Treating Kitty Worms

I just got a new kitty and he is only 6weeks old. It was his first night with us last night and I never seen an animal so afraid in my entire life. Poor lil guy!
anyway, I tried to feed him this morning and he only wanted a little wet food. He didn't even try the dry stuff, and I offered that first!
I have noticed his little belly is really round. Like a pot belly and also he has not gone pee or poo yet. I have a suspicion that he has worms.
He also has a flea infestation but mom has gone out today to get some stuff for that...

Is there anything I can do here at home to help get rid of the worms?? Can you buy medication at the pet centers??
I can bring him to the vet but that will cost money for cab and I'm sure she will want to give him rabies and other vaccinations that I didn't really want to buy. But if I have to I will... we can't let kitty have these worms for much longer! He stomach is just massive.
The lady that gave him to me also said that he had eaten 4 times that day. WHO let's there cat eat four times a day! and he smelt like smoke SOOOO bad I didn't even want to touch him. But this morning the smell is almost gone!

Let me know what you think I can do about the worms?

He needs to see a vet and he NEEDS vaccinations.. Why do you not want to get vaccinations that are required for his health and survival? Rabies is required by law, but they also need the FVRCP, FeLeuk vaccines too. They are not expensive compared to what it would cost to treat the cat if he/she actually got sick.

Internal parasites needs to be diagnosed by a vet so you know what type of parasites the cat has. If you just treat for one thing, such as roundworms, but the cat has tapeworms(from the fleas most likely), then you're not going to do anything to get rid of the tapeworms. Deworming is a minimal cost that can protect not only the cat but your family. If that cat has hookworms, YOU can get them. Did you know they burrow through the soles of your feet if you step in cat feces and don't know it? Yep!

He/she will need a series of vaccinations, usually 2-3 weeks apart when they are kittens. He/she will also need to be neutered at 3-5 months of age, but that is also a very minimal expense.

Remember to also feed a very high quality food so the cat doesn't come down with urinary tract infections or urinary stones that block the bladder and make him unable to urinate.

Definitely don't allow him/her outside until vaccinations are finished, and even still, they really should be kept inside constantly, for their safety.

Good luck with him/her!

Ok, get this... I called the vet and her admin lady friend told me that I need to be giving this cat milk. I didn't know that. And if he gets diarrhea I need to give him some plain yogurt.

She doesn't want to setup an appointment for vaccinations yet because he is only 6 weeks old. and she wasn't concerned about the worm question at all. She said, why don't you try feeding him wet food and see if he will poo after that.

So now I have to wait a few weeks before I can even get into see the vet. Maybe I should go to a different one but it just seems weird because everyone in the city says she is the best but sometimes I wonder if she knows what she is talking about... oh well... I'm gonna try to the milk idea.

You can get all natural de-wormer, it's not extremely effective but it does help. The vet should see the kitty though even if it can't have shots.

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Originally Posted by Perry

You can get all natural de-wormer, it's not extremely effective but it does help. The vet should see the kitty though even if it can't have shots.

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That is what I was thinking too but she said, no, just give him some milk and yogurt and if he doesn't poo then you can bring him in I guess...

Um.. NO. Do not give cats milk. They are lactose intolerant and it will just give them diarrhea. He does not need to be having diarrhea and getting dehydrated. That will make him VERY sick.

I would find a different vet, the kitten NEEDS a proper deworming and waiting won't help him. He's just going to get worse.

The canned food generally doesn't have any nutrients at all, it's just fatty and watery. Get some high quality dry food and soak it for a bit in water and see if he'll take that. Canned food is generally only for a treat.

that seems weird to me... i'm pretty sure mine was only 7 weeks old when i took her in. i'll have to look for the vet records... i do agree with becky that the worms should be taken care of ASAP- although i didn't know about steppin on hookworm poop... gross! good thing my dog doesn't poop in the house! cuz i had to treat her for that a while back!

What kind of vet would refuse to see your animal?? Did you get it for free? Does this vet have some sort of vendetta against free? Personally, the second she told me she wouldnt see it, I would have gone elsewhere with my cat. I have about 8-9 different vets in my area, I wouldn't waste time on someone that tells me to give my cat milk and hope it goes away. That's ridiculous.

I agree with you all when you said that a cat should NEVER have milk! The vet did sound a little crazy when she said that and I even told her that was kind of weird but she said try yogurt if he gets runny...
anyway we actually got him to poo and pee for the first time in tonight! YIPPY! He only ate once this morning and hasn't drank anything yet! He won't even drink the milk (which is kinda good anyway) and I did check his poo for worms and didnt see anything with the eye but thats not to say he doesn't have them...
So I will contact a different vet see what they say!
and yeah it is weird that she didn't want to see him right away just for a checkup.

and he was a free cat. I was going to go to the animal rescue league but they charge 120 for a cat, and they have have kennel cough from what I have heard from a friend who has gotten two.
But anyway I guess when you get free cats they are almost guaranteed to have fleas and worms. YUCK!

anyway I appreciate all the feedback from you guys and hopefully me and kitty can get things worked out for him!
I'll have to take some pictures sometime and share them, he's a ball of fun!

poor snakes haven't gotten any attention for a few days. I better go visit them now! lol

glad to hear he's doin okay! let us know what happens when he sees a vet! it doesn't surprise me that you can't see anything in his stool. i only found out that my dog had hookworms during a routine checkup. she wasn't showing any symptoms yet, thankfully. so, good luck! and definitely post pics! :p

First off, I'm horrified that you take on a kitten and then say that you don't really want to pay for any of the minimal care that they need to be healthy. That is absolutely irresponsible of you...you should not have gotten the cat if you were not willing/able to provide veterinary care. Deworming and vaccines are mandatory for any puppy or kitten, followed by lifelong annual check-ups and flea/tick/heartworm control whether they go outdoors or not.

Most cat internal parasites won't show up to the naked eye...the exception is tapeworms. Hookworms, roundworms, whipworms, giardia, coccidia, and a bunch of others are all seen under a microscope (some of these have adult forms that are visible, but are rarely seen).

Becky is absolutely right...this kitten -needs- to be seen by a vet for a check-up and fecal and deworming, and at 6 weeks is old enough to have shots.

I'm curious though, when you called the vet did you say "Hi, I have a new kitten and I'm afraid he has worms and I'd like to get him checked out" or did you say "Hi, I got this kitten but I don't have any money and I don't want to pay for an office call, what can I do for him at home?". I find it very hard to believe that someone calling to schedule a check-up for a new pet would be turned away.

Also, I note you said "who lets their cat eat four times a day?"...kittens at that age need to be provided food 24/7. Meal feeding is perfectly fine (and my preference) for adult cats, but babies need much more frequent meals. Offer a high-quality canned kitten food (not adult cat, and not some junk bought at the grocery store or Wal-Mart), do as Becky said and soak dry food (again, high-quality and made for kittens), and if necessary, spread a little meat human baby food on top to get his attention. Healthy kittens will eat well with very little coaxing.

Another option is to locate a low cost vaccine clinic in your area. The ones in my area do a good job of looking out for an animals general health and taking care of routine shots plus deworming, they just don't go into any specific illnesses, that would need to be taken to a vet to have checked out. Your kitten definately needs to be seen and given its vaccinations and get dewormed. Some of the internal parasites that kittens can carry can be passed on to people, I am sorry that I can't think of the names of what types.... this is coming from my vet. They can and should be seen at 6 weeks, even though they may not be old enough to get all of their shots (I believe 6 weeks is too young for the rabies shot)... and those over the counter dewormers don't work very well from what I have seen. Good luck with your kitty, please get it seen by a vet!

I would definately get the cat to a vet. I am no expert, but I know that there are diseases that fleas can spread from cat to cat or even from mouse to cat, even an indoor one. Fleas can spread worms also.