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Looking For The Best Deworming Medicine For Cats?
Here’s a look at our favorites, including our top pick – Naturpet D Wormer.
If your dog or cat has fleas, there’s unfortunately a good chance they may have worms, too. Most worms come from fleas that are incidentally consumed when the cat licks their fur and chews on their skin to relieve the itching from fleas. Worms can also come from rodents, so cats that hunt for sport are also at an increased risk for contracting worms.
What to look for in deworming medicine
Contracting worms is fairly common, but most people aren’t sure what to get or what to do when it happens to their pet. If this is your first time looking into deworming medicine, here are a few tips on what to look for:
- Praziquantel – this is a strong medication that’s used to treat a variety of different parasitic worm infections in addition to hyatid disease, cysticercosis, opisthorciasis, clonorchiasis, schistosomiasis, and fluke infections. It works partly by attacking the worm’s mouth, taking away its ability to suck on the intestinal walls of your cat’s stomach. Possible side effects include allergic reactions, vomiting, abdominal pain, and poor coordination, so keep an eye out for these after you’ve administered the first dose to your cat. Doses are concentrated, so you shouldn’t administer more than a single dose.
- Piperazine Citrate – if you’re concerned about the strength of praziquantel-based deworming medications, this is a good non-toxic alternative. Piperazine citrate has been proven to be effective against parasites and worms, and because it’s non-toxic you can repeat the treatments without any risk.
- All-natural solutions – as with all supplements, you need to exercise caution when considering an all-natural dewormer for your cat. There are tons of products that claim to be effective, but many aren’t, and some could be toxic to your cat if they have an allergic reaction. That said, there are herbal remedies that are proven to be effective. Look for all-natural products that are well-reviewed, and look for good ingredients like wormwood, black walnut green hill, black seeds, sage leaf, fennel seeds, and papaya leaves.
- Oral vs liquid – Oral tablets tend to be stronger than liquid medications, but they are notoriously difficult to administer. If your cat won’t take the pill, you can crumble it into their food. Liquid medications are fairly simple to administer with a dropper. If your cat won’t take the liquid medication directly, you can drop some into her water bowl.
Naturpet D Wormer
This is a fantastic option if you’re looking for an all-natural deworming medication. The NaturPet D Wormer is 100% natural, safe, and effective at both killing and expelling hookworms, tapeworms, roundworms, whipworms, and giardia. The liquid solution contains the following herbal remedies:
- Papaya leaf – a powerful digestive herb that has been proven to eradicate parasites in cats and dogs.
- Fennel seed – another popular natural cleanser that controls gas (a natural byproduct of deworming) and soothes the intestinal lining.
- Sage leaf – a popular natural cleanser that expels the worms, aids digestion, and soothes the stomach and intestines
- Black seed – fights parasitic infections and aids digestion
- Black walnut green hull – strong antifungal that’s used as a natural dewormer for tapeworms, ringworms, and pinworms.
- Wormwood aerial parts – a bitter tonic to expel the worms.
NaturPet D Wormer is easy to administer as a liquid, so you can drop it into the cat’s mouth or put it in their water. You’ll start noticing results immediately (you’ll see tiny worms in the cat’s feces), but you should continue the treatment until a full week after the symptoms disappear to ensure all of the parasitic eggs are expelled. Treatments are done twice a day and are safe for both cats and dogs.
Bayer Tapeworm Dewormer
Bayer is one of the most trusted brands in the healthcare industry, so it’s more than sensible to trust them with your cat’s health. The Bayer Tapeworm Dewormer contains 23 mg of the anti-parasitic drug praziquantel, which is strong enough to safely remove the tapeworm in your cat’s stomach in just one treatment.
The tablets can be taken by mouth or crumbled and mixed with food. You should only use this prescription-strength dewormer with cats who are at least 6 weeks old, and you should keep the medication away from children.
Excel Roundworm Liquid Cat De-Wormer, 4-Ounce
This Excel Roundworm Liquid dewormer is specifically engineered for cats. It uses a piperazine citrate solution and is most effective against large roundworms. As a liquid administered orally, it’s also easy to put in your cat’s water or drop into their mouth. Like the Bayer Tapeworm Dewormer, you should only use this medication with cats who are 6-weeks or older.
Pro-Sense Liquid Dewormer Solutions For Cats, 4-fl. oz.
The Pro-Sense Liquid Dewormer is another popular medication that uses a piperazine citrate solution. Like the Excel Roundworm Liquid Cat Dewormer, it’s most effective at eradicating roundworms. It can be administered directly or with food, and it should only be used with cats who are at least 6 weeks old.
HomeoPet Wrm Clear
The HomeoPet Wrm Clear is another great all-natural option for people that prefer an herbal approach. It’s clinically proven to be effective against hookworms, roundworms, whipworms, and tapeworms. The size of the bottle and the price point make this an incredible value, as each bottle contains about 90 doses (though that partially depends on the weight of your cat).
It’s non-sedating, simple to administer, and there are no known side effects. Best of all, it’s actually safe to use with kittens (most other options are only for cats over 6-weeks-old), and nursing animals (again, not allowed with traditional dewormers). HomeoPet Wrm Clear is also approved for dogs and puppies.
Takeaways
Remember—if your cat has fleas, they’re probably going to get a worm infection (if they don’t already have one). As you’re treating your cat for worms, you’ll want to purchase flea medication to kill the fleas and permanently eliminate the threat of worms. You’ll know that the deworming medication is working when you see what looks like small grains of rice in your cat’s feces (yep, those are the worms).
If the deworming medication doesn’t work, you should take your cat to the veterinarian. The vet can run a few tests to make sure it’s not another problem, and they can prescribe a stronger dewormer to finish the job.
