An Owner's Guide to Roundworms in Cats

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     Roundworms in cats are one of the most common internal parasites. They infect the intestine and average between three and six inches long. Severe infestations can easily be fatal to kittens. You may be wondering how these worms can infect your cat.

Transmission

Most kittens that are infected with these worms got them from their mother. If the mother was infected in the later stages of her pregnancy, she can pass them on to her kittens while nursing. Cats can also swallow eggs harbored in the soil or consume a rodent that was infected.

Symptoms

A mild infestation of roundworms in cats usually cause no symptoms in either kittens or adults. As their numbers grow, they can cause various symptoms such as vomiting, coughing, constipation, and periodic diarrhea. Your kitten may also develop a pot-belly and a dull coat or hair.

Diagnosis

Fortunately, this condition is easily diagnosed. Since there are usually plenty of eggs in an infected cat's stool, a stool sample will be analyzed. The sample will be mixed with a solution so that the worm eggs will float and be detected easily.

Treatment

Once diagnosed, roundworms in cats is simple to treat. Your cat will have to take deworming medication. This medication will incapacitate the worms so that they are passed out of the body in the stool. However, this deworming medication has no effect immature worms or those that are still migrating to the intestine. Therefore, your cat will likely have to take two or three rounds of this medication a few weeks apart.