New kitten has worms. What to do before vet & protect my other cat?

All kittens have worms. Get some kitten wormer today and worm them. Tell your children to wash their hands after handling the kittens and they should be fine. It only takes a few hours to get rid of the worms. However you will need to worm them again on about two weeks to kill the worms that have hatched from eggs present. If your children are very young and not able to comprehend that they will have to wash their hands, then it may be a good idea to separate them from the kittens for the next 2-3 weeks until the kittens have had their two doses of wormer.

Hello, thank you for your question. To ensure that your kitten is dewormed appropriately, you would have to be prescribed a product by your veterinarian. The most commonly used dewormer in kittens is called fenbendazole, and is given for a few cycles based on the life cycles of most intestinal parasites. There are other topical products that also do treat some intestinal parasites, however not all of these products are safe for kittens unless they are over a certain age. Therefore, to ensure that your kitten receives a safe and appropriate deworming medication I would recommend contacting your veterinarian. Hope this helps, good luck!

Generally speaking adult cats tend to be less sensitive to G.I. parasites and kittens. Also for many G.I. parasites they have to be passed in the feces and then spend a certain amount of time maturing before they become re-infective. So if you do a good job of cleaning the litter box frequently there's a lower risk of infection to your adult cat. If your adult cat is on a monthly heartworm preventative many of them also include a deworming medication. There are over-the-counter deworming medications you could consider giving to both cats however it's not guaranteed to clear all possible G.I. parasites. you could also discuss with your veterinarian about your inability to get a fecal sample and if they would be willing to just give a broad-spectrum deworming medication to your kitten.

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Moon. Congrats on the new kitten, but I'm sorry she has worms! Panacur kills roundworms (which is likely what she has), whipworms, and hookworms. You can get that over the counter. Deworm her now, and then again in two weeks to kill all the worms. After that, she should be dewormed monthly until she is six months old, and then she should be dewormed every three months. I hope this helps!

I am sorry to hear about your concern for your kitties! If this worm is long and skinny compared to the tapeworm segments then it is possible it is a roundworm. Roundworms are treated with a different dewormer than tapeworms, normally with pyrantel or fenbendazole. You can get these medications over the counter but if your kitty has not visited a vet yet, it might not be a bad idea to bring them in for an exam along with a stool sample to check for other parasites that could be present and invisible to the naked eye! You can read about roundworms and see an image at https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4951385

(sorry about that - I accidentally hit submit before I was done!) They may require you to bring Mystique in for an exam prior to giving you any prescription medication if you haven't been there with her recently. They may also recommend that you deworm your kitten prophylactically. Good luck, and I hope that you successfully get rid of those pesky tapeworms!

Many times you will not see intestinal parasites until the animals are critically sick. It's recommended to deworm young puppies and kittens every two weeks for at least three cycles, due to the lifecycle of the parasites. I would recommend getting a product labeled for kittens such as pyrantel pamoate. Make sure you weigh them and get accurate weights to dose the medication. As soon as you are able I do still recommend a veterinary exam as they will need vaccines, feline leukemia testing and there are other parasites that the pyrantel may not address. Look in your area as there are often low cost vaccination clinics available through pet stores or feed stores if a full service clinic is not possible. Also check with your local veterinarian as many times they may offer a rate for a litter of kittens versus charging each animal individually. Best of luck and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.