Cat Ringworm Symptoms
The medical term used to describe cat ringworm is dermatophytosis. Though the name suggests that it must be caused by some worms, but actually it is a form of fungal infection that affects the skin, hair and nails of cats. This infection in quite common and is highly contagious. It spreads easily when it comes in direct contact with another animal. It can also get transmitted indirectly through the bedding, brushes, and grooming equipment that is touched by an infected animal. Sometimes, cats act as asymptomatic carriers, which means they carry the organism and shed it in the surroundings, but no cat ringworm symptoms can be observed on their body.
Usually, feline ringworm symptoms are rarely found in adult cats with a good health condition, as they can resist the infection naturally. However, kittens below the age of one and the older cats are at the highest risk of getting this kind of infection. The symptoms of ringworm are also quite common in those cats who are suffering from some other diseases like feline diabetes or are under nourished. Those cats who roam around in the outdoors also get the infection. In some cases, it could be genetic. Like, it has been found that certain cat breeds like Persians get infected by ringworm very frequently.
Ringworm Symptoms in Cats
The most common identifiable sign of ringworm in cats is the skin lesions. In the initial stage, they are mostly found on the head, ears and tail. Later, they may spread to other parts of the body like the face, nose, chin and lips. When it first appears, it will be like a small dot. With passage of time, its shape and size changes and it will grow bigger. One such typical skin lesion of ringworm infection is round in shape and there is no hair on it. The central part of these sores is usually quite scaly. Sometimes, small pustules may break out in it. In other infections, it may not appear in that circular shape. The infected part of the skin tends to become irritated and itchy, and may turn red. If the infection spreads all over the body, then their skin gets dry, flaky and greasy. As soon as your cat gets the infection, it suffers from hair loss. The shedding may vary from mild to severe and is different in every individual cases. As a result, small patches of hair loss can be seen and it grows with time. The fungus can infect the nails or nail beds of your cat as well. In that case, the nails look distorted and damaged.
Treatment for Cat Ringworm Symptoms
If you detect ringworm in cats symptoms, you should take your cat to the veterinarian without any delay. In a condition where the infection has not spread much, it can be cured by topical application of anti-fungal cream. Another common form of topical treatment is lime sulfur dips. Many people tend to avoid this treatment as the dips have an extremely bad odor, and it will also change the color of the cat’s fur temporarily. But it really works wonders against ringworm infection. For a moderate or severe infections, just topical treatment is not enough, and it has to be accompanied by oral medications as well. If there is some underlying condition that affects the cat health, and is responsible for the cat ringworm, then it also needs to be treated. Along with these treatment, you should provide your pet with proper cat food.
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