What is deworming?
Updated By PetymFacts checked against official sources on
Quick answer
Deworming is giving a pet medicine, chosen by your vet, to kill intestinal worms such as roundworms, hookworms and tapeworms. Puppies can be born with roundworms and catch more from their mother's milk, so deworming starts in the first weeks of life. Some dog and cat worms can infect people, especially children, so regular deworming protects the family too.
Also called worming, deworming schedule, roundworms, hookworms, tapeworms, intestinal worms.
Key facts
- Roundworm larvae resting in the mother can reactivate in pregnancy and infect puppies before birth. Tropical Council for Companion Animal Parasites
- TroCCAP's tropical guidelines start puppies at 2 weeks, repeat every 2 weeks until 8 weeks with the mother treated at the same time, then deworm monthly. Tropical Council for Companion Animal Parasites
- ESCCAP says that where a pet's risk cannot be judged, it should be dewormed or have its faeces tested at least 4 times a year. European Scientific Counsel Companion Animal Parasites (ESCCAP)
- Children are most at risk of roundworm (Toxocara) infection, which can damage the eye. US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- All animal hookworms can infect people, causing skin infections. Tropical Council for Companion Animal Parasites
- In Andhra Pradesh, gut parasites were most common in stray dogs (65.9%) and in the rainy season. Indian Journal of Animal Sciences (2020)study
Which worms do dogs and cats get in India?
The common gut worms of Indian pets, and why each matters.
- Roundworms (Toxocara)
- Common in puppies and kittens, passed from the mother. Eggs in soil can infect children. Tropical Council for Companion Animal Parasites
- Hookworms
- Common in tropical dogs; larvae can enter through the skin. They can cause bloody diarrhoea, anaemia and death in puppies. Tropical Council for Companion Animal Parasites
- Flea tapeworm
- Caught by swallowing fleas while grooming, so flea control and deworming go together. International Cat Care
- Heartworm
- Not a gut worm: spread by mosquitoes to the heart and lungs, and prevented separately. Tropical Council for Companion Animal Parasites
How often should a pet be dewormed?
For puppies, TroCCAP's tropical guidelines start at 2 weeks of age and repeat every 2 weeks until 8 weeks, treating the mother at the same time, then deworm monthly. ICAR-IVRI publishes its own leaflet on vaccinating and deworming dogs. Ask your vet for a kitten's schedule, which starts early too.
For adults, frequency depends on risk. ESCCAP, the European parasite council, says that where risk cannot be judged, a dog should be dewormed or have its faeces tested at least 4 times a year, and that higher-risk pets, such as those living with small children, may need monthly treatment. Indian conditions, with many community dogs and heavy soil contamination in public places, point towards the higher end. Your vet sets the schedule and chooses the medicine.
Can worms from pets infect people?
Yes. Roundworm eggs passed in dog and cat faeces become infective in soil, and children who play in parks or sandpits and put their hands in their mouths are most at risk. In people the larvae can wander through the body, and in the eye they can cause inflammation, retinal damage or loss of vision. A review of Indian studies estimated that about 11% of soil samples from public places in India contained Toxocara eggs.
Hookworm larvae in soil can burrow into bare skin and cause itchy tracks. Picking up your pet's faeces every time, washing hands after handling pets and soil, and regular deworming lower the risk for the family.
What helps deworming work?
The medicine is your vet's choice. These habits make it work.
- Pick up your pet's waste every time, on walks and at home. US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Keep flea control going, because fleas carry tapeworm. International Cat Care
- Treat a pregnant or nursing mother as your vet advises, so puppies start with fewer worms. Tropical Council for Companion Animal Parasites
- Write each deworming date on the vaccination card or care sheet so the next one is not missed (Petym's practical advice).
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Questions owners ask
How often should I deworm my puppy in India?
- Tropical guidelines from TroCCAP start at 2 weeks of age and repeat every 2 weeks until 8 weeks, with the mother treated at the same time, then deworm monthly. Your vet will set the schedule and choose a product suited to your puppy's age and weight.
How often should adult dogs be dewormed?
- It depends on risk. ESCCAP says a dog whose risk cannot be judged should be dewormed or have its faeces tested at least 4 times a year, and higher-risk dogs, such as those living with small children, may need monthly treatment. Ask your vet what suits your dog's life.
Can my child get worms from our dog?
- Yes. Roundworm eggs from dog and cat faeces can infect children who touch contaminated soil, and in rare cases the larvae damage the eye. Regular deworming, picking up waste every time and handwashing after playing outside or with pets lower the risk.
What are the signs of worms in a dog?
- Often there are none, which is why guidelines advise deworming or faecal tests on a schedule rather than waiting for signs. Hookworms can cause bloody diarrhoea, anaemia and even death in puppies, according to tropical guidelines. See your vet if a puppy has diarrhoea, pale gums or fails to grow.
Keep reading
Related terms
More in vaccines and parasites
- BabesiosisBabesiosis is a disease of dogs caused by Babesia, tiny parasites that live in and destroy red blood cells. It is spread mainly by ticks, and in India one species, Babesia gibsoni, also spreads through dog fights and blood transfusions. Signs are anaemia with pale gums, weakness, jaundice and red or brown urine. Dogs that recover can relapse.
- Booster vaccineA booster is a repeat dose of a vaccine that tops up or confirms a pet's protection. Puppies and kittens get a booster at about 26 weeks after their first course. After that, modern core vaccines for distemper, parvovirus and panleukopenia protect for years, while leptospirosis, kennel cough and most killed vaccines need a booster every year.
- Brown dog tickThe brown dog tick, Rhipicephalus sanguineus, is the most common tick on dogs in the tropics, including India. Unlike most ticks it lives and breeds indoors, in homes and kennels, as well as outdoors. It spreads ehrlichiosis and one form of babesiosis, the infections Indian owners call tick fever, so tick control is needed all year.
- Core vaccinesCore vaccines are the vaccines every dog or cat should have, wherever it lives, because they protect against widespread, serious diseases. For dogs they cover distemper, adenovirus and parvovirus; for cats, panleukopenia, herpesvirus and calicivirus. In India rabies is core for both, and WSAVA also treats leptospirosis vaccine as core for dogs where the disease is endemic.
- DHPPi vaccineDHPPi is the combined core vaccine for dogs printed on many Indian vaccine cards. The letters stand for distemper (D), hepatitis from canine adenovirus (H), parvovirus (P) and parainfluenza (Pi). DHPPiL adds leptospirosis (L). It is the same vaccine group that US cards call DHPP or DA2PP, and puppies start it at 6 to 8 weeks.
- EhrlichiosisEhrlichiosis is a disease of dogs caused by Ehrlichia canis, a bacterium carried by the brown dog tick. Signs appear 1 to 3 weeks after infection: fever, dullness, bleeding such as nosebleeds or bruising, and enlarged lymph nodes. Some dogs seem to recover but carry the infection silently and later develop a severe chronic form.
- Flea and tick preventionFlea and tick prevention means regularly protecting a pet from these parasites with a product your vet recommends, plus checking the coat and treating the home. Tropical guidelines say dogs and cats in places like India should be protected all year, including indoor pets. Use products licensed for the species, and never put a dog product on a cat.
- FleasFleas are small, wingless, blood-feeding insects. The cat flea, Ctenocephalides felis, is the most common flea on dogs and cats worldwide, and the main flea on dogs studied in India. Fleas cause itching, flea allergy, tapeworm and, in heavy infestations, anaemia in puppies and kittens. Most of the flea life cycle happens in the home.
- FVRCP vaccineFVRCP is the core combined vaccine for cats. It protects against feline viral rhinotracheitis (herpesvirus), calicivirus and panleukopenia. Indian cards often show a brand name from the vial sticker instead, such as Tricat. Kittens start at 6 to 8 weeks, with doses every 2 to 4 weeks until 16 weeks or older, then a booster at about 26 weeks.
- HeartwormHeartworm, Dirofilaria immitis, is a long worm that lives in the heart and lung blood vessels of dogs and, less often, cats. It is spread by mosquito bites and is widespread in tropical regions, including parts of India. Signs include coughing, tiring on exercise and weight loss. It can be prevented, and dogs should be tested yearly.
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Sources
Each source was opened and read on the date shown. How Petym checks its sources
- Tropical Council for Companion Animal Parasites: Canine guidelines: roundworms (opens in a new tab)
- European Scientific Counsel Companion Animal Parasites (ESCCAP): GL1: worm control in dogs and cats (7th edition, June 2025) (opens in a new tab)
- US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: About toxocariasis (opens in a new tab)
- Tropical Council for Companion Animal Parasites: Canine guidelines: hookworms (opens in a new tab)
- International Cat Care: Fleas and flea control in cats (opens in a new tab)
- Tropical Council for Companion Animal Parasites: Canine guidelines: heartworm (opens in a new tab)
Show all 9 sourcesShow fewer
- ICAR-IVRI: Vaccination and deworming of dogs (Hindi leaflet, 2020) (opens in a new tab)
- Indian Journal of Animal Sciences (2020): Risk factors for canine gastrointestinal parasitic zoonoses in Andhra Pradesh (opens in a new tab)
- Veterinary Parasitology: Regional Studies and Reports (2021); abstract read on the University of Nottingham VetSRev listing: Risk of zoonotic toxocariasis from soil contamination of public places in India: systematic review and meta-analysis (opens in a new tab)