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What are white worms on my kitten's tail or near its anus?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Russian Blue | Male | neutered | 2 months and 3 days old | 2.2 lbs

Please help. I found a white worm stuck to my kittens tail fur and when I looked at his anus I saw these two white spots.

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2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Andrea M. Brodie, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on April 23rd, 2018

Your kitty has a tapeworm infection. This is not contagious to people. Cats get tapeworm by ingesting an infected flea while grooming. Tapeworm use fleas as interim hosts and this is how they can infect cats and dogs. So you should do two things now: 1) get a cat wormer that contains praziquantel which kills tapeworm. Your vet should be able to sell you the wormer, but you can also buy it in a pet shop or over the internet. 2) Make sure you do flea prevention , either via spot on or a seresto collar or a flea spray. This should take care of the problem.

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    Answered By Linda G, MS, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on August 15th, 2020

    Hello. Most likely this is a tapeworm. Pick up Bayer Tapeworm dewormer at Petco, or another wormer that contains the ingredient, praziquantal. This will take care of any tapeworms Neville has at this time. Do not worry too much about the spread of the tapeworm around your house as vacuuming will take care of things. Make sure you protect Neville against fleas, & do not let him hunt. Ingesting fleas & consuming small prey are the primary ways cats get re-infected with tapeworms. Thanks for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

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