Ringworm in multiple cat household - update 9/27

[kimlovescats]

I truly feel for both of you ladies having to deal with this! Maybe I was just very fortunate in the past to not have too bad of a case of it. I did however get one small spot on myself, and the OTC cream zapped that for me with no problem! GOOD LUCK!!

(((HUGS))) ... with gloves
Kim

[Reachoutrescue]

(((HUGS))) ... with gloves
Kim

I have gone through so many gloves! It is crazy!! Thanks for the protected hug though!!

[doolittleky]

I am glad that you ahven't found anyone else that has it yet. Hopefully no one else will get it and you will get yourself and your babies all cleared up.
Melissa

[jenluckenbach]

When we had ringworm here, VERY few actually got it. But it was not gone after the first "round" of medication.

I never got it, but Charlie got a small spot. It went away really fast on him.

[kuhio98]

Lizzie ~ How goes the battle?

[Lizzie]

Thank you for asking, Lisa. I'm sitting in the isolation room now and have just finished a battle with Cattulus who desperately wants to wrap himself like a boa around my neck and head as he used to - the reason I got ringworm under my chin. He wasn't happy with simple lap fussing so got up in the window - aaargh! now he's back and climbing me again. His ringworm spread a little to another spot on the left side of his head but both places are starting to respond to topical treatment. The one on the right side of his head is the most difficult to treat because it runs right down to his eyelid and it's hard to treat right to the edge without getting stuff in his eye. I keep checking the other kittens who are clear so far. So are all the other cats.

Keeping up with cleaning is a nightmare (Cattulus just stuck his head in my tea, so that's out) and my hands have reacted badly to the combination of lots of washing and latex gloves by becoming lumpy and inflamed all over the backs. I try to change the comforter and throws on the kittens' sofa every day which means two hot washes each night. I've finally got through all the initial laundry of every pillow, cushion, cover, tablecloth, etc. from upstairs and I'm using the minimum, locking away the extras dowstairs and, hopefully, away from the spores. I suppose in a way it's fortunate that Ashley, Cattulus' sister, keeps using the carpet as her litter box since I'm having to throw it out piece by piece which means the spores are going out with it. Unfortunately, only plywood lies beneath (Yuk! I just took a swallow of tea before I remembered Catullus had his head in it. Can you get ringworm inside? )

All I can do is keep cleaning, keep using isolation techniques, and hope that we are lucky.

[Reachoutrescue]

Oh, LIzzie....I hear you!! I am so frustrated! Sampson, the orange and white Olney kitten who started out the ringworm....well his ringworm has spread onto his paws. Lola, another ringworm victim, it has spread under her neck and to her back paws. And Luna, yet another victim, it has spread badly all over her head, back of neck and front inner leg. The sores are drying up from the meds, but they keep spreading!! I am so aggrivated! What do I do next?!?!?

[Catty1]

Lizzie - I have seen latex-free medical gloves...are there any around your area?

Poor you!

I hope all is well SOON!

HUGS

[Lizzie]

I would suggest that you ask your vet to prescribe the oral meds but they are expensive and you are already strapped. If they can stop the spread faster though, it might be less expensive than it spreading. Do you have the three infected ones in isolation? You must be concerned that the three that are to be spayed/neutered in a few weeks don't get it. I lay in bed this morning thinking about all the money pouring out of me into this cat and that and wondering what I was doing, and the conclusion I reached was that I wasn't sorry for any of it, I've done what I felt I needed to do and I'll cope with the consequences.

Edited to respond to Catty1's post. I'm going to Bartells pharmacy soon to look at different gloves. I know I need to buy some cotton ones that I can wear in this room so that I don't have to wash my hands every time I come in and leave. I don't usually have a reaction to latex, only when my hands are getting chapped from washing and I have to have gloves on long enough for my hands to get damp inside. The Kiss My Face hand cream I've been using doesn't seem to help at all so I've switched to pure aloe vera. At night, I wake up every few hours with my hands burning and itching like crazy and find that I'm scratching them in my sleep - so I'll wear gloves at night.

[jenluckenbach]

Lizzie - I have seen latex-free medical gloves...are there any around your area?

HUGS

Yes, I have seen those too.

good luck with the continued treatment.

[Lizzie]

Work (of the paid variety) has finally leveled out to somewhat normal, so I can now post and update. I really wanted to update this thread so that Tracy of Reach out Rescue can get some online support because I know she's going through a much worse time of it than I am. Her most recent post, 9/24, on another thread stated that she had 3 more kittens with ringworm and I know she has a triple case of it herself. I can't imagine coping with that. I know I've become shorter tempered with the kittens as I treat them each evening, holding them down more firmly as I scrub and soak their heads, hoping against hope that the lesions will go away soon, please, very soon. My greatest fear is still that Ashley will get it at this point so the isolation and re-infectoin will go on and on. The floor is now laid mostly with black plastic as Ashley has destroyed ever more carpet and all three kittens are bouncing off the walls with boredom, especially since I had to discard all their soft toys, flutter wands, etc.

So, Tracy, how are you coping? Are any of the kittens that had ringworm originally cleared of it yet? Were you able to put the kittens on oral med or have you decided against it?

[kimlovescats]

Just want to send some (((((((((HUGS)))))))) of encouragement to both Lizzie and Tracy, "this too shall pass"!!!

Kim

[Reachoutrescue]

So, Tracy, how are you coping? Are any of the kittens that had ringworm originally cleared of it yet? Were you able to put the kittens on oral med or have you decided against it?

Well, I have not put them on oral...it was so hard just to give them the meds for there URIs. I decided to just deal with the ointments. Well, the first three that had it are doing better. Two of them are healed, but poor Luna, the tortie has gotten it again. I also found lessions on three more kits, so now there are 7 in all that have it! Wow is me! Mine are getting better faster then expected. They do not itch anymore. I fear getting more in other parts though. Icess is quickly recovering. I think he may have some scarring from him scratching. But that is okay, my mom said she will love him anyway! I know how you feel Lizzie...I am so stressed about it! Sometimes I just want to scream! But I just grin and bear it! I will post an update with ebay links soon. It has been very hectic here. I have not forgotten you guys at PT though. Sorry to be such a stranger. Talk to y'all soon.

[Freedom]

I can't even imagine what you are dealing with. I took in a stray kitten in July 2005, and she had 2 spots of this on her head. She was 2 pounds of energy. All I remember is giving her baths twice a day, putting on ointment, and I think oral meds. It seems to go on forever, but was cleared up in about 3 weeks. Had to make a rush trip to the vet's one morning when I got the special shampoo in her eyes and she held them shut tight for over 5 mintues. Forturnately her eyes were OK. None of the others in the house ever got it. I found dealing with ONE a bit overwhelming! Good luck to you and the cats, get healed up soon!