A Brief Guide to Understanding Worming Treatments
Why Should I Deworm My Cat?
If your cat is infested with worms it can potentially cause diarrhea, weight loss, sickness, developmental problems (kittens) and irritation around the anus. Humans can also become infected with roundworms, children and the elderly being most at risk. Although quite rare, humans can become infected with tapeworms.
One way to reduce this risk of infection is to ensure that your cat's litter tray is emptied and cleaned on a daily basis, and all pets are treated for fleas and worms regularly.
It is quite common for a cat owner to avoid worming their cat as often as they should because of the stress of administering the drug for both cat and owner. Cats pick up on your behaviour when you’re about to do something they might not like and will often respond by making themselves scarce - if you are nervous or stressed this will exacerbate the situation.
Fortunately, there are many different types of cat wormers available for you to experiment with to see which one your cat objects to the least. It is also advisable to speak with your veterinarian who will be able to demonstrate the most effective way of administering worming treatments to your cat.
These days there are many worming treatments available, the majority of which are available in flavoured varieties and in ‘treat’ form focused on improved palatability.
How Often Should I Deworm My Cat?
Most cats should be wormed at least every three months, however, frequency should be based on how likely they are to pick up re-infestations, for example; if your cat is a hunter they may pick up worms by ingesting small mammals and therefore should be wormed more frequently.
Contact one of our Animal Health Advisors (SQP's) who are on hand to advise and recommend a suitable worming program for your pet. Call us on 0203 675 0780 (Mon-Fri)
A point to remember! wormers will only kill an existing worm burden and will not have a long term effect, so any new worms being picked up after treatment will not be killed until the next worming dose is given.
Available Worming Treatments:
Tablets:
- Drontal cat worming tablets work fast to fight intestinal worms.
- Available in two different strengths of tablet
- Drontal cat tablets kill every type of intestinal worm commonly found in UK cats.
- Suitable for use in kittens and adult cats
- Effective after a single treatment
- Kills roundworms and tapeworms
- Can be given directly or hidden in food
- 1 tablet / 4kg bodyweight
- Tablets can be halved to aid more accurate dosing
- Can be given to kittens from 6 weeks of age
Spot-Ons:
- Kills tapeworms in cats
- Contains 4 pipettes (1 per every 2.5kg of cat’s weight)
- Effective against the Dipylidium caninum and Taenia species
- Can be used during pregnancy and lactation
- Not suitable for cats weighing less than 1kg.
- Dronspot provides fuss-free worming for your cat
- Kills every type of intestinal worm commonly found in UK cats
- Can be used during pregnancy and lactation
- Not suitable for cats weighing less than 1kg.
Liquid Suspension & Granules:
- Available in 10% Oral Suspension for Dogs & Cats and Granules
- Panacur is very effective against roundworms and other intestinal parasites yet are very kind and gentle on your pet.
- Safe to use on puppies and kittens from 2 weeks of age
- Safe to use during pregnancy and lactation
- Give directly or mixed in food
If you find your cat will not tolerate one specific worming method, keep trying alternatives until you find one your cat will tolerate. Alternatively there are some tricks which may aid in getting your cat to swallow the de-wormer.
Alternative worming methods:
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Crushing the worming tablet and mixing into strong smelling food, eg fish-flavoured wet food
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Disguise the medicine in a treat such as a small piece of meat
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Use a ‘pill giver’
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Follow the paste or liquid suspension with a treat such as a piece of meat to encourage the cat to swallow
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Try a spot-on preparation
Always consult your vet before treating pregnant or lactating queens for worms. Not all worming treatments are suitable during pregnancy.