Discussion
We rescued an abandoned cat (very tame, obviously not feral) mainly because she was very obviously pregnant. Usually the first treatments for our (15 so far!) rescues are de-flea and de-worm, but you can't easily de-worm a heavily pregnant moggie. Roll the clock on a couple of weeks and Fatso is still just that, fat. We took her to the vet, who had a prod and a poke and declared that he could feel four kittens, so we took her home again. Now, five weeks after we took her in she's still fat, considering she must have been several weeks gone when we took her in, her time was up. A different vet performed an ultrasound, and discovered precisely no kittens, just a hugely distended intestine, with a massive colony of worms. Our poor understanding of the language made it difficult to understand the vet's prognosis, but bad news is universally understood. She's finally been treated for worms, but the question for the vets in the group, what could be the consequences of untreated worms? She has a chronic cough, an insatiable appetite, and can fill a litter tray with cat-eggs in a couple of hours.
In some cases, worms can lead to death due to the sheer numbers. Worms multiply in geometric progression in the intestines. A single female roundworm can lay up to a hundred thousand eggs in a day. If left untreated, the worms can block the intestinal passage and cause death.
Nearly all types of worms are passed through the feces into the environment. Unless the symptoms are very prominent, the only way that infestation can be diagnosed is by visibly detecting live worms or their eggs in the feces. Roundworms are long, round and slimy looking creatures. Live tapeworms can be seen moving and look like grains of dried brown rice when dry.
Since worms in cats can remain in the body without causing any symptoms, it is imperative that you get your cat’s feces checked regularly for larva or worm eggs. Outdoor cats need more frequent checking since they are more susceptible to the problem.
A cat infested with worms becomes more vulnerable to other diseases. Some type of worms can potentially infect humans, too. It is necessary to carry out a regular examination of your pet’s feces in order to avoid such eventualities.
Nearly all types of worms are passed through the feces into the environment. Unless the symptoms are very prominent, the only way that infestation can be diagnosed is by visibly detecting live worms or their eggs in the feces. Roundworms are long, round and slimy looking creatures. Live tapeworms can be seen moving and look like grains of dried brown rice when dry.
Since worms in cats can remain in the body without causing any symptoms, it is imperative that you get your cat’s feces checked regularly for larva or worm eggs. Outdoor cats need more frequent checking since they are more susceptible to the problem.
A cat infested with worms becomes more vulnerable to other diseases. Some type of worms can potentially infect humans, too. It is necessary to carry out a regular examination of your pet’s feces in order to avoid such eventualities.
Continuous infestation with a tapeworm causes a cat to lose weight, have a dull coat or become malnourished due to a lack of nutrients that the tapeworm ingests. Because of the constant shedding of eggs into the environment, the cat will also become infected with multiple tapeworms which is what you have described.The cat may lose its appetite due to abdominal pain or suffer from diarrhoea. Other effects of a tapeworm infestation include lethargy, dizziness, vomiting and anal irritation, which usually results in scooting along the ground or intense grooming of the anal area.
Without treatment, tapeworms in your cat's system will continue to grow and thrive, possibly making the cat very ill. The cat will continue to shed tapeworm segments, which will in turn infect fleas, easily ingested by small children. Because tapeworms can infect humans, this can endanger other animals and humans in the home of the infected cat. Prevent re-infection by using flea control products on the cat.
ETA: The constant re-infection of worms can in turn cause an intestinal blockage which can, in turn, result in the death of the cat in its worst case scenario.
Without treatment, tapeworms in your cat's system will continue to grow and thrive, possibly making the cat very ill. The cat will continue to shed tapeworm segments, which will in turn infect fleas, easily ingested by small children. Because tapeworms can infect humans, this can endanger other animals and humans in the home of the infected cat. Prevent re-infection by using flea control products on the cat.
ETA: The constant re-infection of worms can in turn cause an intestinal blockage which can, in turn, result in the death of the cat in its worst case scenario.
Edited by R300will on Thursday 15th December 22:49
Thanks for the replies, she's going for surgery on Tuesday (neuter). The vet seemed worried about her liver, but the Bulgarians have a quaint way of describing the insides, lungs are the 'white parts' and the liver is the 'red part", with the same word for both, so it may have been lost in the translation.
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