Puppies and kittens are dewormed on a schedule every few weeks during their first months, and adult dogs and cats are dewormed based on a stool test and their monthly preventive. Petfolk Veterinary & Urgent Care - Huntersville offers deworming in Huntersville for all ages and matches the product to your pet's age, weight and stool results.
Worms don't take a season off in north Mecklenburg, so a monthly preventive that also covers intestinal worms, plus a yearly stool test, is the plan most adult pets follow.
Call (704) 800-4149 or book online.
Why do puppies and kittens need deworming even when they look healthy?
Roundworms pass from mother to young before birth and through milk, so most puppies and kittens carry them even when they look well. At Petfolk Huntersville, babies are dewormed on a repeating schedule, every couple of weeks at first, alongside their vaccine visits.
Signs of worms in a young pet include a potbelly, a dull coat or worms like spaghetti in the stool, but many infected puppies show nothing. Our puppy vaccines page shows how the two schedules line up.
Across Petfolk's Charlotte-area clinics, kittens are the most likely young pets to get a dewormer at a wellness visit: 23% of kitten visits versus 14% of puppy visits (Petfolk data, October 2025 to September 2026). At Petfolk Huntersville, about 1 in 7 puppy wellness visits (14%) include a dewormer in the same window.
How common are intestinal worms in Mecklenburg County dogs?
In 2025, hookworm was found in about 1 in 50 Mecklenburg County dogs tested (2.39%) and roundworm in about 1 in 100 (0.84%), according to the Companion Animal Parasite Council's hookworm and roundworm maps. Petfolk Huntersville uses these local rates as a reminder that adult dogs still pick up worms here.
Hookworm larvae can burrow through the skin of the paws, and their eggs survive in damp soil.
When during the year do Huntersville pets pick up worms?
Petfolk Huntersville sees worm risk all year, with different worms leading in different seasons:
March to May. Spring rain keeps soil damp, where roundworm and hookworm eggs survive. On shared walks such as the Torrence Creek Greenway, dogs sniff, dig and drink where many other dogs have been. Picking up after your own dog every time keeps eggs out of shared ground.
June to September. Tapeworms come from swallowing an infected flea while grooming, so a flea problem in July often becomes a tapeworm problem in August. You may see rice-like segments near the tail. Treating the tapeworm alone doesn't last; the fleas have to go too. Dogs also drink from creeks and puddles, where Giardia lives. Giardia is a single-celled parasite, not a worm, and standard dewormers don't always clear it.
October to December. Cats that hunt mice, voles and rabbits can pick up tapeworms and roundworms from prey. Dogs that eat wildlife droppings at field edges, like those at Robert C. Bradford Regional Park, pick up what other animals left behind.
January and February. Cold snaps slow parasites but don't stop them, because worm eggs can survive a Charlotte-area winter in the soil.
How often should my adult pet be dewormed?
At Petfolk Huntersville, the deworming plan for an adult pet depends on its preventive and its habits:
Adult dogs on a monthly preventive that includes a dewormer are covered for roundworms and hookworms, with a stool test once or twice a year.
Adult dogs and cats not on such a preventive get deworming and stool checks on a schedule the vet sets, often several times a year.
Cats that hunt and dogs that eat wildlife may need added tapeworm treatment.
The Companion Animal Parasite Council recommends year-round parasite control and regular fecal testing for dogs and cats. A fecal exam tells the vet whether the plan is working. Across Petfolk's Charlotte-area clinics, about 3 in 10 puppy wellness visits (30%) and 1 in 5 kitten wellness visits (22%) include a fecal parasite test (October 2025 to September 2026).
Can my family catch worms from our pet?
Yes, some worms can spread to people. Roundworm and hookworm larvae can infect people, especially small children who play in sandboxes and soil. Petfolk Huntersville suggests washing hands after yard work, covering sandboxes and keeping pets on a regular deworming plan.
When is a wormy puppy or kitten an emergency?
Go to a 24-hour emergency hospital if a puppy or kitten is weak, cold or has pale gums, or has bloody diarrhea with vomiting. Heavy worm loads and parvovirus can look alike early, and young animals lose ground quickly. For milder signs, call Petfolk Huntersville.
To start with a stool test and a deworming plan from a vet in Huntersville, bring a fresh stool sample to Petfolk Veterinary & Urgent Care - Huntersville, 14227 Boren St, Suite 100, Huntersville, NC 28078.
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Worms and dewormers: what people ask us
Off Boren St in Huntersville