At the animal shelter where I volunteer, they spray chlorhexedrine on surfaces (and on ourselves) when there is RW in the shelter. Maybe your dr or vet can get you some. You only need to mix a small amount with water in spray bottle. When I got it from a cat there a few years ago, I sprayed it on my bedding in between the frequent washings and perhaps the carpeting as well.

FWIW, I took oral meds (Lamisil) in addition to using Rx cream topically. Luckily my cats didn't get it from me.

Good luck. You have my sympathy dealing with this.

I will call first thing in the morning and see if i can get my hands on that LOL. I am feeling unqualified to fight this battle. My husband, my girls father, died in December and I haven't had the energy to do this kind of thing, and really don't have the energy now, except that it has to be done, cause I can't let my girls look like they are walking zombies with huge lesions all over them.

I have never had to deal with ringworm, but I just want to say I'm sorry you have to go thru this. Dealing with summer fleas is bad enough, I can't imagine what you have to deal with . I hope it comes to a quick end .

Oh, I am so sorry for your loss. As if you didn't have enough to deal with....

I know there are differing thoughts as to the efficacy of Chlorhexidine (I misspelled it in my first post). One site listed some steps/tips for cleaning the "environment" home):

Environment

Step 1

Mop floors with Chlorhexidine every other day.
Mix 3 oz (6 tablespoons) to each gallon of water.

Step 2

Clean carpets every week.

Use boiling water (through a steamer) or the Chlorhexidine in the same dilution as above. If using boiling water, the water must be replaced in the steamer every 10 minutes. You may want to contact a professional steaming company for this service. (They may give you a quantity discount if you ask.)

The water has to be greater than 110 degrees F when it hits the carpet in order for it to be effective. If using Chlorhexidine, try it on a small piece to make sure it doesn't fade the carpet.

Step 3

Wash cat bedding at least weekly with bleach or Chlorhexidine in washer. This includes washing all areas where the cats sleep. Also soak all brushes, combs, etc.

Toys should be washed and rinsed completely.

Step 4

Disinfect (with Chlorhexidine) all of the carriers.

Step 5

Vacuum frequently; change collection bag frequently.

For ease and peace of mind, you may want to clean the entire house twice and confine the cats to a small part of the house so that you don't have to clean everything continuously.

Important things as well: treat the cat (medicated shampoos/baths, topical creams/ointments, oral meds if rec by vet). Treat the girls (which you are, but might need stronger, Rx meds) and more importantly, make sure they are not touching, scratching the spots and then touching other parts of their bodies, or each other, or the cat, or.... They will just spread the spores/fungus/infection. It is recommended NOT to cover the spots--you want them to dry out, they thrive in moist, dark environments. I didn't have a lot of spots (though even one is enough!), but I did cover a few in bad locations with a loose piece of gauze (with first aid paper tape). Make sure the girls (and you, lol) wash hands frequently--especially after handling the cat (which you might want to limit during this outbreak--discuss with your vet).

Also, wash bedding, towels, and clothing frequently (daily if you can at first). I just couldn't wash my comforter daily--takes too long to dry and I couldn't be home each day for hours at a time to keep resetting the dryer--so I would spray it with the Chlorehexidine (I didn't use a steamer, just had it mixed in a spray bottle, as they do at the shelter). Wash towels (esp ones that come in contact with the spots) often (initially I washed mine daily)--mine are white, so I used bleach, but you can pre-soak in soapy water if you can't use bleach on them, and dry on as high heat as you can. Clean the bathtub daily, or at least every other day, I used bleach or a disinfecting cleaner. Probably best to dump/scrub the litter box daily, or as often as possible (just during this outbreak--when it's under control you can go back to scooping daily, and dumping/washing as needed), since your cat is in contact with it at least a few times a day.

I know, it's a lot of work, especially for a single mom of five (!), with two dogs and two cats. It was a PITA in our household with two adults, and two cats, period. But, the more vigilant you are at the start, the better off for the long run.

Of course, it goes without saying that the dogs and your other cat might need checking/treatment. Ask your vet/Dr whether you need to limit exposure and handling by the kids. Maybe disposable latex(or latex free) gloves could be worn when handling materials (or pets) known to have come in contact with RW??

It took a long time for me to get rid of it because my Dr/dermatologist didn't treat my initial symptoms aggressively enough from the start. Luckily, neither my DH, nor either of my cats, got it, which I attribute to the "precautions" I took in the home.

Again, good luck to you!!!

Persian cats are frequent carriers of this fungus... and many do not have to show signs of the infection... but I would suspect that is the source of this outbreak.

For cat, it ideally should be clipped/shaved and dipped weekly with lyme sulfa (I assume this cat was tested already? Positive? To find the spores, one usually just has to run a sterile toothbrush along the coat all over and have the vet do a DTM to make sure this cat is the source of the fungus. Takes up to two weeks for this test to be positive sometimes, but at least then you can be sure of the source). Most persians who are 'carriers' (have the spores in their coat only) do not benefit for oral medications for the fungus, and topical treatment is usually enough.

Other animals.. I would dip all the pets with Lyme Sulfa as well (follow vet instructions closely - safe stuff ,but very stinky and has to be diluted properly).

House... clean as discussed above, though most standard carpet cleaning systems will kill and take up the fungal spores. Completely sterilizing a house can be difficult, but is usually not necessary.

And no one has died from ringworm, so though it is very annoying and uncomfortable, no one is at risk (unless someone has a severe immunocompromised condition, like AIDs).

Or is a transplant recipient

Ringworm is a fungus;
I've had good results with Tinactin, an athlete's foot remedy you can find in the drug store.

I used the aerosol to keep from having to touch anything.

As someone suggested, in your place I'd get the cat shorn & treat her with whatever anti-fungal the vet recommends.

I wish you the very best.

Well I took both of my cats to be boarded today. Will end up costing me hundreds but almost impossible to keep 5 small children from either impulsively touching or accidentally touching the cats. They walk into that bathroom and the cat gets loose. Force of habit it seems since i have them locked in their bathroom. Anyway, the cats are out and I haven't seen any signs on the dogs yet and since they are indoor/outdoor dogs for now they will be outdoor dogs. From what I read outdoor animals are a lot less likely to get it/keep it because the heat kills the fungus. Extreme heat anyway and it's regularly over 100 in this part of tx and very dry outside. So, I think outside is best for the dogs, and the vet agreed that sending them outside would help me get the house cleared up. I got some of the spray from the vet. And I am back to cleaning. It never ends!

Well I took both of my cats to be boarded today. Will end up costing me hundreds but almost impossible to keep 5 small children from either impulsively touching or accidentally touching the cats. They walk into that bathroom and the cat gets loose. Force of habit it seems since i have them locked in their bathroom. Anyway, the cats are out and I haven't seen any signs on the dogs yet and since they are indoor/outdoor dogs for now they will be outdoor dogs. From what I read outdoor animals are a lot less likely to get it/keep it because the heat kills the fungus. Extreme heat anyway and it's regularly over 100 in this part of tx and very dry outside. So, I think outside is best for the dogs, and the vet agreed that sending them outside would help me get the house cleared up. I got some of the spray from the vet. And I am back to cleaning. It never ends!

I second the Tinactin! for fungus, only at the clinic we use the powder. It's not as invasive as the spray and with cats, the most often carrier of ring worm, it penetrates the fur...and is easy to use around the head and ears. We've treated 100's for years and this is what we've always used. My daughter, had one on her thumb tip last year. Was hard to get that one healed. She's the vet tech.