AffectedAnimals:
Hookworms from the Ancylostoma caninum species affect dogs, while hookworms from the Ancylostoma tubaeforme species affect cats. Parasites from the Ancylostoma braziliense species, found in the southern United Staes, can infect both canines and felines. In Canada, the Uncinaria stenocephala affects canines and felines as well. Puppies and kittens are more at risk for serious illness from hookworms. Hookworms tend to do less damage to felines than to canines.

Overview:
A parasite that frequently infects puppies and kittens, hookworms actually have heads that “hook” into the small intestine, where they begin to eat away at the tissue and suck blood.  This parasite has been called a “voracious blood sucker” and can pose severe health problems for puppies and kittens that do not have a large blood supply to begin with and can suffer badly from blood loss; anemia, diarrhea, weight loss, weakness, and sometimes death can result. Hookworms are considered a human health hazard since the infective larvae can penetrate the skin and migrate locally, called cutaneous larval migrans.