One of my cats has terrible worms. We've tried the bob martin spot on one and tried to get him to eat tablets but he won't. Even wrapped in all sorts of fish and mashed into his food I just can't get him to take tablets.

I asked at pets at home but the man was no help. They're little white worms up to about 1/2 an inch long. When I asked the pets at home man he just kept on telling me to try more tablets with the cat which I'm not willing to do. My cat is getting very skinny now and I'm at my wits end and worried for the cat.

Can anyone recommend me anything to try or at least tell me what type of worms they are?

Thanks.

I would speak to a vet.

A lot of the stuff you buy over the counter just isnt strong enough. A vet will be able to give you something to sort out your cat.

I would also do it sooner rather than later.

as above.

to be honest if you ever see the worms coming form your animal it's a trip to the vet straight away - as whatever prophylactic treatment you had been using hasn't worked to prevent the infestation!

You need to go to the vet. There's a drop called advocate which does fleas and worms at the same time and coz its a drop you don't have to worry about getting a pill down. You need to do this every month. Every 6 months you can get another drop off the vet, I think it is called Drontal and is for tape worms.

You need the stuff from the vets because the store bought stuff isn't very effective and doesn't get all types of worms.

Worms can make cats really very sick so sooner rather than later is best.

Hope that helps

i had a pet wouldnt take any tablets always came back no matter what it was hidden in ..i got a tube of nutri plus gel for pets and crushed the tablet up ..mix it with the sticky gel and gently place it just inside the pets mouth if someone holds it for you ..

We use advocate and use drontal for tapeworms as advocate doesn't cover it... go to the vets...

Its Tape Worm.

Go to the vet for Advocate - tomorrow if possible. It is a spot-on application as Ninja-Kitty says.

If not possible, try a crushed Drontil (available from P@H) in Shiphams Chicken Paste (available at ASDA)

But, go to the vet anyway even if you do get a Drontil inside cat. 'Really Skinny' might not be worms.

Does your cat allow you to use a spot on. I us profender for our cats that wont take tablets. Like the others say the over the counter ones are usless. Also what weight is your cat you might not be given him enough.

Drontal from the vet.

Kneel down on floor, sit back on your heels. Place cat between knees and hold with one hand. Tip head right up with other hand, prise open jaws and drop that tablet straight down its throat. Clamp its mouth closed and hold it closed until its swallowed a few times.

If you use this methd on a tiled floor its even better because they cant get any grip with their claws.

If you cant get a tablet down you could get a nurse at your vets to do it. I do that with my kittens as i would be scratched to bits otherwise. Is your cat an indoor or out door one as they can pick them up if they kill an infected animal. He needs to see a vet just for a check up anyway because he needs to be checked out for the weight loss. I am sure its worms though.

Sounds like Tapeworm to me. These are nasty. Over the counter worming products are useless and can actually harm your cat if they are sensitive to the ingredients.

My two have always had Stronghold (although this doesn't counter roundworm I believe). and have never had worms or fleas thankfully. You must consult with a vet.

If you're worried about the cost, you can often buy these things cheaper online (eg Viovet) but you need a prescription from your vet to do so. Most vets will charge for the prescription and so you need to weigh up the difference between this charge plus the charge of the online medication versus that which you buy at the pharmacy on the premises. But you do not always need an appointment.

I've always found it cheper to buy in bulk. My vet will write a 6month prescription and then I buy online. It is cheaper than buying at the vet's pharmacy every month or so.

If the worms are that size, flat like grains of rice and coming out from the bottom then they are tapeworm segments. That might account for the weight loss too. The vet will give you a treatment. If the cat is sicking up the worms that are round like spaghetti and up to 5" long, they are roundworms. Again, vet will give you something to administer.

In my experience most cats will root out tablets in food Ask your vet for a tablet 'popper'. Its a device like a syringe with a claw like gripper at the end. You place the tablet in the gripper, open cats jaws and press the plunger, then clamp your fingers round the mouth to keep it shut. It fires the tablet to the back of the tongue and the cat's reflex makes it swallow it. TBH, its a 2 person job...one to hold the cat and one to pop in the tablet. We put a towel flat on my knee, other half places cat on my knee, I quickly scoop corners of towel up and wrap round cat's back, gripping the towel tight at back of cats neck so it is encased in towel like a parcel, and those front paws cant scratch and it can't escape. It soon becomes routine and you quickly get it down to a fine art so its all over quickly and the cat feels the least distress.

Excellent towel wrap advice. We use this method on my old boy who has a heart pill every morning.

Please updates us and lets us know if you've been to the vet. We'll only worry otherwise.

We had eight cats at once point, 4 were wild rescues. This method worked for us too. Just be firm, get a good hold and prize jaws apart, pop tablet in and then hold mouth shut untill they swallow it. Sally's towel wrapping advice is also a good idea.

i have found putting the cat in one of my husbands jumpers and then pulling the sleeve down over the cat will then funnel it into a tight grip with all his paws tucked neatly away in the sleeve with just his head showing, then i can prop him on my lap and pop the pill in with no scrabbling or scratching. when your done, put the cat in the jumper on the floor and pull the cuff of the sleeve, out comes kitty have done this for a while now with our cat.

also, if you really cant get pills in your cat, our vets do a scent/taste free granule wormer. mix it with a small amount of wet food and the cat has no idea its had it

Hiya, if you go to this site and buy this http://www.petshed.com/products/item108.asp

It takes about 8 days to get to the uk.

But you'll still need to go to the vet for the moment, I used this after my bengal cat had ear mites and the vet would only give me drops, after many scratches later I bought Revolution, it cleared up in about a week, it also does fleas and worms as well.

Colin

For easy worming, forget Drontal, towels, and cats down jumpers (although that is a genius idea kelly) - get Profender drop on treatment from the vet. More expensive than Drontal of course, but very effective, and renders the process completely easy and painless.

Thanks guys. I totally forgot I posted this. Have already made a vets appointment to get him checked out so hopefully it'll just be the worms and they'll be able to give me something to sort them.

Any news yet ?