Kitten has roundworms exposed to other cat and dog

we just found out our new kitten has worms! before finding out it was around our older cat and dog! we plan on getting the other animals checked! kitten has roundworms. has been given a dewormer and will be kept separate for 4 days? are the other 2 safe to sleep with us? were only around kitten for 2 days! but the cats shared a litterbox!

  • Vetinfo

    By: Rebecca Osterfund El Segundo, CA

    Replied on 04/19/2011

    Most kittens and puppies are born with roundworms or acquire them soon after birth. Mutliple dewormings given 2-3 weeks apart are required to rid of the infection. The infection is passed from one pet to the other through ingestion of contaminated feces. If your resident dog or cat licked the fur surrounding your kitten's rectum or ingested any of the fecal matter out of the litter-box they, too, could become infected. Once worm eggs are ingested, it takes approximately 6 weeks for the worms to grow up into adult worms which can be seen in the feces. As a precaution, you may want to have both your dog and cat given a dewormer (such as Drontal) to protect them from infection. Roundworms are zoonotic and can be passed to humans, so while your kitten is being treated make sure everyone who handles her washes their hands well before eating, and definitely do not let your kitten sleep with you or other family members (especially children) until the infection is cleared. You may also want to consider keeping your kitten isolated from your other pets for the next 4-6 weeks to prevent transmission of infection while being treated. Rebecca, DVM

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