Roundworm Infection

Information from your veterinarian
Zoonosis to watch:
Roundworm infection
A zoonosis (zoh-oh-NOH-sis) is an infectious disease that people can catch from
animals. Regular veterinary visits, deworming protocols, and good hygiene can help prevent them.

Roundworms
Large (3- to 18-cm) worms that are usually tightly coiled when passed and look like spaghetti.
Signs
Puppies & kittens: Failure to gain weight, poor hair coat, pot-bellied appearance; puppies of 4 to 6
months of age with heavy infections may expel a large mass of worms in their vomit
Adult dogs & cats: Vomiting
People: Pneumonia-like symptoms, skin staining from damage to internal organs, and irritated retinas
from damage to the eyes
How it’s transmitted
Puppies & kittens: Crossing through the placenta from the mother, and ingesting eggs in feces
Adult dogs & cats: Ingesting eggs in feces and in infected animals like rodents
People: Ingesting eggs through feces in soil or on pets and ingesting items contaminated with
infected feces
People most at risk
• Children
How to prevent it
• Deworm puppies and kittens every two weeks until they can receive a monthly control product.
• Promptly treat infected pets to prevent shedding of eggs, which are hardy and long-lived.
• Promptly remove animal feces from the yard and litter box.
• To help prevent ingestion of infected animals or feces, keep dogs on leashes or in fenced yards
and keep cats indoors.
• Monitor children playing outside in sandboxes and parks.
Source: Julie Legred, CVT