Loving a dog or cat does not put you in danger of worms, but a handful of parasites genuinely can pass from animals to people. The good news is that the same routine care that keeps your pet healthy also protects your household, and the extra human-side habits are simple.
The parasites that actually cross over
A few zoonotic parasites are worth knowing by name. Roundworm and hookworm from dogs and cats can occasionally infect people, usually through contact with contaminated soil or feces. Toxoplasma, associated with cats, matters most during pregnancy. Giardia and certain tapeworms can also move between pets and people.
These are real but uncommon, and serious cases are rarer still. The aim is to lower an already small risk, not to fear your pet.
How transmission usually happens
Most crossover comes down to contact with feces or contaminated ground, then touching the mouth before washing hands. Children are the highest-risk group because of how they play, especially in sandboxes and gardens where animals may have been.
Knowing the route makes prevention obvious. Break the path from feces to mouth and the risk falls dramatically.
A simple prevention routine
Keep your pet on the deworming and flea-control schedule your vet recommends, since flea control also prevents one kind of tapeworm. Pick up dog waste promptly, keep litter boxes clean, and cover children's sandboxes when not in use. Most important of all, wash hands after handling pets, scooping litter, or gardening.
If you are pregnant, it is reasonable to have someone else change the litter box, or to wear gloves and wash thoroughly afterward.
The route from pet to person almost always runs through unwashed hands, which is also the easiest place to break it.
The bottom line
Routine veterinary care plus basic hygiene reduces the small risk of pet-to-human parasites to nearly nothing. For a fuller checklist you can keep on the fridge, download our pet-owner prevention guide, and see the household-wide basics on the prevention page.