Reoccurring worms: Deworming Your Cat at Home
Now, I’m not a veterinarian… just got some experience from being a pet owner, and helping at local pet rescues. I’m going to be very honest, vet bills are expensive, and worms can definitely turn out to be a re-occurring thing. Especially if you let your cats go outside, which many people do. Our furry friends go outside, pick up fleas, or eat rodents with these parasites, and end up getting worms. I was looking at my bill for my last “deworming” visit to the vet, and it came out to $58 dollars.
What’s wrong with that? Well, I’m glad it wasn’t over $100. But, there is something wrong with this picture. Instead of spending 44 dollars on the exam, and 12 bucks on 18mL of Panacur, I can spend 30 bucks on 100mL of Panacur, and dose our families cats 5 times with that bottle. It’s not hard to figure out that your cat has worms as long as you are aware of the symptoms of having worms.
The symptom most cat owners first notice is the presence of worms in the feces of the cat. Other symptoms may include lethargy, increased hunger, vomiting, diarrhea, and weight loss. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t take a stool sample to the vet and initially figure out what kind of worms you have, but if your cat is having a case of re-occurring worms, the chances are you know what kind of worm you are dealing with from previous vet visits. Vets will tell you these things.
Here’s a list of the different types of internal worms your cat can get:
(not including heart worm)
∙Roundworms (Ascarids) are internal parasites. They are very common. Some statistics say that almost one-third of all kittens under three months old have roundworm, and about 10 per cent of all adult felines have it. Roundworms are to be suspected if your cat or kitten is in otherwise good health, but somehow seems in poor shape (for example, a dull coat, gas in the intestines, diarrhea, or a pot belly).
∙Tapeworms (Cestodes), the most common is Dipylidium caninum (this worm also infests dogs). A tapeworm is an internal parasite and you can find evidence of these worms in your cat’s litter box. These are the worms in cats that look like little grains of rice or sesame seeds that can be found in your cat’s feces.
∙Hookworms are internal parasites and are found inside your cat’s intestines. They get their name from their hook-like teeth that attach to your cat’s intestines. Hookworms are particularly dangerous to kittens.
∙Lungworms are types of worms in cats that often go undiagnosed because their symptoms (coughing and difficulty breathing) are usually only exhibited with a really heavy infection.
The good part about all of these worms is that Panacur can knock them all out. I found a website that sells wormers where Panacur can be purchased. You will also need to buy some mL (milliliter) syringes (1 per cat, be sanitary). You can pick up 5mL syringes from Walgreens for about 3 bucks a piece.
Now, the thing to keep in mind when de-worming your cat is that there are worms in different stages of development in your cats stomach. I know this “schedule” for de-worming may seem a little wacky, but there is method to the madness, and this is generally how vets prescribe the medicine to their patients.
Kittens:
∙Starting at 3 weeks old, you want to start deworming in case there are any parasites internally that were contracted from the mother. Parasites are usually contracted through drinking the mother’s milk.
∙Kittens should get syringed a ½ mL of Panacur once a week until they are 10 weeks old.
Adults:
∙Adult cats are a bit more complicated, it is 6 doses for one adult cat total, and it done over a period of three weeks.
∙First week – Give your cat 1mL of Panacur every other day, for three days.
∙Second week – You do not dose your cat at all.
∙Third week – Give your cat 1mL of Panacur every other day, for three days.
In rare instances, nausea, vomiting and loose stools are observed as side effects of Panacur (Fenbendazole). Contact your vet if these side effects occur.
