Dealing with Ringworm in Your Pet

It can be difficult and uncomfortable to both dogs and cats, and it's even contagious to humans as well. You've heard of it, you may have even seen it on TV, it's ringworm. This infection can be transmitted through skin, hair, even your pet's living environment, if the spores haven't been fully eliminated.

The trouble with ringworm is that it's not always noticeable from the get-go, in fact it is sometimes mistaken for other types of skin conditions. So even if you think your pet has been affected bring it to a veterinarian as soon as possible. Here are some ways to distinguish whether your pet has such an infection.

The symptoms you want to look for don't always indicate ringworm specifically, but these are the most commonly associated with this affliction:

• Circular areas of hair loss on the head, feet, legs or tail. This is your best bet that what you're dealing with ringworm as this symptom is exclusive to this type of infection. Look for small blisters near or around these areas as well. 
• Scaly and inflamed skin. 
• Dandruff
• Acne that is mostly on the chin.

Diagnosing the problem is best left to your vet. He or she will try to determine if your pet has ringworm through a number of tests, but they'll likely check out your pet's skin under a Wood's Lamp first. This is a form of blacklight that can identify the ringworn fungi as they will appear fluorescent almost immediately. It's not a fail-safe, fool-proof way of finding ringworm, as healthy animals will also have fluorescent types of fungi on their coat which do not always lead to ringworm fungi. But this is a good start that vets will be able to identify the problem.

If your pet does have ringworm, there are a number of ways to treat it. Topical treatments such as Lotrimin and miconazole cream, along with antifungal shampoos, dips in lime sulfur and other antibiotics are all effective for slight to moderate infections. Oral treatments may be necessary, such as Griseofulvin or itraconazole, and can be used with ringworm vaccines. These will require blood tests to be taken during their use.

One thing to keep in mind: ALWAYS use gloves and wash your hands thoroughly and repeatedly when handling and treating a pet that has ringworm; so as not to spread the infection due to its high contagion factor.