Flea, Tick & Pest Center

Hookworms can be transmitted from animals to humans.

They are common across the US and Canada, and an estimated 19% of dogs are infected.

With hook-like mouths and well-developed cutting mouth parts, these are not friendly worms. Adults reside in the small intestine, attached to the intestine walls. They feed on blood.

Hookworms are spread by:

Contact with larvae in contaminated soil
A mother to a new animal across the placenta or in consuming contaminated milk while nursing
Eating an infected mammal

Symptoms of a hookworm infection include:

• Bloody diarrhea
• Anemia
• Vomiting
• Decreased or no appetite
• Dehydration