Relax.  Cats and dogs get worms.  Getting rid of them is no big deal.  Vet
will likely put a stool sample under a microscope and give the cat a pill.

(Note, if you are squeamish you might want the cat to be out for the rest of
the afternoon)

It is likely they are all infected and should all be wormed.

Even in the unlikely event you have acquired worms from them, the type of
worms they get can't reproduce in a human and will go away on their own in a
very short time.  You might want to confirm that with your vet.

Jo

We get this question a lot at the vet clinic.

It is possible that it was a tapeworm segment.  That's how the
tapeworm deposits its eggs.

Tapeworms in a sense come from fleas.  At some point a flea that had
ingested tapeworm eggs or jumped onto one of your cats.  The cat then
in cleaning itself then accidentally ingested the flea.  The flea dies
in the digestive tract, but the tapeworm grows.  It then sheds its
eggs in the form of segments which look like tiny sesame seeds or rice
grains.  Then when they fall off the cat like in your house, another
flea from another cat eats it and the whole cycle continues.

Treating tapeworms is two-fold.

1.  Take your cat to the vet to be dewormed.  Yes, there are a lot of
over the counter commercial products, but really the best way to kill
them is by taking them to the vet where the vet will give them a shot
or a pill.  Some clinics will do a series of shots, like two, but
usually i've seen just one.

2a.  Clean your household, especially where the pets hang out and
sleep.  Vaccuum the heck out of the carpet, wash the bedding, etc.  (I
say vaccum a lot because vibrations can encourage flea eggs to hatch)
You want to get rid of any fleas or shed tapeworm segments in your
household.

2b.  Start putting your cats on monthly parasite control.  Since the
tapeworms can only infect you cat by being in a flea that gets
swallowed by the cat, the flea is your target.  I reccomend Advantage
at least.

Nowadays there are other multi-parasitic control products.  My clinic
advertises Revolution, which controls fleas. ticks, tapeworms,
roundworms, hookworms, heartworms and even prevent mange and ear
mites.  And now there's a product called Advantage-Multi, which claims
to do the same thing.

Bottom line is the cats should be on some form of flea control, even
if they are indoor cats.  Mine are indoor and once i found 'rice
grains' on Imp's butt, meaning a flea must have hitched a ride on me
from work.

Can you be infected?  Highly unlikely, since the tapeworm egg needs to
hatch and develop in another host prior to hanging out inside you.  So
I wouldn't worry.

But get the cats dewormed, the house cleaned and get them on some form
of flea control.

hope this helps

Kristi

When I adopted Sam, he had exactly that sort of thing on the fur near his
anus. Of course, it was one of the first things I mentioned to TED on
Sam's first check-up, and yes, it was tapeworm, probably transmitted by
fleas, although I hadn't seen any fleas. He was treated for worms and
fleas, and hasn't had a problem since. The worm medicine was a single dose
of a pill (I think determined by body weight) and I wisely asked if the
vet assistant could administer it. She had it down inside Sam before he
realized what was happening, and that was it. Fast, simple and painless -
well, except for the tapeworm, I suppose!

The flea treatment was one of the new liquids you rub on the cat's neck
fur - Advantage?? Last time I treated cats for fleas, I had to rub a kind
of anti-flea mousse into their fur at intervals, and spray every surface
they were in contact with with an anti-flea spray. The new way is much
better!

No worries. One Drontal pill will sort it out. Periodically 'worm' your cat
with a Drontal pill once every few months and problem sorted.

Thanks for your detailed replies!

I took the cats to the vet this morning, and they were given pills. I
will ask for the anti-flea liquid too.

I had the same experience when we got a new kitten... I thought it was
gross but it didn't seem to worry her at all! Feline tapeworms can NOT
live in humans so you're not going to catch it. You need to get her
some special tapeworm medicine - it's a one-pill treatment and it
dissolves the tapeworms' protective coating and then the cat simply
digests it away and it's gone. Totally painless once you get her to
swallow the pill!