USA Horse Industry at a glance Horses are one of the most adorable and intelligent species on the face of the earth. Like others, the evolution of the horse did not occur in a straight line. Many of the horse-like animals were branched-off but now a day’s one genus is the only surviving branch of a once large evolutionary bush which is called Equus. In this Equus group, horses got their scienti...
Worms in Cats and the Precautions for the Owners-
Are you a pet owner? I am sure, you would feel uncomfortable listening to the word “Worms”. Worms are parasites that can harm your pet.
As far as the cats are concerned, there are three main intestinal parasites in cats.
Roundworms and hookworms are ubiquitous in the environment. It means you are going to find them in the soil of your backyard or even potentially in your potting soil. These two parasites are considered zoonotic to humans. So, we must make sure your cat is not carrying these.
Roundworms get their name because they are round and tubular and look like an earthworm. They vary four to six inches in their sizes and reside in the intestines of your pet. They live on the digested food of your cats and dogs. A roundworm in the cat’s intestine can lay two hundred thousand eggs per day.
These parasites are more important in pregnant females because immature roundworms migrate through the body and can infect the developing kittens inside the womb of mother cats. If such happens, kittens are born with worms. Later, these immature roundworms can get into the mammary tissues. When the kittens hatched out of the mother’s womb and get that colostrum which is loaded with protection and energy, they also get a load of worms that way.
So, roundworms are not good. They deprive your cat, especially in the nutrients. They can cause diarrhea which further exacerbates the condition of losing nutrients through diarrhea. So, your cat will get stunted growth and a pot-bellied appearance. Other symptoms are poor and rough hair coat or fluff of your cat. The main problem with the roundworms is that there is a zoonotic potential to the owner. An owner can get these worms from his buddy and this is especially a problem with kids. Because they do not wash their hands after handling the pet and get infected with the eggs of roundworms. It is important to clean up after your cat removes the faces. Do not let them coop in a playground area.
Detection of roundworms is not an easy job. Only a professional can diagnose the roundworm infestation. One misconception is that the roundworms can be seen with naked eyes. This is not true. These can be observed only under a microscope. So, let your veterinarian look at a sample of faeces of your cat under the microscope.
Hookworms, thank goodness, are not common in cats as in dogs. They get their name because live in the intestine by attaching themselves to it with the help of hooks. These are also called as Vampire parasites as they suck a lot of blood from the pets’ body with their attaching hooks. The clinical signs and symptoms of hookworm infestation are:
- Un-thriftiness in cat
- Weight loss
- Pale mucous membrane
- Gums of the cat becomes almost white
- In severe cases, death can occur.
Detection of hookworm
Detection and determination are not possible by a layman. Only the veterinarian can diagnose the hookworm infestation by analyzing the stool of a cat.
Tapeworms are one of the most commonly found worms in felines. These are long and flat resembling tape or ribbon, that’s the reason behind their name. Even though it is rare for a human to be infected, tapeworms are harmful to not only cats but also the people in the surrounding of that pet. That’s why you should deworm your kitten when it comes to adult or senior cats. There are two main types of tapeworms.
- Dipylidium caninum
These reside in the small intestine of the cat. The dipylidium caninum are the eggs of tapeworms which hatch after they find their way inside the cat. The taenia is the actual tapeworm.
Cats can get infected if:
- Your kitty has already a flea infestation.
- Your cat hangs around faeces from another cat or dog.
- Sometimes your kitty gets infected when it get in touch with her wastes.
- She swallows an infected bird or rodent.
Tapeworms are problematic but not lethal. They feed-off of the kitty’s intestine. As such, they devour the cat’s nutrition and if there is a large infestation, they will affect the cat’s nutritional needs. In case of a large tapeworm infestation, your cat will lose weight. Its appetite may also change depending on how long the worms have been inside it and how many there. The cats’ fur will get patchy and will partially lose their softness. These parasites can cause vomiting and sometimes even diarrhea, but these effects won’t show up in all cats which have been infected with tapeworms.
Can you get tapeworms from your cat?
I have a one-word answer. YES……… not only you but your children and your other pets can also get tapeworms if your feline pal has them. If the dog or other animals sniff, lick or touch the infected kitty faeces, they can be contaminated. The faeces may contain small tapeworm eggs, which resembles rice grains. Cat owner themselves can see yellow, sesame seed-sized items on the fur of your cat’s back region. Most importantly, these parasites are more evident in the poop of your cat as they are excreted in higher numbers through faecal material. They can take short moves by constricting the body and then lengthening it.
Treatment of worms’ infestation is simple.
Consult your veterinarian for the treatment of roundworms infestation in your cats. Give your cat the prescribed medicine that will kill the worms in the intestine of the cat. In most cases, the veterinarians prescribe broad-spectrum anthelmintics such Albendazole, fenbendazole and sometimes piperazine.
However, no medicine for immature roundworms or those in mammary tissues is available yet in veterinary science.
Prevention is better than cure
There are several ways you can follow to prevent the tapeworm infestation in your pet cat.
- You should deworm your cat at-least four times a year with regular intervals.
- Cats should always be dewormed before mating and becoming pregnant with kittens. Because they can pass down various worms to newborn kitties.
- Hookworms’ larvae can even penetrate in your skin. So, be sure to wear shoes and keep your kids out of the sands boxes unless they are covered for the cats.
- Seek a professional’s help to get rid-off tapeworms.
- Do not opt for homemade remedies and do not show up at the local pet store without consulting without your pet vet.
- Let the veterinarian inspect the cat’s faces to determine the type of tapeworms. In some cases, he might need to do an X-Ray scan to check the infestation inside your furball’s intestines before prescribing the proper treatment.
- You need to use tapeworm preventive medicine orally on your pet, usually in the form of tablets. Your vet will tell you the amount of medication you need to feed your cat and the frequency with which it should be administered.
- Make sure the medicine you are using is correct and dosages are administered correctly and regularly.
9. If you are taking your pet for a walk on a leash, be careful of fleas, carrions and infected rodents.
10. Keep your house and yard clean and flea free at all times. The process usually takes more than one procedure.
11. You must keep clean the litter box at all times because litter box and cats’ bedding are usually the places where fleas might be hiding.
12. An annual faecal examination is necessary to follow to maintain the health of your pet