Ringworm in Cats (Ears): Pictures, Causes, Treatment & Prevention

It is not uncommon for your cats to get infested with ringworms. The common signs and symptoms of ringworms in cats include presence of dry patches on cats body, especially ears. You can identify ringworms using the illustrative pictures inserted in this post. Explore some of the best home remedies and treatments for ringworms in cats. Furthermore, learn the causes of ringworm in cats and how you can prevent them.

Table of Contents

Ringworm in Cats Symptoms

Symptoms which affects your cats may include several dead skin cells. This cell collection may cause, dandruff, poor hair coat that has irritated and reddened skin; darkened skin (also known as hyperpigmentation); itchiness; and hair loss, which can be patchy or even circular. The classic indication of circular hair loss is commonly seen in the cats.

Other symptoms of ringworm in cats are raised, knotty lesions called granulomatous lesions, or even the boils. A granuloma is raised nodular lesions which frequently ooze due to the ringworm infection. There might also be inflammation of the folds of skin which borders the nail and other skin folds – medically known as paronychia.

Even though these are some of the indicated symptoms of the ringworm in cats, some of the infected might be asymptomatic. These particular types of cats who are infected with ringworm are usually classified as inapparent carriers – thus they are harboring the fungus, but presenting no visible symptoms of the condition.

But remember that they do not appear sick, the cats are very contagious to humans and other animals.

Ringworm in Cats Pictures (Images)

What does ringworm in cats look like? We have inserted excellent pictures in relevant sections of this post. The pictures will enable you to identify ringworms in cats easily.

What Causes Ringworm in Cats

Ringworm is the most common cause of the dermatophytosis in the cats. The amounts of cases normally vary because of the geographical location.

Environments which are densely populated with the animals (for instance, in animal shelter), or where there is very poor nutrition, poor management practices, as well as lack of adequate quarantine period, can also increase the risk of infection.

Factors which decrease the body’s ability to develop a normal immune response, for example, immunocompromising diseases or immunosuppressive medications might also raise the likelihood of this infection among cats. When affected by this factors, your cat will be at higher risk of ringworm infection on the skin, hair or nails. In addition, they increase the potential for a severe infection of ringworm in cats.

Ringworm in Cats Ears

Classic symptoms due to ringworm in cats are skin lesions which usually appear on head, ears and the forelimbs. Ringworm may lead to flaky bald patches which sometimes appears red at the center.

In the mild cases, there might be localized areas of redness or just dandruff, while severe infections may spread over the entire body. It’s also possible for a pet to have ringworm spores and not indicate any symptoms whatsoever.

How to Get Rid of Ringworm in Cats

There are many homeopathic treatments and home remedies which work effectively on the specific ringworm problems, like Bacillinium, Chrysarobinum and Sepia.

Keep in mind that as mentioned earlier, the effectiveness of each given individual treatment might largely vary depending on the specific cause of the ringworm.

Home Remedies for Ringworm in Cats

For the following treatments, you should use organic products as much as possible. Topical treatments are supposed to be used together with an ingested treatment and an immune system boosting daily diet.

1. Aloe Vera Juice

Aloe Vera Juice is a well-known antibacterial, antifungal or antiviral that can be used to get rid of ringworm in cats.

Use a cotton ball so as to apply the juice directly onto the affected area gently, Repeat about three times per day
Aloe vera juice may also be used on an irritated, inflamed and broken skin without fear of leading to any pain.
Use only the 100% food grade aloe vera juice or even the 100% human grade aloe vera gel.

2. Apple Cider Vinegar

Organic unpasteurized unfiltered juice is antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral that can be used to effectively to get rid of ringworms in cats.

Apply it topically. Use a cotton ball to apply the ACV directly onto the affected skin area gently, Repeat the process about three times daily;
Do notuse the vinegar on broken skin wounds as the ACV stings, leading to temporary pain because of ACV’s acidic nature.

3. Calendula

Calendula contains excellent anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal and wound healing properties to clear ringworm in cats. Calendula can be used as

Calendula ointment
Tincture of calendula
Steeped and cooled calendula tea bag.
Essential oil. It is composed of 15 drops of essential calendula oil which are mixed with 2 tbsps. of olive oil. Do not at any point use undiluted essential oil. Also, avoid any contact with the mucous membranes.

It is applied topically using the following procedure:

Use a cotton ball to apply calendula tincture directly onto the affected skin area gently;
Or just place the steeped tea bag against the affected skin area;
Repeat the process three times daily.
Calendula may be used on an irritated, inflamed and broken skin without causing pain. Calendula is non-toxic to cats when used as noted above.

4. Coconut Oil (Organic)

Organic coconut oil is an antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral to get rid of ringworm in cats, contains antioxidant and the anti-inflammatory properties and several other health benefits. It is used topically

Use a cotton ball to apply organic coconut oil directly onto the affected skin area gently; Repeat the process about three times daily. Coconut oil may be used on an irritated, inflamed skin without fear of causing pain.

5. Colloidal Silver

Colloidal Silver is a natural and a broad spectrum antibiotic agent. It contains excellent antiseptic, antifungal and disinfectant properties.

In addition to having antibiotic properties, new research has demonstrated that colloidal silver is one of the most effective substances that is used for getting rid of the antibiotic resistant super-pathogens like MRSA. It is used topically:

Use a cotton ball to apply Colloidal Silver directly onto the skin area gently
Repeat the process three times daily

Note that colloidal Silver may be used on irritated, inflamed and broken skin without fear of leading to any pain.

6. Fresh Garlic

Garlic is a natural broad-spectrum antibiotic which also contains other beneficial properties – anti-allergen, antibacterial, antifungal, antioxidant and anti-viral to get rid of ringworm in cats. It is used topically.

Procedure

Slice, or even crush a clove of garlic;
Allow to sit for up to 15 minutes;
Then gently rub the garlic onto the affected skin area;

Fresh garlic normally loses its medicinal properties 1 hour after being activated. The medicinal properties of garlic can be activated by bruising, mincing or even slicing the clove. This allows the medicinal properties that are located in the garlic’s cells to be released and then interact with each other so as to create garlic’s health benefiting properties;

7. Indian Strawberry (Mock Strawberry)

Indian Strawberry contains an excellent anticoagulant, depurative, febrifuge properties to work against ringworm in cats.

To use it first make a poultice of fresh leaves and the berries

You will require

Fresh Leaves;
Fresh Berries;
A clean piece of cloth

Procedure

Place some fresh leaves and berries in the cloth;
Crush the cloth so as to mash the leaves and berries;
Apply the moist mash directly to ringworm affected areas.
Repeat the procedure times daily.

Ringworm in Cats Treatment

According to wikihow.com, ringworm in cats is an infectious skin condition which might be passed on to people also. But, the name “ringworm” is normally misleading as this is usually a fungal infection, and not brought about by a worm.

Cats can be infected by coming in contact with the fungal spores that are in the environment or even on the coats of other infected animals.

Step 1: Identifying Ringworm

1. Look for Patches of Hair Loss on Your Cat.

The ringworm fungus normally grows around the hair shafts and then migrates downward into hair follicles. This causes inflammation and leads to the hair to shed, thus leaving a patch of flaky skin behind.

These bald areas are normally crusty and might be reddened and inflamed. Usually, the areas are itchy and the cat might scratch or even lick at them.

Sometimes the skin areas of hair loss might appear sticky brought about by a secondary bacterial infection due to inflammation or even the scratching.

2. Identify Any Scaly Patches on Cat’s Face, Paws or Even the Ears.

Classic places for an infection are the cat’s face, ears, and front paws. The fur on the face might have a moth-eaten appearance, having mottled areas of fur loss.

On paws, infection is normally around the nail. So, toes might be bald with the scaling skin around the nail.

The distribution of cracked skin on paws and face is due to the cats commonly catch infection while investigating the environment: sniffing at things.

3. Watch out for Any Signs of Infection in Several Cats.

Usually, cats living closely, like a litter of the kittens in a shelter, infect one another and many animals having itchy bald patches is supposed to raise an immediate suspicion of the ringworm.

4. Keep an Eye Out for Skin Lesions on Your Skin.

Another indication of ringworm is if you develop skin lesions. In people having typically itchy, raised red and inflamed patches of skin which are dry and scaly indicates the presence of ringworm in cats.

These cracks on the skin are circular and usually resemble a ring, or even a pattern of rings. Sometimes the outer border is normally bumpy, especially around a scaly center.

Places which usually come into contact with the cat are likely to be infected, therefore your hands from stroking the cat are typical for infection.

5. See A Vet So as to Confirm the Presence of Ringworm.

If your cat indicates presence of ringworm, or you have suspicious lesions that are on your own skin, then get your cat checked by a veterinarian.

Ringworm may mimic several conditions like skin infections, allergic skin disease, and the parasitic skin disease, thus reaching a firm diagnosis may involve examining the plucked hairs under the microscope so as to look for the fungal hyphae along the hair shaft.

The vet might as well check the cat under an ultraviolet light so as to look for the characteristic apple-green fluorescence given by some of the ringworm species. The vet might also do a fungal culture, where the fungus is then grown from sample coat brushings from the cat.

Step 2: Treating Ringworm

1. Put The Cat on Antibiotics.

Griseofulvin is an antibiotic which, do not kill ringworm but stops ringworm in cats from growing. Griseofulvin usually acts by disrupting the cell division and prevents it from growing, therefore putting it into an inactive state. The cat might require being on the antibiotics for many weeks.

Griseofulvin is effective if given with a fat, like a knob of butter, as this enhances absorption into the blood stream. The suggested dose is normally 50mg/kg which is given once a day for up to a period of days (and for at least 14 days after the skin lesions have completely resolved).

Griseofulvin is supposed not to be given to pregnant cats as it leads to deformities in kittens in the womb. Griseofulvin should not be handled by the pregnant women.

As a precaution, it is better to wear the disposable gloves if you are cutting the tablets up. Although griseofulvin is not damaging to the healthy people, it is just sensible to avoid any accidental ingestion.

2. Give an Antifungal Medication.

Ketoconazole is an imidazole antifungal agent which normally acts by inhibiting synthesis of fungal cell walls, thus making leaky and leading to the cell’s contents leaking out preventing ringworm in cats.

The recommended dosage is 10mg/kg by mouth, 3 times daily after food. Thus a 6 kg cat needs 30 to 50mg per indicated dose. A 500mg/ 5ml oral suspension is also available, which implies that an average-sized cat requires between 0.5ml by mouth, 3 times a day.

Ketoconazole contains a broader spectrum of activity than the griseofulvin; with regard to treating ringworm, it may also be used in treating aspergillosis, thrush infection and coccidiomycosis infections (these are several fungal or single celled organisms which are sensitive to ketoconazole).

As with griseofulvin, treatment is for a long period of time, and is normally continued until 2 negative fungal cultures are taken about 3 weeks apart have been obtained

3. Implement Environmental Controls.

While the medical treatment is initiated, it is crucial to decrease the environmental contamination with the fungal spores.

This assists to ensure that once the cat is cleared of the ringworm, she doesn’t re-infect herself, or the environment does not also act as a reservoir of an infection for you.

4. Keep the Cat in One Room.

Everywhere the cat goes dander and hair are shed, which are also potential sources of the ringworm infection. Ideally, you should ensure to keep the pet confined to its room so as to reduce the spread of infection due to ringworm in cats.

Remove all soft furnishings except for the cat’s bed, as these are very difficult to clean. The cat’s bed is supposed to be washed by itself, on a hot wash with detergent. (There is low risk of any further washes being contaminated). Where it is possible, leave the bed so as to dry in the bright sunshine.

The room is supposed to be cleaned and then disinfected with a 1:10 dilution of the household bleach in water. This implies that you add 200ml of bleach to each 1000ml of water, so as to make up a stock cleaning solution.

Ideally, all hard surfaces would be cleaned using dilute bleach daily so as to minimize the build-up of contamination. The room is also supposed to be vacuumed and the vacuum bag disposed of by incineration.

5. Clip the Cat’s Coat.

The ringworm fungus usually grows down the hair shafts. To give the ringworm less chance to colonize the coat and ensure that there is less shedding of the infected hairs, it is a good idea to clip the cat’s coat short.

This is better done with the scissors (clippers may damage the skin and encourage fungal colonization) but it needs a co-operative cat.

Keep the scissor blades parallel to surface of the skin and cut at an angle 90 degrees to hair shafts. Trim the hair as close to the skin as possible without nicking the skin.

Wear disposable plastic gloves while clipping the cat, and throw them away afterward. Collect the clippings in a plastic bag and then dispose of by burning if it is possible. If this is not possible, then double wrap them in another bag and dispose of them in the garbage.

Throw away all the grooming equipment that is used on an infected cat, or thoroughly disinfect it using dilute bleach. If the cat objects to clipping, then speak to a veterinarian who will sedate the animal and professionally clip him.

6. Shampoo the Cat.

Washing the cat using an appropriate shampoo may help clean the hair follicles and reduce the shedding of infected hairs and dander. This is to be done for both clipped and the unclipped cats.

Twice weekly shampooing for 10 weeks is normally recommended as a back up to the antifungal medications. The shampooing is not so much to get rid of the fungus but to decrease environmental contamination.

With this, if a treatment shampoo is not found, any mild shampoo that is suitable for use on a cat is acceptable as an alternative to treatment of ringworm in cats.

7. Find a Suitable Shampoo.

If you choose to use the treatment shampoo, then you should look for one that has the following:

Chlorhexidine: A suitable topical treatment is a solution that is made of chlorhexidine. Chlorhexidine is an antiseptic that has antifungal properties to deal with ringworm in cats.
This is normally diluted in water (which has an appropriate dilution is 5ml of chlorhexidine to about 1 liter of water) and then sponged over the cat and then allowed to air dry.
Malaseb shampoo: Malaseb shampoo has about 2% chlorhexidine and 2% miconazole (an antifungal agent). Malaseb is usually used as a shampoo and so the coat and the skin must be thoroughly wet. The shampoo is then lathered on and then left in contact with the skin for a period of about 10 minutes, and rinsed thoroughly.
Enilconazole: Enilconazole is an antifungal agent which is used externally to the skin and may also be used on pregnant cats and young kittens. One part is diluted in 50 parts of water so as to produce a 0.2% solution. This is then sponged over the cat for every 3 days.

8. Understand the Prognosis.

Healthy cats might be expected to self-cure in around 3 months. During this particular period, however, they are a source of infection for others and so it is better to keep them in isolation.

For the cats which show significant clinical signs (like patchy hair loss and itchiness), clearing the infection is a time-consuming process, which involves oral medications, as well as topical treatments.

Are Ringworm in Cats Contagious

Yes. In fact, ringworms are very infectious to other pets and even to human beings when not handled with care as described in the above section.

How to prevent Ringworm in Cats

If your vet has diagnosed ringworm in cats, she will explain what you must do so as to prevent the fungus from spreading to other pets and to human members of the household.

But remember that if you have any other pets, it’s likely that most of them have been exposed also. Your veterinarian might recommend that you do the following:

Bathe all the pets in the household using a medicated rinse or shampoo.
Wash the infected animals’ toys using a disinfectant which gets rid of the ringworm spores.
Discard items which are impossible to disinfect
Frequently vacuum so as to get rid of the house of infected hairs and all the skin cells.