Ask Me Help Desk - Is there a paint that will stop/kill ringworm?

See if this helps you any. Looks like a bleach solution is your best bet for cleaning.

All surfaces with which ringworm suspect cats have had contact should be immediately cleaned, then disinfected with bleach diluted at 1.5 cups per gallon. This includes floors, carriers, transport vehicles and counter tops.
Clearly identify suspect animals (i.e. post a sign on their cage)
House individually in cages that can be easily cleaned and bleached.
In foster care, house in large dog crate or easily cleaned room such as bathroom until at least two weeks of effective topical treatment has been completed.
Ideally, house ringworm suspects separate from other animals. If that is not possible, at least keep them separate from highest risk groups (kittens, pregnant moms, cats with URI).
Wear protective clothing when working in a ringworm quarantine room or working with affected animals (protective clothing, gloves, shoe covers or boots used only for that purpose). Discard or launder protective clothing daily.
Clean cages and all surfaces in the room daily with bleach diluted at 1:32 while animals are housed there. Contact time of 15 minutes is required.
Heating and cooling vents should be vacuumed and disinfected at least weekly. Furnace filters should be changed weekly.
Dishes & other washable items can be run through a dishwasher provided water temperature reaches at least 43.3o C (110o F).
Bedding should be washed daily during treatment. Ringworm laundry should be washed separately from other laundry. Bedding or toys that can not be washed should be discarded.
Following housing a ringworm animal, clean the cage with bleach diluted at 1:10 for at least two consecutive applications (air drying between) before using the cage for another animal. Carefully clean all areas that can't be bleached using a damp mop or electrostatic cleaner such as a Swiffer (®) followed by vacuumming. Discard the vacuum cleaner bag. For more information see section on environmental decontamination.

Environmental decontamination

The foundation of environmental decontamination is identification and treatment or removal of affected animals coupled with careful mechanical cleaning. Ringworm will be most persistent in a moist environment protected from exposure to sunlight, and can remain infective for months or even years. Efficacy of a number of cleaning agents against ringworm has been tested. Only concentrated bleach and 1% formalin have been shown to be effective in killing 100% of spores in a single application. Concentrated bleach is too harsh to be routinely used, so multiple applications of bleach diluted 1:10 with prolonged contact time are recommended. High heat (> 110 degrees) is also effective. This temperature can be attained by commercial dishwashers, some commercial steam applicators (but not necessarily home steam carpet cleaners) and clothes dryers. Quaternary ammonium compounds (i.e. parvo-sol®), chlorehexadine (Nolvasan®) and potassium peroxymonosulfate (Trifectant®, Virkon-S®) have not withstood independent trials to demonstrate efficacy.

Environmental cure: the 5 D's

Environmental decontamination is usually straightforward in a typical shelter with easily bleached and mechanically cleaned cages. It can present a much greater problem in a home or more home-like environment such as a group cat room. Application of harsh disinfectants to every contaminated surface is an impossible goal in such environments. Fortunately, much can be accomplished through identification, removal and treatment of carrier cats, followed by repeated application of elbow grease. Environmental culture can take the guesswork out of decontamination, and spare a lot of un-necassary work and worry. Clean carefully, disinfect where possible, then take cultures of possibly contaminated areas to evaluate success. If the culture is negative, the area can probably be safely re-opened to feline inhabitants. If positive, at least you know for sure you have to go back and try again. This can save a lot of agony over whether to replace carpets, furniture etc. The five D's of ringworm decontamination are:

Careful mechanical cleaning goes a long way towards removing ringworm contamination. This includes clearing cluttered surfaces, use of an electrostatic cleaning product such as a Swiffer® to remove as much dust and hair as possible from every surface, and vacuuming of all accessible areas. Commercial steam cleaning of carpets may be helpful for both mechanical cleaning and heat destruction of spores. Where possible, furnace filters and air vents should be cleaned and/or replaced. However, cleaning of duct work is often not necessary.
Disinfect
Apply bleach at 1.5 cups per gallon to all bleachable surfaces

What procedures should be implemented in the event of an outbreak at an animal shelter?

Risk assessment for exposed cats

When any cat from a population is diagnosed with ringworm, the question arises: what do you do about the other cats in the environment? Do they all need to be cultured? Must they all be isolated while awaiting culture results? Will they all need treatment? The answer to these questions is dependent on several factors. Not all cats in the same house or even the same room as a ringworm-infected cat will become infected themselves. The risk of infection depends on the cat's individual immune status and grooming habits, the overall cleanliness of the environment, and the level of proximity between the exposed and infected cats. Some questions to ask include:

What is the baseline sanitation level? Is this a highly cleanable environment such as a bank of stainless steel cages in an otherwise empty room? Is this a home with lots of scratching posts, furniture and carpeting to collect spores? Somewhere in between, such as a bank of cages in a messy room, with lots of junk piled about? Is bleach used on a routine basis for cleaning?

How closely exposed were the cats? Were they each in separate cages, with minimal handling by staff likely to be carrying infection on their clothing? Was there some shared space such as an exercise area or “get acquainted room” where the cats co-mingle or spend time without cleaning between occupants? Are cats allowed to wander loose during cleaning but caged separately otherwise?

Is there evidence of spread? Has more than one cat been affected? Are all affected cats from one area of the shelter, or has it shown up in more than one room? Are cats that have been in the shelter long term (> 2-4 weeks) affected? (This suggests acquisition of infection in the shelter, as opposed to coming in already infected.)

If the environment is basically clean, cats are generally kept reasonably separated, and overall cat health is good, it is not uncommon for cats to survive a minor exposure without becoming infected. Ideally, all exposed cats will be toothbrush-cultured, but this is often impractical and may not be necessary in a reasonably well-run shelter. On the other hand, toothbrush cultures all around are generally required in a foster home where there are extensive opportunities for contact, in a cage-free cat shelter or group cat room, or any time there is evidence of significant spread (multiple cats affected). For more information on interpretation of fungal cultures ("pathogen scores") and management based on culture results, please see Dermatophyte Treatment in a Nutshell | Dane County Humane Society: Helping People Help Animals.

In the event of a true outbreak, many shelters will find it impossible to shut down intake for the duration of treatment. In such cases, it will be necessary to create a clean, separate area for new incoming cats. If this is impossible, a single dip in lyme sulfur at intake can reduce the chances of infection if cats must be admitted to a contaminated environment.

As is always the case, prevention of an infectious disease outbreak is far cheaper and easier on all concerned than management of an outbreak. After an outbreak of any kind, all personnel should meet to ensure that all staff and volunteers understand how the situation came about and what methods of control were most effective in ending the outbreak. From this informational meeting a plan to prevent outbreaks in the future should be, developed, written down, posted and distributed, so that all involved are aware of their role in prevention of future outbreaks.

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Managing Ringworm in a Foster Home or Private Home
Daily cleaning will minimize the amount of environmental contamination that builds up while affected cats are housed there. In addition, thorough cleaning will be needed after the affected cats have left the environment (or recovered). This will be much easier if cats are limited to a small area of the house that has minimal furniture and carpeting (e.g. a large dog crate, bathroom). This is particularly critical until the first two weeks of effective topical treatment have been completed, and ideally until at least one negative fungal culture has been obtained.

Cleaning the home environment in the event of a ringworm infection:

Daily

All non-porous surfaces should be damp mopped, Swiffered® and/or vacuumed (to gather up infectious hairs) and cleaned with bleach at 1:32. This includes floors, walls, counter tops, windowsills, and carriers.
Rugs should be vacuumed twice daily. Vacuum cleaner bags should be regularly discarded.
Bedding and protective clothing should be changed daily, and laundered separately in hot water with a quarter cup of bleach and dried in a dryer (or discarded).
After affected cats have been cleared out, follow the five Ds as described above. The extent to which extensive cleaning will be necessary depends on the level of environmental contamination. If kittens romped through the house for some time before diagnosis, or an effective topical treatment was not used consistently, extensive efforts may be required. If on the other hand the cat was kept reasonably confined to a cleanable area and effetively treated from the outside, basic cleaning may be adequate. Some steps to consider include those below.

All exposed animals should be tested for ringworm as described above to make sure they are not subclinically affected.
All exposed bedding, toys, brushes, etc should be discarded.
All non-porous surfaces should be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected where possible with bleach at 1:10. This should be repeated at least twice.
All exposed carpets and furniture should be vacuumed daily for one week, and the vacuum cleaner bags discarded daily.
All heating and cooling vents should be vacuumed or filters replaced. It is not usually necessary to have ducts commercially cleaned.
Carpets should be commercially steam cleaned. Steam cleaning with cleaners that use hot tap water is ineffective, as the water does not reach a high enough temperature.
Clothing that was worn when in contact with the cats should be washed in hot water with bleach, then dried in a dryer or by hanging in sunlight.
Environmental cultures should be performed to verify success of decontamination prior to re-opening the foster home to new cats.

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Summary of Ringworm Prevention

There is no effective vaccine.
There is no absolutely reliable screening test.
Practice good husbandry: keep animals clean, well-nourished, treat other diseases and internal parasites, avoid overcrowding and stress.
Avoid mixing kittens with adult cats.
Perform careful visual exam of all incoming animals and isolate suspects.
Further screening of foster and group housing candidates as described
During an outbreak or in areas that have frequent problems with ringworm, separate housing of all kittens in an easy to bleach area for at least two weeks, followed by careful re-inspection for signs of ringworm.
Develop a clear written protocol for handling ringworm, and ensure that staff and foster care providers are familiar with this protocol and the signs of ringworm.