Probable ring worm in kitten, help

[Strange_Screams]

This forum rocks so well at chicken care, well, lets try our hand at kittens

Found a kitten that my crazy neighbor abused (me and the other neighbors are also taking care of her miniature pony, two chickens and two other sickly cats) He was only weeks old when she brought him home, was only feeding him goldfish and soft cat food, he shouldnt even be weened yet, and he hadn't grown at all in the two weeks she had him. I found him mewing under my window with crusty eyes and covered in diarrhea.

We put him on antibiotics for a week and he recovered nicely, He is now eating 3 bowls of thick formula and soft cat food a day and actually growing. He got a couple of bald patches on his face which I assumed were from the formula, but they kept getting worse. I'm confident it isnt mange because of the patterning of the skin, its just flaky with hair loss. I didn't think it was ring worm because , well it wasnt in rings, at first, well now rings are showing up in spots and my twice daily applications of topical antifungal arnt doing the trick.

So, is there an oral antifungal that I can get at the feed store? Any other suggestions?
And no, I can't afford a vet to re-diagnose what I've already figured out....My only other option is to drop the poor thing off at the pound if I cant treat it myself.

 

[tnchickenut]

I think... THINK... with humans you can put nail polish on ring worm to get rid of it...I would try it if it's not near the eyes or mouth. There might be other ways too... try googling "ring worm" and seeing what kinda home remedies their are... there has to be more than one and I bet they would be fine for a cat.

 

[Sir Birdaholic]

Ringworm is a fungus. Any good fungicide will work to get rid of it. A test for ringworm is to hold the kitten under a blacklight. Ringworm will glow.

 

[Akane]

Only about 50% of ringworm cases will glow. Cultures are the best way to determine ringworm from an allergy or autoimmune disorder. Given the circumstances ringworm does seem the most likely.

Most ringworm cases can be treated topically but may require shaving the cat to get the cream directly on the skin. There are several oral treatments. Itraconazole and terbafine seem to be common with griseofulvin also being mentioned but higher risk so not used as often.

Ringworm can be highly contagious and survive a long time in the environment. Anything the cat touches and any grooming supplies used to help cleanup or clip the cat could infect other animals and possibly humans. Best to talk to a vet and get rid of this stuff asap. I might also confine the kitten so that everything can be disinfected easily.

 

[cassie]

I ended up with a litter of kittens with ringworm. The vet had me dunk them in a lime sulfer solution. Smelled funny but worked great. No shaving and no spread to anything else.

 

[mom'sfolly]

If it is ringworm, any topical fungicide like those for athlete foot or jock itch should work. I might use the one for jock itch if it is on the kitten's face; that one is formulated for more sensitive areas. Yeast infection meds should work too, also formulated for sensitive tissue.

good luck with the kitty.

 

[Bunnylady]

A number of years ago, I took in a "garbage cat" that was just sort of thin-furred and scruffy looking. I knew it was ringworm when I started getting round, itchy patches. The vet put the cat on griseofulvin pills and twice-weekly baths with an iodine-based shampoo (really risky, since cats are very sensitive to iodine) and I treated myself with OTC antifungals. We both recovered, but take my word for it, it is very contagious!

 

[smileybritches]

your feed store should have hoof and foot rot spray i have used that with success on cats, dogs and myself for ringworm.

 

[Riocotesei]

My Blue Heeler got a ringworm from going to the Ag barn with the sheep that had ringworm. We scraped the scabs off then put iodine on it it healed just fine, hair grew back and was normal. I don't remember how long it took, but he had a bad case of it, we shaved him down and bathed him in the iodine.
There is probably an easier method..but that's what we did and it worked out just fine.
Just be sure to not mix your diagnosis up with mange, because that happened to someone we knew a while back. They were treating for ringworm and their dog actually had Demodectic Mange.
Let us know how it works out. Good luck

 

[Strange_Screams]

The cat is isolated in a carrier, I knew it was contagious so I've been washing everything that comes in or out. His immune system was compromised by abuse so the ring worm is out of control, its over most of his face, underbelly and a good bit of his back. Ive been using athletes foot cream and yeast infection medication in both creme and spray forms, they just aren't strong enough.

Thanks yall, Ill see what I can find today.