How Long After Exposure Should I Deworm My Cats?

[Adelei]

Hi all! I just rescued a 3 month old kitten over the weekend. I posted about her injury in another thread, but long story short, the doctor thinks she was a house cat that fell out of a window and injured herself (either that or someone beat her). He didn't see any signs of fleas but treated her just in case and sent me home with some Drontal to give her a few days later (I also bought some for my cats). I've got her separated from my two 1 year old cats, because she might have ringworm. However, there is just one door in between them and I am walking in and out, though I'm trying to wash my hands every time after I handle her and even change clothes when possible. Although I don't think she has fleas, she may still have worms.

After I've given her her dosage, when should I give my cats a dosage? They don't currently have worms, so if it only kills adult worms or doesn't provide ongoing protection, I don't want to give it too early. Hopefully they won't get worms, but I just want to be careful.

Also, how many times should it be given? The vet didn't tell me anything really (I'm in China). He told me to give 1/3 of a tablet to the 3 month old, but didn't say whether to give a second dose some weeks later. (I'm still trying to figure out how I can cut a round tablet into thirds! She weighs 1.1 kilograms, not sure why he said 1/3 versus 1/2...)

Thanks!

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

If NONE of them have worms, nor fleas, not sure why give any of them the Drontal . But if you decide to, I'd give it to them at the same time, then follow-up with a 2nd dose in a couple of weeks. Usually in the case of worms, it takes 2 or 3 doses to get them all. Sometimes even more, but you usually know if they have worms because you can actually see them. If you give them the Drontal and still see nothing, then I'm guessing they are worm free.

 

[Adelei]

If NONE of them have worms, nor fleas, not sure why give any of them the Drontal . But if you decide to, I'd give it to them at the same time, then follow-up with a 2nd dose in a couple of weeks. Usually in the case of worms, it takes 2 or 3 doses to get them all. Sometimes even more, but you usually know if they have worms because you can actually see them. If you give them the Drontal and still see nothing, then I'm guessing they are worm free.

It's very likely that she DOES have worms, even though she may not have fleas. I tried to make that clear without going into too many unnecessary details, but I suppose I didn't succeed. My cats shouldn't have had worms prior to her coming into my apartment. They were dewormed as young kittens and haven't been outside since.

Why would you suggest to give my cats the Drontal at the same time? She's only been in my apartment for 2 days (actually less than 48 hours at this point.) If she has worms and if they might have picked them up, would that be enough time for the worms to get at whatever stage in the life cycle Drontal would kill them? Or does Drontal kill all life stages? If it has to be repeated, I would think it only targets a certain life stage.

 

[jen]

I think it would be wiser to have a fecal done if you are that concerned and treat each cat accordingly. I don't like to give unnecessary medications to cats if they don't need it. If you do just want to go ahead and treat them all assuming they got worms somehow despite being indoor cats then I would do them at the same time as to better keep track. This is where a fecal check would play in because usually you treat after the fecal if necessary and then recheck the fecal after some time to make sure it is clear.

When are the other cats due for their next yearly check up? If it is in the next few months just take a fecal in and have them check it.

 

[Adelei]

I think it would be wiser to have a fecal done if you are that concerned and treat each cat accordingly. I don't like to give unnecessary medications to cats if they don't need it. If you do just want to go ahead and treat them all assuming they got worms somehow despite being indoor cats then I would do them at the same time as to better keep track. This is where a fecal check would play in because usually you treat after the fecal if necessary and then recheck the fecal after some time to make sure it is clear.

When are the other cats due for their next yearly check up? If it is in the next few months just take a fecal in and have them check it.

Vet care is not quite that advanced here in China. They don't do yearly check-ups, not at all like we would do in America. If I take them in for their vaccines, that is literally all they will get. I'll be lucky if they even weigh the cats. I don't know how to ask for a fecal in Chinese and if I did, they would look at me like I'm an idiot and just tell me to give the medicine if I'm worried. (This has happened so many times in other situations.)

I really must not have been as clear as I thought I was! So let me try again. Let's all assume that this 3 month old kitten DEFINITELY has worms. I'll explain since my previous attempts at communicating this have fallen short. Chinese people know little to nothing about keeping animals. Most would never even take their animals to the vet for anything, unless it was super sick. Very, very few even put collars on their dogs, let alone make them wear a leash while walking them, despite being in a city of 12 million+ where police routinely round up uncollared dogs and poison them, piling the bodies up on the sidewalk. Few Chinese people feed their animals actual pet food, most just give them leftovers. They take their cats to the vet (when they do take them) in open canvas totes (or plastic bags sometimes). A spooked cat could easily jump out in the middle of traffic. I've seen them riding scooters/e-bikes with dogs perched precariously on the seat behind the driver, nothing even to hold the dog on.

Most rescue organizations (I use the term very loosely) require a home visit before they allow someone to adopt an animal, to make sure that the people have bars on their windows. They also make them sign contracts saying that they will always have bars on their windows. It literally never occurs to most Chinese people that an animal can fall out of an open window (no screens here, at least not any that are sturdy). There are, of course, other ways to get pets, such as from a friend, buying from the pet market (which is like a doggy mill x10 in its horribleness) or picking up one of the many strays.

The vet thinks this kitten either fell out of an open window or was beaten. In either case, I'm thinking the previous owner didn't know or care to deworm her. If they didn't know they should have bars outside the window to protect the cat from falling, they probably didn't know they should deworm her. And I think the beating option speaks for itself. Also, if she's only 3 months, (possibly younger given her size and weight) she likely wouldn't have received all the doses of deworming medication even if they had known. And all that being said, the vet can't be sure that she was a house cat - there's no way to truly know, we can't ask her. She may have been a stray that was hit by a car.

So, there are my reasons why I really feel strongly that it is FAR more likely that this kitten has worms than doesn't.

So, assuming she DEFINITELY has worms and she just came into my house on Sunday evening and I'm administering the first dose of deworming medication to her tonight (Tuesday evening in China), when would be the best time to give just-in-case deworming meds to my cats?

Thanks for any help anyone can offer me!!!

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

Well...I think that's really hard to answer. Do you have any idea what type of worms this kitten might have? Every type of worm has a different time frame for their lifecycle. And you are right in thinking that Drontal only kills the adult worms. BUT, usually if a kitten has worms, there are signs. For instance, with tapeworms, you will see things that look like pieces of rice either around their anus or on their stools. With roundworms their tummies will be hard and large, yet the rest of them will be (usually) skinny. And then there are heartworms, and whipworms, and even flukes. Here is an article that describes the first four I mentioned and their "symptoms". The 4 Most Common Worms That Can Make Your Cat Sick Maybe if you can narrow it down, we can be of more help. That's one reason why I said what I said up above....If you give it to them all now, then you've covered all bases. If you want to wait on the adults for 4 weeks, then you're probably going to be fine too, but in any case, IF there are worms present, you'll need to treat more than once because the Drontal only kills the adults.