Feline coccidiosis is a condition in cats that causes watery stool, dehydration, abdominal pains, and vomiting. All cats are at risk from this unfortunate disease, though kittens and debiliated cats are the most common sufferers.
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. They don’t, however, all show signs of having contracted it.
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 does your cat get it? Through coming into contact with infected fecal matter. Oocytes, which are immature protozoa, reside in cat stool and mature in the 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. Pay attention to where your pet spends most of its time. You should make sure your catteries and kennels are tidy and well-maintained. Dispose of stool as soon as possible so that the risk of the coccidian spreading is lessened.
2. Disinfect. It’s advisable to move your pet out of the way before proceeding with this. You don’t want your pets to inhale the potentially harmful fumes from disinfectants. 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. Consider repainting. Repainting the area where your pets live could help destroy coccidian oocytes where they mature.
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