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My puppy has hookworms. Can I get them from his paw touching my eye?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Beagle | Male | unneutered | 2 months and 3 days old | 5.5 lbs

Hello, so my puppy just got diagnosed with Hookworms. The other day, he had walked over my head and stepped on my eye and his paw touched my eyeball. I was wondering if it is possible for hookworms to be transmitted into humans that way?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Angela Hinton, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on January 25th, 2018

Hello there! Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!
It is highly unlikely that you would get hookworms from that type of contact.
The most common route of transmission is fecal-oral. Meaning ingesting fecal material. This can happen unintentionally if small particles are on your hands and you put them to your mouth.

Theoretically, if Leo has some fecal material on his paw, that got on your eye and you wiped it away and then put your fingers in your mouth or on your lips you could possibly get hookworms. But again pretty unlikely.
But it is important to point out that you wash your hands thoroughly after picking up his bowel movements to prevent this.

Make sure to follow your vet's recommendation for the deworming protocol for these types of worms as they most often need more than 1 dose.
I always recommend a follow fecal test after the treatment to make sure he is negative and the infestation is cleared.

I hope you found this helpful and helps put your mind at ease.
I wish you and Leo all the best!

1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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