Here, the roundworm continues maturing into an adult and lays more eggs, which are released into the environment via the pet’s faeces. As the roundworm crawls up the windpipe it irritates the throat, causing the kitten or puppy to cough up the roundworm larva and swallow it back into the stomach. In a kitten or puppy, once the roundworm larva reaches the lungs it burrows into an air sac, and continues to the wind pipe. They will then migrate throughout the body. In both cases, the roundworm larvae will be ingested and hatch out in the stomach. This is because very young kittens and puppies haven’t built up an effective immune response.

Roundworms behave differently in kittens and puppies to how they do in adult cats and dogs. Roundworm eggs are also extremely small, so you are unlikely to see them on your pet.Īfter ingestion, the roundworms continue their life cycle inside your pet. Roundworm eggs can lay dormant in the environment for over a year, and are particularly sticky so easily attach to fur, paws or noses. Washing your hands after handling faecesĬats and dogs most commonly pick up roundworms by ingesting worm eggs picked up from the environment.Disposing of pet faeces quickly and safely.Fortunately, you can minimise the risk of getting a roundworm infestation yourself by:

Roundworms are also the most common type of worm that can be transmitted to humans. Roundworms are spaghetti-like worms that live in your pet’s intestines feeding off their gut contents. Roundworms (Toxocara cati – cats, Toxocara canis – dogs)

Long flat worms in dogs