Hookworm Egg      Hookworm face to face

Species affected: dogs and cats

Scientific names: Ancylostoma caninum and Uncinaria stenocephala (dogs), Ancylostoma tubaeformae (cats)

Clinical signs: none may be noted in early stages of infection

• Cats: weight loss, diarrhea, vomiting, anemia, poor hair coat, pulmonary lesions, dermatitis, death
• Dogs: anemia, diarrhea, vomiting, weakness, poor growth, death

Mode of transmission: oral ingestion of eggs from environment, penetration of skin by larvae, larvae pass from dam to young through milk

Diagnosis: eggs in fecal examination.  Because parasites do not consistently shed eggs to be found under the microscope, deworming of all puppies and kittens and the use of monthly heartworm preventatives which also prevent these parasites is recommended.  Our recommended heartworm preventatives are Interceptor/Sentinel for dogs and Revolution for cats.

Treatment: fenbendazole or pyrantel pamoate; supportive care

• All puppies and kittens should be dewormed for hookworms

Prevention: Hookworm eggs are very resistant in the environment

• Pick up feces immediately with plastic bag and discard into trashcan until infection resolved
• Wash hands well after handling feces
• Make sure all pets are screened yearly for hookworms and treated if infected
• Administering monthly heartworm preventive like Interceptor/ Sentinel (dogs) or Revolution (cats)  will help prevent pets from becoming infected with hookworms
• Wear gloves when gardening and avoid going barefoot
• A 1% bleach solution (3 cups bleach per gallon of water) will disinfect surfaces
• Prevent coprophagia (ingestion of feces)
• Do not allow pets to lick human faces

Zoonotic disease: "creeping eruption" (human cutaneous larva migrans)

• A linear tortuous red itchy eruption on human skin caused when hookworm larvae penetrate the skin and migrate
• Very rarely eosinophilic enteritis can occur

Information about human hookworm infection from the CDC

Please contact our veterinarians at Animal Medical Hospital in Saint Petersburg, Florida (FL) at 727-896-7127 for more information.