My Cat Has Worms How Do I Clean My House and Disinfect?

You’re probably wondering how to clean your house when your cat has tapeworms or roundworms.

Internal parasites aren’t unusual for cats. On the contrary, they’re common in felines as when pets roam outside, they pick up worms.

While they’re easily treatable with proper medication, the consequences can be unpleasant for your feline.

Some worm-infested pets suffer from irritation in their sensitive hindquarters, hence dragging them on the floor. They’re also more prone to sickness and diarrhea.

Well, cleaning up your home afterward can be a challenge because of the foul odors lingering in the air and stubborn stains everywhere. However, it’s not impossible!

In this article, I will teach you all about worm infestation in cats and share a step-by-step cleaning guide for your home, so let’s begin.

How Do Cats Get Worms?

Both outdoor and indoor cats can get worms. However, outdoor cats have a higher chance of becoming infected.

If felines come in contact with a place that contains infected feces or eggs, they will probably get infected.

It’s enough for your cat to pick up eggs with their paws and/or coat. Cats take good care of their looks, so they often groom themselves. And they will eventually ingest the eggs and get infected.

Moreover, if you have more indoor cats, they’re also more prone to getting infected, especially if they all share the same litter box that might contain infected feces.

However, as I already said, outdoor cats have a higher chance of becoming infected as they usually hunt small rodents that might contain worms.

Some felines can also get infected through dog feces that has eggs from hookworm and roundworm species.

Fleas can also transmit tapeworms as they typically jump from dogs to cats and vice versa. Any fleas your cat ingests while grooming could potentially cause tapeworms, even if they’re indoors only.

What Are the Symptoms of Worms?

The symptoms of worms depend on the species. However, let’s start by highlighting some of the more common symptoms of worms:

Dull coat
Weight loss
Diarrhea (might contain blood)
Vomiting (might contain worms)
Swollen or bloated abdomen
Poor overall body condition
Skin problems
Tarry feces

If the worm infestation goes untreated, you can also notice the next symptoms:

Shock
Weakness
Dehydration
Low blood pressure
Anemia (pale lips and gums)
Death

If you notice any of these symptoms in your cat and you suspect they have worms, schedule a vet appointment right away.

Keep in mind that just because you haven’t seen worms in your cat’s poop, doesn’t mean that they’re not infected by worms.

Your vet needs to examine their poop under a microscope to see eggs. It’s common for felines to be infected and display no symptoms. Therefore, regular deworming is vital for your cat’s overall health.

How Do You Disinfect Your House From Worms: Step-by-Step Guide

After a worm infestation, you must clean your home thoroughly.

Sick cats usually vomit or have diarrhea as a symptom of the worms. Therefore, you will have to find a way to thoroughly clean the mess in your house.

Otherwise, the worms and their eggs laying around the home will make your cat sick again. Heat can successfully destroy both the worms and their eggs.

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to deworm your cat and have a worm-free home in record time, so let’s dive right in.

Step 1: Deworm Your Cat

Typically, cats get infected by roundworms, tapeworms, heartworms, and hookworms. So, the deworming medication will depend on the type of worm your feline has.

The cleaning will have to wait until you deworm your kitten. Therefore, take your pet to the vet as soon as possible and ask for deworming treatment.

Alternatively, you can buy medication over the counter. However, I suggest getting your prescription from your vet, especially if you’re deworming kittens.

Step 2: Use Protective Gear

Once you’re done deworming your cat, put on protective gear such as an N95-rated dust mask, gloves, and rubber boots.

I know this might sound a little dramatic, but when dealing with worms, it’s important to protect yourself, as they can be easily passed to people if they accidentally ingest worm eggs.

For instance, you can get roundworms. They’re the most common internal parasites of felines that can be transmitted to people.

Roundworm eggs can turn airborne and then be inhaled by humans. Therefore, you must wear protective gear when cleaning your home after deworming your cat, especially for cleaning up dry and hard stools.

I personally always wear full-body overalls when dealing with worm infestation as I want to be as safe as possible, but you can also wear a disposable apron.

In fact, I suggest using disposable protective gear when cleaning your house so that you can just toss everything immediately after use.

Step 3: Clean Their Litter Box

First and foremost, take care of your pet’s litter box.

So, clean their litter tray properly and thoroughly. Toss the litter along with cat feces that might contain eggs of tapeworms or roundworms.

If your cat had roundworms, they’re easily transmitted through poop. Therefore, toss any feces as they can get your kitten sick again.

The same goes for tapeworm eggs. They’re initially ingested by a middle host which is then consumed by cats and initiates a tapeworm infection.

Moreover, clean your feline’s litter box every single day while they’re still recovering to ensure you remove as many worm eggs as possible.

Toss the litter daily and pour a new one after you clean the tray with a disinfectant. And don’t forget to wear disposable protective gloves when cleaning.

Toss the gear right after use to prevent the parasite eggs from being passed to you.

Step 4: Handle all the Accidents

The next thing you must take care of include diarrhea and vomiting stains. Clean up all of these accidents as soon as possible as they contain worms and eggs.

Sometimes, even vomit has worms, so always handle these substances carefully. If your cat has vomited on hard surfaces, you should soak and wipe up as much of the mess as possible with paper towels or tissues. Then, use a disinfectant spray.

The spray will take care of the bacteria. Just make sure that your cleaning products don’t cause damage.

If your cat has vomited or pooped on your carpets, you should take a whole different approach. First, wipe up as much of the vomit and/or poop as possible. Then, steam your carpet before using a carpet cleaner.

Just make sure you don’t apply too much product. Instead, follow the instructions on the package. Otherwise, you can cause damage.

Additionally, I highly suggest using a commercial enzyme cleaner, as most cleaning products will mask instead of neutralize smells.

Enzyme cleaners, on the other hand, break down the molecules in smells and make them leave for good. Repeat the cleaning process as many times as necessary until everything smells fresh.

Step 5: Disinfect Hard Surfaces

Some cat owners only clean the places their cat has directly pooped or vomited on. However, that’s not enough when dealing with cat worms.

You must wipe all of the hard surfaces with disinfectant as well. The eggs of worms could easily have nested in your cat’s fur and been released to different spots in your home.

The good news is that worms can’t survive on hard surfaces for too long, but it’s still important to disinfect every hard surface just to be sure there aren’t any eggs left.

When disinfecting hard surfaces, pay close attention to cervices and ridges as eggs typically hide in these places to survive.

I personally use bleach and hot water for cleaning hard surfaces. Just mix some boiling water and bleach, and clean all pieces of furniture around your house with it. Just make sure that the bleach won’t damage your floors and furniture.

If you don’t want to take any risks, use disinfectant sprays and enzyme cleaners, as they’re also excellent for cleaning hard surfaces without causing damage.

Step 6: Give Your Carpets a Deep Clean

As I already mentioned, cleaning carpets isn’t as easy as cleaning hard surfaces or other things in your home.

Therefore, you must give your best and make sure they’re 100% clean. Worms and their eggs can be easily transmitted to different types of carpets in different types of ways. For instance, your cat can bring them in from outside.

Furthermore, roundworms, hookworms, and tapeworms can survive on your carpets for weeks, while others will only stay alive for about a few days.

The worst part? The worm eggs can survive for even longer. Tapeworm and roundworm eggs can survive on carpets for multiple months.

And if they’re not banished immediately, they can cause a new infestation soon. So, make sure you have the right tools and deep clean your carpets.

As I already said, heat kills worms. So, start by vacuuming your carpet, then steam clean it. When your carpet is completely dry, sprinkle some salt over the top and let it sit for a couple of days.

Make sure your cat, other pets, and family members don’t use the carpet until you’re done with the cleaning.

Lastly, vacuum the salt along with the dead worms and empty your vacuum cleaner immediately.

Step 7: Wash all the Fabrics

Worms and their eggs can also survive on other soft materials except for carpets, so you must take care of all the soft furnishings as well.

Wash every bedding, pet bed, cushion, blanket, and toys you have in your house as usual in the washer using the hot cycle so that any worms and eggs die to prevent a new infestation in the future.

Additionally, you should clean larger fabric items such as your sofa and armchair as they can also nest worms and eggs, especially if they’re situated in the same rooms as your cat’s belongings.

You can clean your sofa, couches, armchairs, and other similar fabric items in your home with a steam cleaner as heat kills worms and their eggs.

Step 8: Clean the Outdoor Areas

Cleaning outside your home is just as important as cleaning the inside, especially if you live in a house and your cat typically roams around outside.

So, make sure to clean all your patio and other surfaces with hot water as it’s a very effective solution that doesn’t cost too much. Just fill the kettle with hot water, then add bleach to the water and spray this mixture all over your patio, garden, etc.

Avoid using a powerful hose or pressure washer as they can spread the worms and their eggs further around your home.

How to Clean My Garden?

If you believe your garden has been infested with worms and eggs, try covering the soil with a clear plastic tarpaulin sheet as they’re sensitive to UV light.

In other words, they will die if the surface they’re living on becomes very hot and dry beneath the sun’s rays. Make sure the sheet is pinned down with rocks.

Give the sheet days or even weeks if possible to act. The UV light will poke through the plastic and destory bacteria on the soil’s surface, including worms and their eggs.

In small outdoor areas, you can remove the top layer of the soil, instead of adding a clear plastic sheet. That way, you will remove most of the worms and eggs.

Make sure you’re wearing disposable gloves during this process and toss the dirt in a landfill to prevent a new infestation.

Extra tip: If your cat defecates in your garden, make sure to remove all of the poop right away. The same goes for any stray or neighborhood cats that use your garden as their bathroom.

Unfortunately, any animal can have worms in their poop and infect cats nearby.

As I mentioned above, parasite transmission through poop is highly likely, so keep your garden as clean as possible, especially if you let your cat outside.

Step 9: Disinfect Your Tools

Once you’re done with cleaning, it’s time to clean your cleaning tools. Make sure to disinfect all the equipment you have used in the process, except for the disposable ones.

For instance, disinfect your vacuum cleaner, steam cleaner, and your rubber boots. Wipe all of these things with boiling water using tissues or paper towels. Then, toss them right away.

Finally, when you’re disposing of your disposable items, ensure you use a garbage bag. Then, put the bag inside another bag and toss it. You can even take the bag to a landfill so it’s as far away as possible from your home.

Step 10: Maintain Your Hygiene

Last but not least, maintain your cleanliness, even if your cat has worms at the moment.

In other words, keep your home clean at all times. Also, if you’re a gardener, make sure you wash your hands before touching your cat as roundworms can stay in the soil before they find a host.

Another thing owners don’t pay attention to is washing their hands after cleaning their kitten’s litter box. Make sure you wash your hands thoroughly for 20 seconds with mild water and soap before going about your day and touching your cat.

How to Prevent Worm Infections in Cats: 8 Useful Tips

Unfortunately, your kitten can still get infected by parasites, no matter what you do to stop that from happening. However, you can at least minimize the chance of that happening by implementing some of the following preventative tactics.

1. Keep Your Outdoor Cat Indoors

Typically, cats get infected outside by ingesting fleas or poop of infected animals, so keep your outdoor cat indoors at all times.

2. Keep a Close Eye on Your Cat Outside

If you decide to let your feline roam free outside, make sure they’re not eating things they’re not supposed to eat such as birds and mice as they can carry worms.

3. Provide Monthly Heartworm Meds

The most dangerous parasite that can infect your feline and put their health at risk is heartworm. So, make sure to provide monthly preventative heartworm meds as they can help prevent this potentially life-threatening infection.

4. Use Flea Preventative Meds

As I mentioned above, fleas cause tapeworms in felines. They typically get infected and when ingested, transfer the worms and their eggs onto your cat.

Therefore, use flea preventative meds to help your kitten avoid eating fleas, hence reducing the chance of infection.

5. Groom Your Kitten Frequently

Cats take good care of their coats by grooming themselves, but you can also brush your cat’s fur with a flea comb weekly, especially if they have long hair.

6. Keep Your House Clean

Outdoor cats can pick up soil and poop and bring them into your house. And as you already know, cat worms live in soft fabrics for months so make sure to clean your home regularly and remove any worms before they attack.

7. Clean Your Cat’s Litter Box Regularly

If you leave infected poop in your cat’s litter box, the worm eggs can spread to fleas which in turn spread them further. So, make sure you clean your cat’s litter box daily.

8. Keep Your Pets Separate

If you’re living in a multi-pet household, keep them separate, especially if you notice any of the symptoms of cat worms above.

Keep your indoor cat away from the rest of your pets. Also, make sure they have separate litter boxes, water bowls, and food bowls.

Wrap Up

I want to wrap up this article with common cat diseases that can get worse because of worm infection, so take a look.

FLV (Feline Leukemia Virus)

The feline leukemia virus is one of the most common diseases in felines. This virus attacks their immune system, hence causing death. (*)

Moreover, you can’t notice any symptoms immediately, so if you suspect your feline has worms, make sure they don’t have FLV as well.

FIV (Feline Immunodeficiency Virus)

The feline immunodeficiency virus also targets the immune system in cats, but it’s a slow-developing disease, so it can take months and even years for your cat to show any alarming signs. (*)

URI (Feline Upper Respiratory Infection)

Generally, the feline upper respiratory infection is caused by viral bacteria infecting other pets and items with which your feline would come in close touch. (*)

It attacks their throat, nose, and sinus area and could get worse with worms. So, if your cat has worms, start the deworming process right away and try to deworm your cat at least once every 3 months to ensure their safety.

See more: Should I Quarantine My Cat With Tapeworms?

*image by Svetlana Rey/depositphotos

My Cat Has Worms How Do I Clean My House?