The worms and parasites are present in huge numbers through out the world. They live in sea water, fresh water, land and other habitats. They survive by eating the plants and animals. Their sizes are different, some can be seen only with the help of microscope where as others are of larger size visible to the human eyes. They don’t have legs and bones and some worms have the capability to move on their own. The other types can be moved only with the assistance of external force.

Some of the worms can feel the touch with their sense organs and surprisingly some worms have eyes on their head. They are also equipped with the sense to respond to the environmental changes.

The worms can be broadly categorized in the following groups
(1) flat worms
(2) ribbon worms
(3) round worms
(4) segmented worms.

The flat worms have no lungs and get their oxygen through their skin. They take food and also release the wastes through the same opening.

The parasitic worms such as round worms and tape worms are commonly referred in the medical terms as helminths.Animals like cat and dogs are frequently infested with tape worms or round worms. The guinea worms are largely present in tropical countries and they affect the people by moving into their body through the skin under the leg and feet.

Segmented worms have several segments or rings, earth worms and bristle worms fall under this category. It is very unique to observe that in certain type of worms, a single worm have both male and female sexual reproduction parts with which it can sexually reproduce. Earth worms have been in existence in the world for million of years. They just turn around the soil by their constant and repeated movement and this process makes the soil more fertile. Some worms have the capability to breakdown the organic material and this helps the enrichment of the soil for better fertility. The earth worms live deep under the ground in order to protect themselves from the heat of the sun and they surface to the top during the night.

Parasites and worms just get into the human body through water, food, air and through transmitting agents like mosquitoes. Their presence is generally found in intestinal region. Presence of these common parasites may cause many health related problems to the humans like malaria, constipation, diarrhea and these are associated with the symptoms of weakness, indigestion, stomach bloating etc
These parasites can also aggravate the existing health complications as they just take away the nutrients in the human body. The Toxins released by the parasites are harmful which may lead to many diseases. Some parasites affect our immune system, so that makes the body is more prone to infections.

Dogs, cats and other pets infested with canine parasites are to be treated properly else, they may develop other health complications. They have to be given de-worming medicines. The periodical medications and preventive measures will go a long way to protect the pets from hookworm infestation. Feline parasites mostly affect the cats and if untreated can pose serious heath problems.