We often tend to think that internal and external deworming for cats, who are mostly at home, isn’t that important! However, this thinking couldn’t be more wrong, as we ourselves are often responsible for bringing parasites into the home. Yes, we bring parasites home on our shoes and clothes.
Who hasn’t had a house cat with fleas that seemed to come out of nowhere?
At the beginning of a puppy’s or kitten’s life, the deworming regime is the same: the mother should be dewormed internally and externally before the litter is born, and both the cat and the kittens should be dewormed internally every two weeks until they are eight weeks old. External deworming of cats under 8 weeks of age should be done with sprays suitable for this purpose, as pipettes at this stage can still be toxic.
From the age of eight weeks to six months, kittens should be dewormed internally and externally on a monthly basis with a tablet and a pipette or a tablet that deworms externally.
Once the cat is six months old, and depending on its lifestyle, there are various options for deworming.
Cats with access to the outdoors should be dewormed more regularly. Internal deworming should be done every three months with a tablet, while external deworming depends on the dewormer used: a pipette can be applied for one to three months, depending on the brand, a dewormer collar can be chosen for six months, or a specific flea pill can be combined with one of the other two options.
In the case of cats that live exclusively indoors, our recommendation is that internal deworming should be carried out every four to six months and external deworming every three months.
It should be emphasised that if you adopt a kitten with fleas, even if it is going to live exclusively indoors, you should disinfect the house and wash the blankets, beds and pillows at least 60ºC in the machine so that the flea eggs die, otherwise reinfestations will be frequent.
If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact your veterinary assistant.
Vet.Point – Oeiras Veterinary Clinic
Emergency 24h | 927896112 – 211918923 | geral@vetpoint-ivl.com
