They hook into the lining of the cat’s bowels and develop long ribbon-like bodies, the ends of which become egg sacs which break off and pass out of the back passage. Tapeworms are often much longer than roundworms.

Tapeworms (such as Dipylidium caninum and Taenia taeniae formins) In addition to regular worming (which we deal with later), it is important to clean litter trays regularly due to the transference of eggs in your cat’s faecal matter onto its paws and coat – which are subsequently swallowed whilst the cat grooms itself. Mice, voles, shrews and birds can all be infected with roundworm larvae, and when the prey is caught and then eaten by the cat the eggs hatch in the stomach.

When they are born many kittens will get these worms from larvae in their mother’s milk. Their eggs are passed out in the cat’s faeces, but being microscopic there is often no evidence that they are present. They are long, circular in cross section (not unlike spaghetti) and usually pointed at each end. Roundworms (Toxocara Cati and Toxascaris leonine)Īs the name suggests, roundworms resemble the worms we see in the garden – although much thinner. However, in large numbers they can cause suffering, illness and even death. Both of these types spend their adult life in the cat’s bowels, and in small numbers they are not very harmful. Roundworms and Tapeworms are the most common.

There are some 8 different types of intestinal worms which can infect your cat, and some can be spread between cats and people. Nevertheless, this is an unfortunate fact of feline life and it is vital for your own health as well as for that of your cat – that you introduce regular worming into your ‘Cat Care’ regime. It may be distressing to be told that, at some time during your cat’s life, he or she will almost certainly be affected by worms. Worms in Cats By E.G.D.McCarrison BVMS MRCVS

Long flat worms in cats