Cats & Cat Health

Alfie has had ringworm. I don’t know where it came from but most likely one of the mice or rats he catches on his evening prowls. It started with a crusty patch that I noticed when I was stroking him. A little while later I found he had lost some fur and developed a red inflamed looking area in the same area. As I am an ex nurse I was pretty sure I that this was ringworm. To be sure I did some research online and found a very useful article here: Feline Ringworm

Looking at the images I could see that he had the type of ringworm that cats catch from mice and rats. He is a great rodent catcher so now I know where he caught his ringworm.

We had some antifungal ointment, Lamasil, so I began to rub it into his bald patch twice a day. I also applied some antiseptic cream because it looked inflamed which means it was infected. He didn’t mind this at all and I felt that he knew we were helping him. I guess its what a kitten’s mum would do so as I am his adopted mum he was OK with it. I must add that he is a cat that isn’t normally OK about being touched at all unless he initiates it!

Within about 3 days it was looking much better,the inflammation had gone and the area looked as if was healing well. I continued treatment for another few days to make sure no more fungus was lurking. I am keeping and eye on it now just to make sure we got it all and it isn’t growing back.

I read another article about cat ringworm it which told me this:

You will also need to clean the rest of the home thoroughly to ensure there are no ringworm spores present. You will need to wipe down all areas that your cat has been near with a cleaning solution, as well as washing all bedding and cleaning the carpets. Your vacuum cleaner will need to be cleaned out as well. Keep your cat indoors and away from other animals until the ringworm has cleared.

Well I am sorry but that sounds like a marathon Spring clean to me and I am really not equal to it! Would anyone go to all this trouble for an easily cured fungus? The spores if any, that may be around your home will die without a host so don’t worry about them.

You do need to check other animals and wash their bedding. If you have children check their skin to ensure they haven’t caught it from the cat. That is probably all you need to do, unless you are keen on extra housework!

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