Having Pets during pregnancy...

[PregCJW]

Hi there, this might be a somewhat silly question...

I am 17 weeks preggies and have 3 cats.... I have already been tested for Toxoplasmosis and all is clear (my cats are pretty much indoors most of the time except for 1 naughty one who keeps escaping off our balcony and visits all the other neighbourhood cats ;-)... but what is concerning me is that I have already had to de-worm my cats twice since I fell pregnant... and now I feel the obvious symptoms of having picked up their dreaded worms!! YUCK! So my concern is could having intestinal worms harm my baby and how can I treat it. Normally I just take a d-worm tablet, which I feed to my hubby and I at least every 4 - 6 months... but now I am preggies I wont just take any old pill in case it harms my baby.  What should I do?? Should I be worried?? Thanks all so much!

Kind Regards
PregCJW

[PregCJW]

Funny... it would seem I am getting more useful advice from all of you then I have got from my vet or chemist!

I have spoken to the vet on numerous occasions about the worms my poor cats get (they reckon it is tape worm as the worms are falling out of their bottoms), but non of them have said to get them or their feces tested. Even if I take my cats in, they just do a general check up and give them worm medicine.

Also, I speak to my chemist each and every time, and have always mentioned when my husband and I have last taken a d-worm tablet before requesting another, and they don't flinch, and say it is good to de-worm ourselves at least every 6 months, especially if you are exposed to it. I'll admit that I don't think we have ever taken more than 3 worm tablets a year...  and definitely not one since I have been pregnant.  I am always very cautious as to what 'pills' we take as I do care for my family as best as possible, and ALWAYS seek professional advice first before self-medicating.

My initial concern was, worst case scenario, if one had to get intestinal worms during pregnancy how that would effect baby... but since researching it further I see that there is no reported case of it ever being a concern. So I am much at ease and feel that my original fear has been addressed.

Thanks again to all.

[AnnieBrooke]

My cats get worms frequently, because they go outside and hunt all the time.  Back when I had indoor cats, they never got worms.  The kind of worms my hunting kitties get is tapeworms, which have a life cycle that causes them to shed visible segments in the stool but only some of the time.  Tapeworms do require the flea to bite an animal with worms, and then the cat to eat the flea.  But before I knew it was tapeworms, I was worming them regularly (about every 6 months) with the inexpensive worm powder from the grocery store.  The tapeworms would disappear for a while (since they only shed in the feces every so often) and I would think I had taken care of it.  But the inexpensive worm powder is not for tapeworms, it's for roundworms, so I was really just wasting my time, money, effort, and probably a bit of the cats' stomach linings, feeding them the powders.  If a kitty keeps getting worms, it is often the same overall worm, just shedding in the poop and then disappearing again, on a regular schedule.  That's why it's so important to take a stool sample over to the vet for it to be tested (I think they look under a microscope) and to get the right kind of worm medicine.  

Anyway, good luck with the pregnancy!  I'll bet you don't have worms.  :)

[goddess0321]

I have one cat that gets worms pretty frequently- how? We have no idea. But my husband has researched worms in cats a billion times, and from what I understand, the way that cats get worms is by eating dead fleas. Worms have a two-stage life cycle. One is by being eaten by a flea, and two is being eaten by the cat. (Not sure how this works, but this is what I'm told!) So that being said, humans can't get worms from cats.

[Ashelen]

I agree with AnnieBrooke..I worked as a vet tech for a year and went through all the training involved...you would have to be ingesting your cats' feces to be getting worms this often, unless they were SOMEHOW getting the worm larvae on their tongues, licking your face, and then you were licking the larvae off of your own face....


this is a very highly unlikely scenario. and the fact that you have so frequently de-wormed you and your husband is cause for concern....those meds are not something to fool around with if you don't have to. while they're safe, they're essentially poison.

Get tested for worms. Get your cats tested for the TYPE of worms they have. clear up their worms. if you're positive, get your worms treated (ask about garlic treatments...MUCH safer than the chemical poisons...)...and if you're negative for worms and you're still paranoid, please get counseling. it is NOT healthy to "profilactically" treat for worms because there IS so much poison involved...please please please stop medicating "at the first obvious sign".

[AnnieBrooke]

If you have indoor cats and they seem to get worms over and over, be sure you are worming them for the right kind of worms.  You can buy (at least in the US) wormers for roundworm at the grocery store, but wormers for tapeworms usually come only from the vet (or online).  Tapeworms will go away visually and then come back later, and of course no amount of roundworm meds will get rid of tapeworms.  It's possible that your kitties were never cured of their original bouts of worms (perhaps until the last time) especially if you never did a fecal float at the vet to be sure of what kind you are dealing with.

It's very rare, if not impossible, for an owner to get tapeworms from a cat, so don't let it give you the heebie-jeebies.  I think you would need to eat a flea to do it.  

I recommend you stop worming your husband.  :)

[PregCJW]

Thanks all for your feedback! Most appreciated!

My one cat gets out and roams around the neighbourhood and the others stay in. So I think he picks up the 'bugs' and brings them home to his brothers. They get worms BAD... I literally seem them falling out their butts sometimes. (REALLY HORRIBLE) The last worm tablets I gave them all I was advised by the vet to give them a single dose each, and then 2 weeks later give them another dose... which I did... but 1 of my boys has worms again. It is so annoying cause I keep a close watch on my cats and make sure everything is clean and they are healthy.

I think possibly, cause I am so conscious of my cats having had so many bouts of worms that as soon as I seem them showing signs I somehow through paranoia get 'symptoms' which could just be phantom symptoms. I don't know... the thought of intestinal worms is just so gruesome that I have developed a phobia, and being pregnant makes you worry.

I have looked researched it further and what I have found so far is that there is no real danger to baby if you have intestinal worms.. so I feel better. Gonna speak to my OB at my next appointment to 100% make sure and tested etc.

Thanks again!

[Cassandrajane]

I have many animals! Ranging from cats to Woodland turtles... The best thing you can do is stay clean after touching them wash your hands and stuff..
Indoor cats shouldnt get worms really... No where to get them from.

The best thing to do is to go to your doc and get checked!! :)

x

[Majikat]

Ya that would be strange for them to be getting worms that often.... have you even ever actually gotten tested for worms to see if that is what you and your husband have? talk to your dr and get tested to see if you have worms.... Even my parent 13 year old outdoor cat that makes very frequent kills has only had worms once as a kitten... and my indoor cat has never had them....

your only choice really is to get tested and talk to your ob/gyn.... even if they did have worms i dont know how they would transfer it to the baby seeing how it wouldnt be playing in the cat fecal matter..... good luck hope everything goes good :)

[SunWorshiper_26]

I agree with Annie

[AnnieBrooke]

Are you sure the cats are getting worms that often?  Indoor cats don't have anywhere to get worms.  Are you sure that you and your husband have been getting worms?  

Talk to your ob-gyn to a) be certain you really have worms -- get it confirmed, don't just go by "obvious symptoms"  and b) learn what is safe during pregnancy to do about worms if you have them.

The reason I am suggesting this is that I have frankly never heard of people needing to get wormed every six months.  It almost sounds like you are confusing something else for worm symptoms.

[Djan2011]

I would call your dr  and see what they say to do. Other than that im not really sure. Sorry :/ but let us know what you find out!