My kitten has round worms. I bought her from a breeder at the Santa Monica Cat show a few weeks ago. The cat breeder must be disgustingly dirty and not care at all about her cats. That night the 15 week old kittne was bleeding and had big worms crawling in her stools on the 450 mile drive home to San Francisco The breeder did not return my distressed phone calls that night. If I had known where the breeder lived I would have taken the kitten to her house that night.

I have had the kitten for several weeks and spent more than $400 in vet bills. The round worms seemed to be gone but came back again. I have learned that the worms may keep coming back forever because they live in her liver and lungs, waiting to hatch later. From what I am reading, the reason she is coughing and sneezing is probably because the worms are in her lungs. Grey stuff come out of her nose when she sneezes.

I don't want to be cruel to her. She is having a rough start in life. But I sure don't want to lose my sight or have worms in my liver or lungs, either. What can I do, short of giving her to the Humane Society, to keep myself safe from getting infected with round worms? Can I get treated for them in case they are inside me already, to be safe?

Gramma Bobbi

Not unless you don't wash your hands after changing a very messy litter box.You would have to swallow the eggs for you to become infected.It is possible,but very unlikely.Cats become infected by grooming each other and by sharing litter boxes.I have been a vet tech for years and have done thousands of fecals,and I have yet to become infected with round worms or any other parasite.If a person washes their hands,catching viruses and parasites is not easily transferred.Don't worry about it,you should be fine. Once your cat has been given a dewormer he should be free of all parasites within a few days,but a second dose may be given in 3 weeks to make sure all were removed and killed.