Roundworms, Tapeworms, Hookworms, and Whipworms in Cats and Dogs

Canine Roundworm - Josh Grosse, Wikimedia Commons

Intestinal worms are common parasites in cats and dogs, and they are also transmissible to humans.

 

There are a number of intestinal worms that afflict cats and dogs. These parasites include roundworms, tapeworms, hookworms, and whipworms.

Roundworms in Cats and Dogs

Roundworms, which are long, spaghetti-shaped creatures, swim freely within the intestines, causing inflammation and robbing the pet of nutrients he’s consumed. Roundworms can make a cat or dog quite ill, and even kill a very young or elderly pet. Complications may include pneumonia due to worms infesting the lungs. Roundworms are transmitted by:

• Nursing from an infected mother
• Consuming hosts such as cockroaches, rodents, birds, or earthworms
• Licking contaminated soil from fur while grooming
• Eating feces (a common problem among dogs)
• Eating contaminated dirt (a behaviour caused by a condition called pica)
• Consuming eggs while eating grass (see Why Dogs and Cats Eat Grass for an explanation of this common behaviour)

Once the cat or dog has been infected, the larvae hatch within the gastrointestinal tract and then travel through the liver, muscle tissue, and lungs. Several weeks later, they return to the intestines where they mature and begin reproducing. The cat or dog then passes roundworm eggs in his stool.

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Can People Catch Roundworms from Cats and Dogs?
People can catch roundworm from cats and dogs. The most common mode of transmission is by ingesting eggs from soil contaminated by dog or cat feces. This may occur when a person gardens without gloves and touches his mouth or a child plays in dirt and then eats without first washing her hands.
Up to 10,000 people per year are infected with roundworms in the United States alone. An infestation of roundworms can cause organ damage in humans, so infection is a serious health issue. Roundworms are particularly bad for children, who can suffer eye damage as a result of infection.

Tapeworms in Cats and Dogs

Unlike roundworms, tapeworms have segmented, flat bodies. The segments, which look like grains of rice, break off and emerge through the anus. These egg-filled segments dry out and burst, and the released eggs become food for flea larvae. When a cat or dog consumes an adult flea during grooming, the young tapeworm is transferred to the animal’s intestine where it matures.

Can People Catch Tapeworms from Pets?
The most common type of tapeworm (Dipylidium)is spread only via fleas. Other types can be contracted by eating infected raw meat (whether as prey or from a supermarket) or feces. When humans (most commonly children) become infected, it’s usually because they have accidentally swallowed fleas that contain tapeworm larvae.

Hookworms in Dogs and Cats

Hookworms are short and thin. They attach to the intestinal wall where they consume blood and tissue, putting the host animal at risk for anemia. Cats and dogs may acquire hookworms by:

• Direct ingestion of larvae while grooming or licking contaminated surfaces
• Having larvae borrow through their skin, usually via the feet (or the belly when the pet lies down)
• Eating infected prey (such as rodents or cockroaches)
• Nursing from an infected mother

Kittens and puppies can even be born with hookworms if their mothers are infected.
Can People Catch Hookworms from Animals?
Hookworms love warm, damp material, so beaches are particularly hospitable for larvae. When people walk barefoot or lie on spots where infected dogs have lain, the larvae may penetrate their skin.
When hookworm larvae infect humans, they usually just burrow into the skin and die, causing itchy red lesions that look like insect bites or red lines. These lesions typically disappear within a few weeks. However, in some cases hookworms make it further into the body causing muscle pain, lung disease, or eosinophilic enteritis (a disease of the intestines).

Whipworms in Cats and Dogs

Whipworms are named for their tapering, whiplike shape. Cats and dogs catch whipworms by eating or licking food, water, or surfaces contaminated with whipworm eggs, though the infection is far more common (and usually more serious) in dogs than cats. Eggs are passed in the feces of infected animals and require about a month to mature before they are infectious, after which they can remain infectious for more than a year.
Can People Catch Whipworms from Dogs or Cats?
People have been infected with T. vulpis, the whipworms that commonly afflict pets, but this is relatively rare. Humans are far more likely to catch the human whipworm, T. trichiura.

Symptoms and Treatment of Worms in Cats and Dogs

See Symptoms and Treatment of Intestinal Worms in Cats and Dogs for information on diagnosing and curing intestinal worm infestations, as well as how to prevent pets and humans from becoming infected in the first place.
Heartworms afflict the heart and lungs rather than the intestines. See Heartworm Infection in Cats and Dogs for information on how pets catch this parasite, symptoms of heartworm infestation, and how to cure heartworms.
Another common parasite is Toxoplasma gondii, a single-celled protozoan. To learn more about this parasite, see Toxoplasmosis and Pregnancy.
Ringworm is actually a fungal infection rather than a worm. See Ringworm in Cats for more information.
References:

• Barchas, E., DVM. (27 August 1999). “The Petstuff Online Newsletter: Hookworms and Why Dogs Are Kept off Beaches.” Dr-Dan.com.
• Barchas, E., DVM. (2010). “Tapeworms in Cats and Dogs.” Dr-Dan.com.
• Bower, J., & Bower, C., Drs. (1998). The Cat Owner’s Problem Solver. Pleasantville, NY: Reader’s digest Association, Inc./Andromeda Oxford Limited.
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (15 July 2008). “Dipylidium Infection: Dog and Cat Flea Tapeworm.” CDC.gov.
• Feline Advisory Bureau. (2008). “Worming Your Cat.” FabCats.org.
• Fogle, B.American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. (1993). ASPCA Complete Dog Care Manual. New York, NY: DK Publishing Inc.
• Mar Vista Animal Medical Center. (2010). “Roundworms in Cats and Kittens,” “Tapeworm,” and “Whipworms.” MarvistaVet.com.
• McLeod, L., DVM. (2010). “Roundworms in Cats,” “Whipworms in Dogs and Cats,” and “Hookworms in Cats.” About.com.
• Mowbray-Cashen, G.; Barkai-Ronayne, A.; & Gilkerson, J., Drs., Truro Veterinary Hospital. (n.d.). “Feline Roundworm Infection.” TruroVet.com.
• Nash, H., DVM. (2010). “Cat Roundworms (Ascarids, Toxascaris leonina, Toxocara cati),” “Tapeworms of Cats,” “Hookworm Infection, Prevention and Treatment in Dogs,” “Tapeworms,” and “Whipworms (Trichuris Serrata).”PetEducation.com.
• PetMD.com. “Whipworms in Cats” and “Whipworms in Dogs.”