Whipworms & Tapeworms in Cats - How To Diagnose & TreatTapeworms Can they be seen by the human eye? Yes, tapeworms can reach 4 to 6 inches within the intestine, but the end segment of the worm is the only part that usually breaks off and shows up in the cats stool. What do they look like? After they are dried up, they look like tiny grains of white rice or confetti. They can be found in your cats stool or attached to their fur right around the anus or underneath the tail. Before they dry up, they might even move around a little bit. One of my dogs had tapeworms as a puppy, and when I saw them they were 'alive' and moving around – I didn't know what they were at first, they looked like little maggots. How are they transmitted? They are transmitted by ingesting fleas, or by hunting and eating birds or rodents that are infested with tapeworms or fleas. Can they be transmitted to people? Yes, but it's very uncommon. They catch them the same way dogs and cats do – by ingesting an infected flea or other animal infected with tapeworm. Whipworms Large numbers of whipworms can cause inflammation of the intestinal wall, hemorrhaging anemia can also result. Can they be seen by the human eye? No, whipworms can only be diagnosed by taking a stool sample to the veterinarian. How are they transmitted? They are transmitted when your cat eats food or drinks water contaminated with whipworm eggs. Symptoms Severe weight loss and mucous in your cats stool. Can they be transmitted to people? There have been reports of people being infected with T. vulpis, but humans are more often infected with T. trichiura, the human whipworm.
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