Can I buy cat worming treatment without a vet, and what should I use?

[Brandyb]

Is it possible to buy cat parasite/worming treatment at home without the intervention of a vet? If so, what is the best way to go about this?

Our two cats, we've had them a year and they are 18 months old and generally fine healthwise. But I have to admit we've been a bit lax about their parasite/deworming treatment, and they are indoor/outdoor cats.They had a shot in the back neck of something that they both HATED about 3 months ago. That was sold to us during a vet checkup. That's it - they wouldn't eat the worming treatment I tried to get into their food. We don't have any regular checkups unless need as we have no insurance and they are young and healthy.

Have I been very negligent? Do I need to fix key things? I love them to absolute bits🤗but I'm a bit scatty and disorganised - and suspicious of any insurance, think it's such a bloody scam

Tablets from Amazon. Reminder in your diary. Butter on tablet to help it slide down.

You really need vet-prescribed treatment, over the counter stuff just doesn't work adequately. My cat has Felpreva that treats both fleas and worms and lasts 3 months. It's a tiny bit of liquid that's applied to skin on the back of the neck, no injection needed. I think my vet charges £50 for it, which I don't think is too bad as it lasts for so long.

Regular check ups wouldn't be covered by insurance anyway, and they can pick up on all sorts of things before you notice them e.g. weight loss/gain. And regarding insurance, Tobias would have cost me at least 2 years of premiums over the last year in vet fees and will go on costing that for life now. So though I haven't needed it for Girlcat, I have saved myself a small fortune having him insured. You need to consider would you be able to pay out if he needed specialist care or an operation without insurance, especially as they go out. A tricky operation could cost in the region of £5-8k easily by the time you add in overnight fees, nursing, all the meds etc.

The wormers & flea treatments you can get over the counter aren't as effective as the vet prescribed ones, and fleas in some areas now have a resistance to some of them. If you do decide that's the way to go, whatever you do don't get Bob Martins or any other really cheap one, they can actually be harmful to some cats! Brands like Frontline, Advantage (fleas) and Drontal (worms) aren't as good as prescription, but are probably the best of the rest.

Of course you can. Plenty on Amazon

You do need to worm them if they go out. You can get Dronspot from any online vet without a prescription. It’s drontal in spot on form. Vets will tell you it’s not as good but honestly it’s fine. It goes on the back of their neck. You need to get it on the skin so it might take one person to hold the cat firm and one to apply it. It’s not exactly easy but easier than getting a pill down.

For fleas I’d get a flea collar. I haven’t found any pill or spot on that works really well. I use Beaphar for my dogs, they do a cat version too.

We’re not on a vet plan, but we get flea/worm treatment from there on prescription and one of us pays for it on collection every three months. The vet texts to say it’s time to pick it up. I think it’s about £60 every time.

Re insurance, it’s a scam until you need it - much like if your house roof collapsed! Our last lovely girl was diagnosed with aggressive stomach cancer aged ten, and tests to reach that horrible diagnosis added up to over £3k in under a week. We’d had numerous vet visits over nine months or so because of sporadic vomiting, where the vet was never concerned because she was otherwise well, and our insurance claim actually covered those (which we just paid the vet for as we went) along with the tests because they were part of the same issue, and also eventual pts, when we made that claim.

We have a little boy cat now who’s three and a half, and before he was even through the door (when he was one) best believe I had a heavy duty policy in place for him. I hope we never need it. On the flip side we’ve had my MiL’s cat with us since July while she renovates a new home. He’s ten and not insured, but she’s very financially comfortable and could easily pay for a £5K surgery tomorrow without pause if - god forbid - the need arose.

Much appreciated advice, thanks all.