Probable ringworm in litter of kittens - treatment?

[wordgirl]

One of our barn cats had a litter of kittens around Labor Day and we think they might have ringworm. Originally I noticed that mama cat had two scabby, bare patches on her shoulder a little over a month ago (which are now healed and growing fur back) that I thought was just from a fight she'd been in, but then when the kittens were a couple of weeks old I realized one of the kittens had a LARGE bald spot on her stomach, kind of with a scab around it. I hoped it would go away - I wasn't sure what it was, at first we thought mange, perhaps. None of the other three kittens had any spots of fur missing, so I thought it was *possible* that maybe the kitten just had some sort of allergic reaction to something, which would explain why the other three had no problems. But a couple of weeks ago the other three kittens are losing spots of fur. I've looked at pictures online and I'm thinking it's ringworm - I can't see any red "rings" and not all the patches are round but I don't know what else it would be. I'm not thinking mange because they're not very itchy - and that two-week-old kitten could not have scratched all of that fur off her stomach. Several of them have it on their face, and one at least has it on his chin and now on his paws. I feel bad about them getting something, as we haven't ever had a problem like this before and I of course can't find homes for them while they're still sick. I would love to take them to the vet, but we just don't have the finances for that and if there's a way I can treat this successfully at home I want to try it. Has anyone dealt with ringworm in kittens before? Does this sound like ringworm to you? I've seen several suggestions for treating it - two different oral medications which have to be prescribed by a vet, I think; Malaseb shampoo (miconazole and chlorhexidine, I believe); lime sulfur dip; and some topical treatments. I don't think the specifically topical treatments would work very well because there are several patches on each kitten and what if I missed one in all that fur? I'm leaning toward the lime sulfur dip - does that work well? I've bathed kittens before and am not too worried about it - it's not the easiest thing in the world but it's not impossible!

Any other treatments that you prefer?

Thanks for your help!

 

[Baymule]

The best cure for ringworm I ever had is plain ol' onion juice. If you have a juicer, it is real easy, or even a blender to chop it so you can squeeze the juice out. Keep extra in refrigerator. Dab juice on each spot 2-3 times a day, for a few days. In case of the kittens, maybe an eyedropper to apply the juice to make sure it gets past the fur. Good luck and let us know how they do.

 

[leadwolf1]

In order to make sure that ringworm is in fact gone, I have only had luck with the shampoo that can be obtained through the vet. Ringworm is contagious and will spread unless contained. I took forever for my sister's cat and my other sister's dog to be cured. My sister actually got ringworm from her dog and it took her months for it to finally go away. I would say, call the vet!

I did manage to cure ringworm on a guinea pig that I bought from a farm with monistat. Worked very well but, she was quarantined by herself and we changed bedding daily and wore gloves while working with her.

Good luck with mama cat and her kitties

 

[wordgirl]

Thank you, both!

I bought a bottle of Malaseb shampoo and bathed them (four kittens and Mom) for the first time today, with the 10 minute contact time and watching them to make sure they didn't ingest it (a couple tried licking, but we caught them pretty fast). I'll keep you posted on how it works. It says to use it twice a week until symptoms subside, and then weekly. The kittens were pretty easy to bathe - Mama was a bit more challenging!

I think I'll only bathe her once a week because she actually doesn't have it for some reason. I think she might have had it before, but she'd gotten over it on her own. The kittens have it all over - you can see all the bald spots when they're all wet.

Hopefully this shampoo will work!

leadwolf1 - what shampoo did you use with your kittens, do you know?