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My wife and I adopted a kitten recently and three days later, spots showed up on her forehead. Took her to a vet and they said it was ringworm and gave us a bottle of Micazole to apply three times a day, and a few days later we took her to our normal vet and he agreed with ringworm and gave us some malaseb shampoo to go along with it. We've been applying the micazole three times a day and bathing her twice a week, and keeping her quarantined in our guest bathroom (cleaned twice weekly as well). Four weeks later, the ringworm has spread a like crazy and every time I think it is getting better, it gets worse the next day. The original spots look fine now, but the top of her head is covered in pus and wounds, and a huge spot on her back has healed in the middle but the rim of it is pus and open wounds and it seems to be expanding outward. Then there are areas on her armpits that are kinda red like she's been scratching a lot, but they glow under blacklight like the rest of the ringworm. I took her back to the vet last week and they basically said "yeah it sure does suck huh." I've seen some people online saying the quarantine is totally necessary, and others saying that the stress of being alone all day can really cause problems in the healing. We try to play with her for a few hours every day, but she reeaally hates being locked up and whines and cries when we leave. Lately she's also turned into a super bitey jackass, but it's difficult to train her not to bite by ending play when we're stuck in a room together. Any advice on keeping the pus and wounds clean other than her twice-weekly malaseb baths? Opinions on the importance of quarantine vs stress management? Tips on literally anything else?   
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May 27, 2016 20:20
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| # ? Apr 26, 2024 05:25 |
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Hey y'all. This is McPhock's lady. I'm a vet tech and I work at a veterinary lab. Poor little kitten. Ok, so some questions/suggestions: Do they have her on any oral medications or just topical stuff you apply on the outside? I think with an infection that severe, she needs to be on something oral (although anti-fungal medications are rough on the system, and she's tiny, but with a severe infection she needs to be on some type of antibiotic/anti-fungal meds) and she could probably use some immune system support (via vitamin B - good for stress, and a teeny tiny lick of plain yogurt can help support the flora in her digestive tract for her immune system - just stop if it gives her any intestinal trouble). Another thing is are you guys wearing gloves when you apply this stuff and are playing with her? Ringworm is contagious to humans as well, and even though you may not be getting it yourself (your immune system is probably better than a little kitten's), you may be passing it back to her and reinfecting some spots. Those spots where all the pus is coming out probably need to dry up to heal, so I wouldn't apply the topical antibiotic too much, and stick with the baths. If she's licking or irritating the area, she may need a little bitty cone to wear until she heals up. If those spots stay moist, they're going to stay infected. I would definitely keep her isolated, but make it as cozy as possible, and be sure to wash everything regularly. Let me know if this helps or if I can do anything else for you and the pus-covered jerk.
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May 28, 2016 03:52
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Oh poor kitten. You can also give her some lysine to help boost her itty bitty immune system, and there are kitty probiotics if the yogurt upsets her tummy. My vet has me giving my cat b12 shots to keep his immune system and energy levels up, but you could do liquid. Do you have a spare room you could put her in instead of the bathroom? I would maybe get a second opinion (third I guess) because tiny kitten probably does need oral meds, as mentioned already. Ring worm is really hard to clear. Make sure you're handling her with gloves and not re using towels on her.
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May 28, 2016 17:28
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Thanks to both of you! I'm glad you mentioned the spots needing to dry to heal; I had been wondering if that might have been the case and started to ease back on the meds. Things dried up and the pus is pretty much gone. She still glows a little on her head and back and a lot in her armpits, but it's a big improvement! Hopefully another week and she can get her freedom again
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May 29, 2016 21:04
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Pus from ringworm? We have had ringworm with every group of foster kittens and never once had pus. I know one of the rescue's vet techs said she has been using some athletic foot powder and that helps. Hell all the rescue uses in most cases is athlete's foot cream. How small is your kitten?
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Jun 1, 2016 22:54
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If you look at the pics it looks like the yellowish stuff is actually scabs that aren't drying out.
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Jun 2, 2016 00:20
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Cowslips Warren posted:Pus from ringworm? We have had ringworm with every group of foster kittens and never once had pus. Yeah a lot of it was definitely just crusty crap that wasn't getting dry, but I'm pretty sure there was some pus at some point, not long after a bath. Do you know what the athletic powder was specifically? She is 11 weeks old. We've been easing back on medication (1 or 2 times a day with light application) and she is looking a lot better on her back, but her arm/leg pits are staying the same/getting worse, and her attitude is really taking a dive. She starts biting us and pouncing on our feet pretty much immediately when we enter her quarantine room. Yesterday was Bath & Scrub The Room Day so I took some pictures. Pre-bath, best I could do while she bit me savagely. You can kinda see some of the crusty buildup.  Also pre-bath, her arm pit is red and flakey  I would think it was just a hot spot that she had been scratching at, but I've never seen her scratch it and it glows like ringworm:    Here she is mid-bath, you can kind of see the gunk on her head and ridges in her skin that have formed.  While her shampoo soaks, I use a furminator to gently comb out the crust and crap. It is disgusting. 80% of that is from the top of her head.  And here is post bath, looking much better.  
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Jun 2, 2016 20:44
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Anything crusty or scabby is going to fluoresce so don't worry about that. A lot of topical medications will fluoresce, too. When ringworm fluoresces, it's specifically the hair shafts that glow - not the underlying skin or crusty stuff or whatever. Also in theory you need a specific kind of blacklight with the correct spectrum for any of this to apply. I would not trust a little blacklight flashlight. Ringworm lesions looking that bad after over a month of treatment is not normal. If your vet is truly out of ideas, you should consider getting a second opinion.
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Jun 4, 2016 02:03
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Ugh she's been looking really good, almost back to 100%, and then the dumbass just broke her back leg. Taking her to the vet tomorrow, but would love to hear anyone else's experience or whatever with an 11-ish week old kitten breaking their leg!
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Jun 8, 2016 00:31
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| # ? Apr 26, 2024 05:25 |
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Friend posted:Ugh she's been looking really good, almost back to 100%, and then the dumbass just broke her back leg. Taking her to the vet tomorrow, but would love to hear anyone else's experience or whatever with an 11-ish week old kitten breaking their leg! When I worked at the vet, we had a very scraggly, baby kitten come from the SPCA. His leg was broken really badly. He needed so much time recovering one of the vets at the clinic ended up adopting him. His leg was in a cast, but the most important part (and strenuous part for the kitty) was that he just needed to spend a lot of time laying low. He needed to stay in a large kennel so he couldn't run around like a crazy kitten and repeat making his injury worse. He was allowed out only a few times a day with strict supervision, in a room where he couldn't leap up onto anything, or get too wild.
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Jun 8, 2016 04:46
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