Expert: Dr. Louis N. Gotthelf - 7/15/2005

Question
my kitten, an orphan we adopted about a month ago, was just diagnosed with ringworm. The vet gave us clotrimazole for treatment two times a day and a shampoo. We are to quarantine the cat for a while til it clears up.

Is that necessary? He is such a people person, I wouldn't want him to be so lonely. OR am I just being too soft?  

Answer
Ringworm is contagious to people and the way we get it is from the spores (seeds) that are on the hairs of the cat. The spores can lie dormant for long periods of time.  So isolating the kitten will prevent the spores from getting all over the house and reinfecting everyone. When you see the hairs re-growing on the areas of ringworm, you are probably OK to release the cat from quarrantine.