Tapeworm in #NotMyCat

[Mollycat]

The lovely Sooty who has been camping outside our flats for 18 months has some little rice grain bits on his bottom and I'm suspecting some kind of yucky wormy things, possibly tapeworm.

He has an owner and a home where he never goes and I'll go speak to the owner later, I can take him to my vet and will if need be, but just for reference do any OTC single treatments work on tapeworm? And can anyone give me any details that can positively ID whatever this is so that I can avoid the extra expense of taking #NotMyCat to the vets and then disinfecting the carrier that Molly will use next?

[fjm]

Little rice grain bits are almost certainly tapeworm - if they go long and thin then short and fat and wriggle that would confirm it! My vet prescribes milbemycin oxime/praziquantel (Milbemax) which seems to be prescription only, but Panacur and Drontal are OTC and pretty reliable.

[Mollycat]

Thank you. Cat tapeworms are Most Interesting reading, spread by fleas!

Owner contacted and I will be taking #NotMyCat to be treated. Owner offers to pay but seems unfair to accept as Cat chooses not to live there!