Feline Coccidia : A Pet Owner’s Guide
Feline coccidiosis is a condition in cats that causes watery stool, dehydration, abdominal pains, and vomiting. Kittens and debilitated cats are prime candidates for its more severe manifestations.
Coccidia is not actually just a cat ailment, dogs can also be affected. Recent surveys suggest that about 37% of cats and dogs are infected by coccidia. However, not all of these animals will show symptoms of infection.
Protozoa, which are one celled organisms, are the cause of coccidiosis. These organisms take residence in the intestinal tract of the cat and may cause symptoms that resemble other parasites such as worms.
However, though the symptoms of worms and coccidia are similar, the conditions must be cured using different treatments. This makes it very important that you take your cat to a veterinarian as soon as you notice symptoms of intestinal distress, diarrhea, and vomiting.
So, how do cats become infected with coccidia? Coccidia are transferred via fecal matter. All cat stool contain immature protozoa (referred to as oocytes), which are relatively harmless until they mature in an open environment. The longer a cat stool has been to decay, the more the oocytes develop, and the more at risk cats coming into contact with it become. Another way of cats developing coccidiosis is from licking or eating protozoan infected mice.
To prevent against coccidia infestations, you should...
1. Keep basic sanitation for catteries and kennels. Where they sleep, eat and play should be clean, tidy and well maintained. Of particular importance is the disposing of stool within a day or two of it appearing.
2. Disinfect. Before doing this, you may want to move your pets to a different location for the time being. The reason being that the fumes from disinfectants are potentially harmful to animals. As for what disinfectant to use, find one that contains a fair amount of ammonia. Alternatively, just mix a little bleach in with some water.
3. Not ignore the cleaning of crevices and other hard to reach areas. Pets, being curious, end up sniffing around in lots of places that you might not expect. They are exactly the places that parasites lurk in so don't forget about cleaning and disinfecting those areas too.
4. Repaint. Repainting the area where your pets live could help destroy coccidian oocytes where they mature.
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Nov 13, 2009 | 0 | cat care tips
