Thursday, March 28, 2024

How to Treat Ringworm in Cats? Find Out If Your Cat Is In Pain or Not

Every cat lover has a breed that they prefer more than others. Some people like extremely fluffy cats, others like kitties with a regular amount of fur, and a few even prefer hairless breeds. But regardless, all of them are beautiful in their own specific ways, and their owners adore them. How to Treat Ringworm in Cats? Find Out If Your Cat Is In Pain or Not!

That’s why it doesn’t matter what kind of cat you have, as you probably love it very much. With love comes proper care. While it’s relatively easy to take care of the basic things, you may not be aware of plenty of medical issues that could arise.

Ringworm is a severe infection that can be a lot of trouble if not taken care of immediately. However, you don’t have to worry about your little friend being in pain because you can’t even feel anything wrong.

It’s essential to know how to treat ringworm in cats. But before getting to the treatment, you need to be positively sure that your cat has ringworm.

How Do Cats Get Ringworm?

Ringworms are an extremely contagious fungus that can be transmitted through direct contact. That means your cat probably touched a person, an animal, an object, or a surface that was already contaminated by someone else. It is complicated to figure out exactly how your cat got it, as the fungal spores can stay on any surface for months and even over a year.

However, your cat just be a ringworm carrier as well. The reason is that not everyone who comes into contact with a contaminated person, animal, or thing catches the infection. Many other factors need to be right for your cat to develop a ringworm infection.

How to Treat Ringworm in Cats?

Ringworm is treated in cats in three common ways. Topical, oral, and cleaning up its surroundings. You need to make sure to carry out all three to successfully get rid of ringworm and never have it again.

Topical

Although some vets like to only use topical medication to treat the infection, using it with oral medications can be much more effective.

There are many anti-fungal creams and ointments available in drug stores and online that you can apply to the affected areas of your cat’s skin. However, you should consider only using what your feline doctor prescribes. You can also use a few home remedies to treat your cat.

Since you are going to be applying various creams, it might be useful to take an electric clipper and trim some of your cat’s fur. It will allow you to treat your cat better.

Oral

To get your cat’s health back as soon as possible, you most likely have to use oral medications.

Although there are many drugs that you can use, griseofulvin is among the most widely used traditional medications for ringworm in cats. You can also try some of the more modern anti-fungal medications, such as itraconazole or terbinafine. The modern ones are preferred because they have much fewer side effects.

However, you should still consider talking to your vet first. Only they can give you the names of the most suitable medication for your cat. That is because not all ringworm infections are the same.

Surroundings

Ringworm infection is hugely problematic, as it is highly contagious. Your cat’s hair contains tiny spores of the fungus, which you can’t see with the naked eye. That means your cat is contaminating areas every time it sheds its fur. Not only can that but also your walking on the floor can contaminate the surface of your home.

That’s why you need to be cautious when taking care of your cat. You need to make sure that no parts of your home are contaminated. If you do decide to trim its hair, very carefully dispose of it.

Can You Get Cat Ringworm Treatment Over The Counter?

If you haven’t visited a vet and are entirely sure that your cat does have the fungus, then you can look into over-the-counter products.

There are plenty of anti-fungal creams and oral medications available that can cure your cat over time. You can quickly get them online or at any major drugstore without a prescription. However, it would be useful to give your vet a visit to get your cat checked. They can prescribe the exact medication needed. The one you choose might be too aggressive or not enough. Not only that, but you might use it too much or too little.

Is Petting A Cat With Ringworm Safe?

Although the name suggests something else. Ringworm is actually a fungus that is highly contagious and infectious. That is why your cat should not come into contact with anything at all.

While you may think that you can’t possibly catch a disease from an animal, you can very easily get contaminated with ringworm if you’re not careful. That is why you should not pet your contaminated cat with your bare hands. Even if you use gloves to pet, it would be best to through them away immediately and quickly wash them up.

Summary

Cats are gorgeous animals that are very easily infected with ringworm, compared to others. The fungal infection can be transmitted through direct contact with another animal, a person, a surface, or any contaminated object. That is why you need to be very careful and take all the possible preventative measures you can.

You need to take your cat to the vet to make sure it has the infection before treating it. Although there are over-the-counter products available, you should consult your vet to find the best way to tackle ringworm.

You should continue to apply creams and ointment to your cat unless your vet says otherwise. You should also be very careful about the surroundings, as your cat may be contaminating everything it comes into contact with and spreading ringworm by shedding its fur. Above all, you and your cat should be perfectly fine in a few weeks if you correctly go through the process.

Serina Russow
Serina Russowhttp://smartcatlovers.org
Hey there, I'm Serina, your friendly feline fanatic! As the proud founder of "Smart cat lovers," I'm on a mission to share my passion for all things cat-related. With years of experience in cat behavior and health, I'm here to provide expert advice on nurturing happy, healthy kitties. When I'm not tapping away on my keyboard, you'll find me curled up with my four adorable furballs: Whiskers, Luna, Billy, and Charlie.

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