Do Domestic Cats Need Deworming?

A cat dewormer is a medication that helps a cat to get rid of parasites and prevents their further growth. According to a common belief, only outdoor cats need deworming, and there is a grain of truth in it. The “risk” group includes the following categories of pets:

• cats that live outdoors (in a barn);
• cats that regularly walk outdoors;
• cats that contact other pets;
• cats that eat raw meat.

This is true. However, it doesn’t mean that cats, spending all the time indoors and eating commercial dry food have no risk of infestation. Some parasites are transmitted by intermediate hosts, for example, mosquitoes. Another source of infestation is your own clothes and shoes. You have no notion of what a great number of tiny worms can live on the soles of your boots. Even newborn kittens can be infested: some worms penetrate through the placenta, while others are transmitted with milk. That is why vets recommend deworming felines on a regular basis.

Types of Intestinal Parasites

Both indoor and outdoor cats can suffer from various types of parasites. Here are the main types of worms that are commonly found in domestic cats:
•          Tapeworms are long flat worms with the bodies divided into several segments. Each segment serves a container for the storage of eggs. Tapeworms consume nutrients from the food eaten by a cat, which causes quick weight loss of the pet.
•          Roundworms are shorter and their bodies are round, not flat. They die hard and can survive outside their host for several years until a new host is found. Roundworms cause a lot of comfort to cats; moreover, they are dangerous for people too.
•          Hookworms are short worms living in the pets’ intestines. Unlike other worms, they don’t consume nutrients from the food; instead, they suck pets’ blood by “hooking” to the walls of their intestines. They are extremely dangerous and can even cause death.
•          Whipworms are more frequently found in outdoor dogs, but they can sometimes affect cats as well. They cause inflammation of a pet’s bowel, which, in turn, results in poor food digesting and pain. These parasites cause a lot of discomfort to cats, and are difficult to diagnose at an early stage.

Types of Intestinal Parasites

Different cat dewormers have different chemical composition. Some of them are effective against certain types of worms, and others help to fight with all types of parasites. There are meds that are used for the prevention of infestation and the wormers prescribed for the treatment of infested pets. Finally, there are chemically produced and natural medications. Here are the main types of cat deworming drugs.

• Broad-spectrum dewormers work against two or more kinds of parasites: roundworms, tapeworms, hookworms, or whipworms.
• Parasite-specific drugs are effective against only one type of worms.
• Preventive dewormers are commonly available in the form of topical meds and are used to prevent infestation with parasites.
• Natural or homeopathic meds are focused on strengthening the immune system and pets’ ability to fight parasites.

In this article, we’ll review the best over the counter cat dewormer meds of different types. In any case, if you are not sure what to choose, consult a vet. Don’t forget that even natural remedies influence the state of health and well-being of your pet.

Things to Consider When Buying a Cat Dewormer

When choosing a dewormer, one needs to take into account several important aspects. A good deworming med must be safe, efficient, and easy to use. Here are the basic things to consider.

Effectiveness

It goes without saying that the remedy must be effective; otherwise, there’s no reason to use it. To choose a dewormer that is effective for your cat, you need to know what types of parasites it suffers from. The best approach is to consult a vet. Alternatively, you may choose a broad-spectrum med, but beware of stronger side effects of such dewormers.

Safety

There are no absolutely safe medications: all of them have both positive and negative impact on health. But their positive effect must overweigh the potential harm. Whenever possible, choose the dewormers with minimal side effects. Check whether the drug is certified or not – this information must be available on the manufacturer’s official website. Finally, read customer reviews of the chosen medication.

Ease of Administration

If you’ve ever tried to make a cat eat something against its will, you know that without a due experience and persistence you’ll fail to do it. Manufacturers of cat dewormers try to make their product as attractive for cats as possible. Oral meds are available in the form of pills, liquids, and pastes. Some of them can be mixed with the food. However, the preferences of different cats differ greatly, so it’s impossible to predict how your kitty will react the offered remedy.

Top-10 Products in the Cat Dewormers Category in 2018: Our Choice

Here is a brief description of the best cat dewormers that are currently available on sale. For every product, we tried to single out pros and cons. Based on this cat dewormer review you can choose an ideal OTC med to treat your beloved feline.

Basic Facts about Cat Dewormers that You Need to Know

1. Broad spectrum cat dewormer meds help to get rid of all types of worms but cause more side effects.

2. Some worms can be transmitted from cats to people and cause health problems.

3. The first deworming of a healthy kitten is done at the age of 2 months.

4. Even if your cat looks absolutely healthy, chances are it is infested. Some worms don’t cause any symptoms until there are too many of them.

5. Parasites are virtually everywhere. If your cat doesn’t live in the vacuum, it will get infested one day.

Preventing Worms in Cats

Always keep in mind that it’s virtually impossible to prevent a cat’s infestation completely, especially if your cat walks outdoors. But there are some ways to reduce the risk by taking proper preventive measures. Here are the basic tips.

Keep the Place Humming

The main source of worms is feces of other pets and birds. Don’t let your cat contact it – if you take your feline for a walk, use cat’s harness. Keep the territory around your home clean, especially if you have dogs that walk or live outdoors.

Prevent Your Cat from Eating Prey

Though cats are traditionally considered to be beasts of prey, don’t let your domestic cat eat mice, wild birds, and other preys. It’s the easiest and the fastest way of getting infested. The same is about insects: beetles, mosquitos and even fleas, which can be transmission vectors.

Raw Meat Can Be Dangerous

If you give your cat raw meat, put this meat in a freezer for several hours or even several days. Defreeze it before use. To minimize the risk of infestation don’t give raw meat and fish to cats.

Use Preventive Meds

In particular, heartworms prevention is crucial. Consult your vet and choose the proper medication for a pet together – the med can come in the form of pills, injections, or fluids. Commonly, they are administered once a month in prophylactic purposes.

Strengthen the Cat’s Immune System

If a cat has a strong and healthy immune system, it will be able to fight with parasites on itself. On the contrary, immune compromised animals are prone to infestation like nobody else. Choose the proper food for your feline and don’t forget to add essential vitamins and minerals to its everyday ration to strengthen the immunity.

But even if your cat lives indoors, eats dry food and doesn’t contact with other pets, you can’t exclude the possibility of infestation. Don’t forget to take your feline to a vet from time to time in order to check it for worms. By the way, vets recommend deworming cats regularly even if they don’t have prominent symptoms of infestation.

Treatment Options

If your cat severe symptoms of deworming, such as severe vomiting, fast weight loss, and apathy, or if OTC drugs, such as Bayer cat dewormer, don’t help, you need to show your pet to a specialist immediately. In other cases you may try to deworm a cat by yourself, though consulting a vet is still a good idea.

It is crucial to buy the right type of a dewormer. The easiest way to know what types of worms your cat has is a fecal test – choose a dewormer that is effective against these particular types of parasites. There must be a prompting in the name of the med. For example, Bayer expert care tapeworm dewormer cat tablets are obviously for tapeworms expelling. If you are not sure, read the instruction: most chemical meds contain one of the following components.

• Pyrantel pamoate. This is a crucial component that helps pets to get rid of hookworms and roundworms. It doesn’t kill them physically but completely paralyses their ability to consume nutrients from the cat’s organism and stay attached to the guts. As a result, alive but paralyzed worms get out of the cat with the feces.
• Praziquantel is effective against tapeworms, which are not killed immediately but lose their ability to take nutrients from the cat and starve to death. The bodies of dead worms are dissolved right in the pet’s organism.
• Piperazine is a stronger variation of Pyrantel. It works for dogs and large healthy cats, but is non-suitable for weak kitties and small, young kittens.

Keep in mind that there are no absolutely harmless drugs. Find information about the chosen cat dewormer side effects and try to estimate the risk in advance. If your cat has severe side effects, stop the treatment and show the pet to a vet.

Verdict and Recommendations

We’ve reviewed 10 popular OTC cat dewormers. It’s hard to recommend a particular med, as their intended use is different. If what you need is a tapeworm dewormer, consider Bayer’s product – safe, effective and with minimal side effects. To fight roundworms, try the Pro Sense cat dewormer, which is easy to administer due to its liquid formula. And Naturpet D Wormer is an effective 100% natural broad-spectrum remedy, which doesn’t cause harm and has a healing effect on the digestive tract. Our top pick is Bayer Drontal Broad Spectrum Dewormer – while being a bit pricier than most analogues, it is 100% effective against all common types of worms, safe, and cause virtually no negative reactions.

Sources:

https://www.cats.org.uk/thanet/feature-pages/cat-flea–worming-advice

https://www.sunsetvetclinic.com/ask-the-vet-can-i-get-worms-from-my-cat/

Attention!

Alisa Mendoza

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