Cute little Cassie, 7-8 weeks old now. Gross tapeworms.

Ordinarily, you won’t need to regularly deworm your cats if they’re indoor only. Kittens, on the other hand, will frequently be born with some form of parasite internally. This means you’ll deworm your kitten every 2-4 weeks until they’re about 8 weeks. Dewormers like panacur or strongid will do the trick.

One form of parasite that requires something stronger than the two aforementioned are tapeworms. Cats usually get them from ingesting larvae, which can be brought by fleas.

Apologies to the squeamish:

You’ll sometimes see bits of the tapeworm either in feces or wiggling in the fur around the butt area. I found a tapeworm directly wiggling out of Cassie’s butthole.

When they’re dead, they look like a grain of uncooked rice. Alive, they look like cooked rice that can wiggle. My husband was grossed out and promptly handed me a paper towel to smush it.

For these kinds of parasites, Drontal is necessary. Luckily, I had some in my well stocked cat closet (we have a closet solely dedicated to various cat toys, beds, medicines, brushes, etc.) It’s a one time pill treatment at least, so no having to chase Cassie down multiple times to take medication. She was displeased enough with one pill.

It doesn’t surprise me that Cassie had tapeworm. They’re common when a cat has had a flea infestation, and as I mentioned in an earlier post about her, she was certainly infested.

Otherwise, Cassie is healthy and happy. She is quite eager to eat… as I’ve learned when she climbs up my leg at mealtime. Despite her growing, she still has a baby face. Her blue eyes have changed into light green. She isn’t sure about Stuart, but he’s not entirely sure about her either. She’ll probably be ready for spay in 2-3 weeks.

Article Link: Tapeworm Symptoms