My cat has tapeworms. Is her medicine working or does she need more?

Arya will have to eat the full dose in order to kill the tapeworms. Tapeworms can be a little more difficult to detect than other types of parasites unless you actually see them in the stool or around the rectum. You will need to repeat the medication and make sure that it is labeled for the Dipylidium species since it’s the most common in cats. You may also call your veterinarian as they will carry medications to kill that particular species. Most of the time cats will be dewormed once and then repeated 2 to 4 weeks later to make sure there are no parasites left. You may consider having her stool checked for the eggs but this may not always reveal an infestation. I hope this helps.

Due to the lifecycle of tapeworms, more than one treatment is needed to kill all the worms. At least two treatments need to be given two weeks apart. The first kills the adult present, while the second kills the adults that had not yet hatched at the time of the first treatment. You need to take your kittens back into the vet.

Yes, this is normal. The medication is working and due to the lifecycle of the worms, that other dose is need to kill all of them. This second dose should help kill them all and he should stop shedding the worms with a week after the last dose. I hope this helps!

Sometimes the worms die and just come out like mucus in the stool, not full worms. If you gave the proper dose I’m sure it was effective. You can repeat the deworming in two to three weeks to be sure and follow the directions on the package. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for your cat.

These do indeed look like tapeworm segments, so BV will definitely need to be treated again. Normally, to make sure that all life stages of the tapeworms are killed, the initial deworming dose needs to be repeated in 14 days - so if this wasn't done the last time she was treated, this could by why the problem has recurred. She may also simply have become re-infected, either from fleas or from eating dead rodents or other animals if she hunts outdoors. I would recommend calling your vet to let them know that you are seeing tapeworm segments again - they may be able to have you come and pick up another dose of dewormer for her, rather than requiring another exam since she was just seen for this problem two months ago.

From the picture these look to be tapeworm segments. Often you will see them dried on the rear end too. Pyrantel is a great broad spectrum dewormer, but it doesn’t kill tapeworm. Droncit ( praziquantel) kills tapeworm. I always recommend a full fecal exam looking for microscopic eggs as animals who have parasites often have more than one kind. Tapeworm can cause gastrointestinal signs if she has a high enough worm burden. Best of luck and I hope she improves soon! Thank you for using Pet Coach.

What you're seeing is most likely tapeworms. Tapeworms are intestinal parasites of the cat and dog. They belong to a different family than hookworms and roundworms, which are the other common intestinal parasites of dogs and cats. Fleas are the intermediate host for tapeworms. In other words, the tapeworm is unable to complete its life cycle without the presence of fleas in the environment. Regardless of whether the owner may have seen fleas, the cat must have ingested a flea in order to have tapeworms. Consequently, tapeworms are more common in environments that are heavily infested with fleas. Most commonly, owners recognize that the cat has tapeworms and bring this to the attention of the veterinarian. When segments of the tapeworm break off and pass into the cat's stool, they can be seen crawling on the surface of the feces. These proglottid segments look like grains of cooked white rice or cucumber seeds. Less commonly, segments are seen moving around the cat's anus. A variety of products are available to treat tapeworms in cats but they are not all equally effective. For the best advice on the type of de-worming preparation most suitable for your cat, you should seek the help of your veterinarian. The most effective worming products are only available by prescription from a licensed veterinarian. Flea control, both environmental and on the cat is necessary to help prevent this from recurring.