Why do people say "All kittens have worms"?

[snake_lady]

Originally Posted by ut0pia

In two weeks, Jake is getting his next set of shots and the vet told me he will do another fecal test because the worms could somehow infest?? I don't quite understand how, but I trust him..

What I learned was that tapeworm eggs can be hard to see through the fecal exam.

As well, tapeworm segments don't come out with every poop. They may come out with one, then not again for a few more poops.

Hope that helps.

 

[goldenkitty45]

When I was breeding I always had mom checked before she was bred. My cats don't go outside, don't have fleas and don't eat raw meat, so they never had worms.

Neither did the kittens (but they were checked when given 1st shots by the vet). So they were not automatically wormed either.

I only check and worm if I see something. Otherwise its not a routine thing.

The only reason most do it, is cause you pick up strays or the parents are not checked, etc. But IMO you should never automatically worm unless the vet has checked them out. This goes for cat or kitten. Worm medicines are poisons and its not good to just give it to a cat/kitten that has no problems.

 

[wellingtoncats]

I worm my cats every three months. Two of my cats go outside and catch birds so I wouldn't risk anything.

I use the dewormer in the link below.

http://www.foodtown.co.nz/HomeShoppi...ockcode=272336

 

[mzjazz2u]

As far as I have ever heard from my studies as a medical professional, We all have bacteria but not worms.

That said, my cats get tested twice a year, just in case. And they haven't come up with worms. But they are not kittens. I have heard of kittens that didn't have worms when they were young though.

 

[yosemite]

Some people don't believe in vaccinating their children against Polio, measles, etc. either because the odds are their children won't get those things. I prefer preventative action myself but everyone has to make their own decisions on how they will treat their own pets.

My feeling is if a dewormer isn't going to kill our pet or cause any kind of internal damage to their organs, then it is safer for them than having worms IMO. It's also better to ensure there are no worms if there are children around our homes handling our cats.

 

[familytimerags]

My earlier advice is from Dr. Susan Little, the President of the Winn Feline Foundation, and a feline specialist.
I will continue using my vet for preventative measures against worms. He uses a safe, effective worming medication, and I know that my cats/kittens, as well as my family are safe.
Just because a cat is indoors only, it only takes one fly or mosquito to come in, and bring worms into the home.

Purrs,
Stormi

 

[ut0pia]

flies and mosquitos carry heartworm

 

[wingss2fly]

My 4 have been dewormed just because of the Mom. We had bouts of runny pooh, and the deworming shots helped.
Now after 5 tests of fecal. We have never found worms but shots were given anyway. Okay so I have one cat who gets the runs all the time. She thinks she is a Labrador, she eats anything and all she finds he took some stuff out of her teeth last month when we were in with boody pooh. We ran more samples and found nothing. So come to find out, there are so many different kinds if bugs that they can have in the tummy vets don't normaly run the test because of cost. So my dog cat is now on a cat probiotic, and dang it works really well. And now Doc has started to agree with me about the IBD. He says she is young for it, but it kinda makes sence. So her diet is kept without corn and glutens, not too much fiber, and not as much food as they were getting,cuz they are all fat, and sassy!

 

[kaylee892015]

You are giving your cat antibiotics yet you won't give your cat deworming medicine. Antibiotics are the same thing in the way of not being quote on quote "good for your cat". But the reason to do it is for the greater good! You want them to be healthy in the long term. It has been stated multiple times that it is virtually impossible to tell 100% for sure if your cat has worms and if so which ones, so why would you risk it? Especially when cats (especially) kittens are so susceptible to contracting them in so many different ways. It is definitely worth it to get the deworming medicine from a vet in your area. When you look at what could happen if you are wrong about your cat not having worms.. Serious/ life changing, and potentially fatal Consequences for your kitten. Also it is relatively easy for children to contract certain parasites and the consequences are very serious as well. i have dewormed my cats every change of circumstance that posed a threat of them getting a parasite (ie. Getting a new kitten). They have never so much as blinked an eye after taking it and my oldest cat is the epitome of health, strong, active, beautiful shiny coat, healthy teeth and gums, she has never even coughed up a hairball. My other cat is still very young but he has also been very healthy so far. And I will be deworming them once a year after this because they are exclusively inside cats. I garden so I bring in dirt on my gardening clothes, in summer bugs get into the house and my wonderful cat kills them all and eats most of them (including any flying bugs). I'm not going to risk my precious kittens health at risk so I AM going to deworm. Sorry for the tangent, I just feel strongly I know of a similar situation in which the little one ended up passing away.

 

[jennyr]

You are giving your cat antibiotics yet you won't give your cat deworming medicine. Antibiotics are the same thing in the way of not being quote on quote "good for your cat". But the reason to do it is for the greater good! You want them to be healthy in the long term. It has been stated multiple times that it is virtually impossible to tell 100% for sure if your cat has worms and if so which ones, so why would you risk it? Especially when cats (especially) kittens are so susceptible to contracting them in so many different ways. It is definitely worth it to get the deworming medicine from a vet in your area. When you look at what could happen if you are wrong about your cat not having worms.. Serious/ life changing, and potentially fatal Consequences for your kitten. Also it is relatively easy for children to contract certain parasites and the consequences are very serious as well. i have dewormed my cats every change of circumstance that posed a threat of them getting a parasite (ie. Getting a new kitten). They have never so much as blinked an eye after taking it and my oldest cat is the epitome of health, strong, active, beautiful shiny coat, healthy teeth and gums, she has never even coughed up a hairball. My other cat is still very young but he has also been very healthy so far. And I will be deworming them once a year after this because they are exclusively inside cats. I garden so I bring in dirt on my gardening clothes, in summer bugs get into the house and my wonderful cat kills them all and eats most of them (including any flying bugs). I'm not going to risk my precious kittens health at risk so I AM going to deworm. Sorry for the tangent, I just feel strongly I know of a similar situation in which the little one ended up passing away.

I know you have good intentions, but I need to pint out that the last comments in this thread date from 2008, and many of the people posting are no longer on TCS. So I am afraid you will get no answers from any of them.