If you detect that your cat is sick, down, that its coat is not as shiny as before or has lost its appetite, its may have a parasite infection. Apart from deworming kittens, cats with symptoms and recently adopted kittens should visit the vet and carry out a parasite detection and control program. We explain when and how to deworm a cat.
Methods to deworm cats
There are several types of parasites that can infect your cat. The most common are these four: tapeworms, hookworms, heartworms, and roundworms.
Some of these parasites, in addition to putting your pet in danger, can also infect humans. Likewise, all of them can infect other animals that you have in your house.
Two main types of parasites must be distinguished:
- External parasites, including ticks or fleas.
- Internal parasites are found in the intestines and the most common are worms and worms.
Obviously, you can easily detect external parasites, since they are seen at first glance, although they know how to hide very well. However, if you think that your cat has internal parasites, we advise you to go to the vet for an analysis.
In the event that your pet does have a parasite infection, you have to know that there are several remedies to deworm cats .
Home remedies to deworm a cat
At this point we explain how you naturally deworm a cat. Although they work more slowly than commercial products, home remedies are a good option as a prevention mechanism or if your cat does not have many parasites.
Most of these remedies are based on shampoos or essential oils from certain plants such as rosemary, oregano, tangerine or pennyroyal. They are an excellent way to naturally deworm cats .
Add a few drops of any of the oils that we have named above to the product or shampoo with which you wash your kitten, you should also try to keep it away from places with stagnant water or with a lot of vegetation.
Pipettes or Spot-Ons
Among the products for deworming cats, the antiparasitic that is most frequently used today are pipettes, because they are very comfortable to use and also very effective.
Its content, which is liquid, is applied along the dorsal line of the cat and, when it is poured, it spreads through the body of your pet.
These products have a fundamental advantage, as we have said before, and that is that they are already ready for use: you only have to put the contents of the pipette directly on your pet and spend a few days without bathing it, so that it does not lose its effect.
Antiparasitic collars for cats
Before pipettes existed, it was very common to see kittens with a thin plastic collar.
This type of collar is coated with insecticides that contain active substances that take effect when they come into contact with parasites.
But you should know that with an antiparasitic collar for cats your feline can be protected up to 12 weeks (3 months) at most, but afterwards it no longer has any effect.
Shampoos, soaps or sprays for cats
These differ from home-made products in that they are made up of synthetic active substances, but they are not very effective either.
They are very effective in eliminating those parasites that have already infected the cat, but nothing else. If you want to protect your cat with these products, you would have to bathe them every 2 or 3 days, but as you well know, kittens don’t particularly like water.
Pills for internal deworming of cats
It is essential that you carry out an internal deworming of your cat before each vaccination. But how often should cats be dewormed?
We advise that during the first months of your puppy’s life you deworm it once a month and, from the fourth or sixth month, you can do it once or twice a year (every six months).
Pipettes are effective against internal parasites such as worms, but we recommend that you use pills to kill the worms or worms that your kitten may have. It is the best option to internally deworm cats.
