/healing spray for cats. You can also apply the human antibiotic salve a couple of times a day such as triple antibiotic, just make sure it doesn't have a pain reliever in it, which they started adding and is toxic to cats. if it doesn't mention it, it is OK. hopefully, this will all just be a bad memory and you get to start enjoying your kittens!