I have heard that it is bad to give cow's milk to a cat, and that it could cause worms, is that myth?

Question

I have heard that it is bad to give cow's milk to a cat, and that it could cause worms, is that myth?

Answer 1

if you give a cat cow milk they don't get worms they get diarrhea

Answer 2

fleas cause worms milk doesn't.

Answer 3

No, I don't think it will cause worms.  But a high percentage of cats are lactose intolerant.  Below is a website which contains a list of foods which cats should not eat -- milk being one of them

http://cats.about.com/cs/catfood/a/human...

Answer 4

That is a myth!  Actually after weaning dogs and cats are pretty much lactose intolerant, and dairy products often cause intestinal upset.  Some seem to tolerate it better than others, and a tiny bit as a treat won't hurt.

Answer 5

Cats cannot get worms from drinking cow's milk. They can get tapeworms from swallowing fleas while grooming, and they can get roundworms transferred to them from their mother's milk or f***s when they are kittens, or from being outdoors. Hookworms are less common in cats and are usually transmitted by larvae that penetrate the cat's skin. Cow's milk can give cats diarrhea, but is is usually a temporary digestive upset. A small bit of milk as a treat is tolerated by most cats. Yogurt can be given to your cat as a treat without risking digestive upset.

Answer 6

i have two cats... one can drink cow's milk no problems and the other gets worms... I think it depends on the cat

Answer 7

The jury is still out on whether cow's milk is harmful or beneficial to cats, but it doesn't cause worms. Milk tolerance varies from cat to cat so you usually don't know if its ok until you try to serve it to kitty.

Cats don't have the digestive enzyme 'lactase' in their stomachs and therefore, can't digest the sugar in cow's milk properly...so when some cats ingest milk they will get an upset stomach or diaarrhea.

If you want to feed milk to your cat give him just a little and see if you encounter any of the above problems.  Whiska's makes a 'cat milk' that is 98% lactose free that might make it more comfortable to ingest milk(see 2nd source link below).

Answer 8

You have to buy milk for your cat special at the pet store. For some reason they can't digest cow's milk. Lactose-intolerant.