“I am from Ohio and have seen this near the dog’s bowl am not sure if it is a worm or just mucus”, writes Santos regarding the white, worm-like object pictured below. “This is the only one I have seen. Thanks.” We are with Santos on this one: we are not sure if this is a worm either. It has qualities that remind of us worm-like organisms we have seen before, including a darker, circular bit that looks like a head, somewhere around the middle of the body. Obviously, that’s not where heads go on an animal, so this had us thinking this might be two worms rather than one, if it is a worm at all. In any case, it definitely looks suspicious for mucus, so we understand why Santos is concerned.

“Please help!” exclaims this reader regarding the black worm-like creature pictured below. “Found these things all on our bed when we got home from a two week vacation. Mind you, we have three dogs. So, the house is a constant battle for fur. I have no clue what it is as I’ve never had a problem like this before.” Now, if it was not for the picture, we would have identified these as flea larvae or clothes moth larvae, just based on the context. That would have made sense given the fact that our reader has a dog and they were found on a bed (as both creatures will eat loose fur and hair, and other materials found on a bed).

“What kind of worms are these?” asks this reader in her submission regarding the pink worms pictured below. “They are less than an inch long, and there were quite a bit of them. We are from Louisiana. We found them on our dog’s blanket outside which had been in the mud.” We must say that the photo is unfortunately quite blurry, meaning that when we zoomed in to get a better look at the worms, it got even blurrier. Since we can’t make out the finer details of the worms’ bodies, we can just go off their general shape and coloration.

“I found this grub/worm on a packaged stuffed dog toy I ordered online”, writes Sarah in her submission regarding the segmented, brown, worm-like creature pictured below. “It was stuck to the fabric on a white patch that looked a bit like egg sac remnants? There was only one that I could find. What is it?” Now, what caught us off guard about this creature at first were the six appendages sticking out from one end of the creature’s body. It took us a moment to realize that the critter was upside down, and that these were its prolegs! Once we gathered that, we figured it must be some type of beetle larva, as the body shape, segmentation, and presence of prolegs point to this conclusion.

“I found this tiny worm on my main floor hardwood last night”, writes Sally about the brown, striped critter pictured below. “My main floor is entirely hardwood, but it was at the base of my stairs and my second floor is all pretty old carpet. We have two dogs. Earlier this year, I found one of these in the dogs’ toy bin, and a couple underneath a plush dog bed, which I immediately disposed of. Can you please provide your best guess as to what it is? I’m located in Oakville, Ontario, Canada. Thank you in advance. From a worm newbie.”

“Could you possibly help identify this worm/larvae?” asks Gabby in her submission regarding the minuscule, darkly-colored creature pictured below. “I read an article which seems like something similar to what I experienced, but you were unable to identify the worm in that article with the information given. I’m dog sitting this weekend and therefore spending a bit more time in the backyard/ back porch which is cement and siding with a wooden table, and the dogs are on the couches and rugs inside. A day after the dogs arrived we started feeling like something was on us. We even thought we felt a bite once or twice (to be fair we have not seen any actual bites, only felt like something was on us and bit us). At first we thought it was fleas but we never saw any fleas on us or the dogs or the furniture. I finally saw this shortly after coming in from taking them on a potty break. I actually found two of them on my arm and one on the end of a strand of hair. I have not found any more of these on myself, blankets, furniture, or the dogs. My original thought was a baby tapeworm? But I haven’t seen any more in the house or on the animals so I started thinking maybe it was something outside that I carried in. Could you please help? I’m worried about my family and my mothers “other children”: her dogs. Thank you. PS: I apologize my camera has lines in it. It’s the best I could do.”

“I found these on my dog’s quilt”, writes Mary about the yellow creature pictured below. “They are very tiny, less than a quarter inch. It was the bright colour I noticed and I zoomed in with my camera. I’m in Ireland.” Now, Mary sends in a plethora of photos, which is always very helpful, and they all show us different things. Three of them depict this bright yellow creature: the first (below) shows us more details about its coloration (the darker spots amidst the bright color), the second shows us that the critter is enveloped in a stringy matter, or perhaps that the stringy matter is appendages growing from its body, and the third shows us the creature on top of a ten cent Euro coin, giving us a size comparison to show us how small it really is. Oddly though, Mary sends a fourth picture of what looks like a ball of tangled hair.

“Does this look like a dog or cat parasite?” asks Lee about the oddly-shaped, brown, worm-like creature pictured below. “I found it on my bedroom rug. It’s about a 1/4-inch long and is unaffected by touch or heat.” Now, we have to say right off the bat that we will not be able to confirm or deny if this is a cat or dog parasite. The reason for this is because whenever parasites are involved, or even suspected of being involved, the situation becomes medical in nature. Since we are not medical professionals, we are not qualified or legally able to identify parasites, given the health risks they pose. Doing so would be tantamount to providing a diagnosis, which only a medical professional, in this case a vet, would be qualified to do.

“I found this worm, see attached image, when cleaning up a mess my dog made, poop,” writes Brandon in his submission regarding the teeny tiny worm-like critter pictured below. “It was mostly liquid and I’m not sure if it was in my dog’s faeces or if it was just nearby. I do not know what kind of worm or larva this is. Description: translucent, dark spots on both ends. About three sets of legs located near its head.” Based on Brandon’s description of the creature, as well as what we saw when we zoomed in on it, we think he has found himself a beetle larva.

“I live in Calgary, Alberta, Canada and today found these larvae or worms on a towel on the floor by my bed”, writes John from Calgary, Alberta, Canada about the striped, worm-like creature pictured below. “My two dogs also sleep in the bed. Please help!” Based on the photo alone, we can tell that this is a carpet beetle larva. This is because we have written about these critters more than any other worm-like organism on this site. If one were to judge what the most commonly-spotted critters in one’s home were, they would think that carpet beetle larvae are right up there with spiders and house flies. But that is not really true: despite being common, not everyone is as likely to find these in one’s home.

“What kind of worms/centipede are these?” asks Cyndi in her submission regarding the small, pinkish worm-like creatures pictured below. They seem to possess claw-like appendages jutting out from their rears. “I found them on the bathroom floor under my towel,” she continues. “I had given dogs a bath the previous day with flea and tick medicine in the shampoo. Not sure if they came off the dogs when they were alive. They were very flat, centipede-looking, and very fast. I am staying at a motel currently so I’m not sure if it’s some kind of disease-infested bed bug-type thing or what. Please help me identify these.”

“Trying to identify this as I just took the dog to hospital for what looked like a seizure and found this where he was”, writes this reader in her submission regarding the dark brown worm-like organism pictured below. “Scared this may be the cause. What is it?” Right off the bat, we will have to inform our reader that we can unfortunately not identify this worm, given its possible connection to her dog’s health issue. In fact, we never identify organisms that could be the cause of a health problem, as those situations are always medical in nature, and since we are not medical professionals, we are neither qualified nor legally able to provide such identification, as doing so would be tantamount to giving a diagnosis.

“I found this worm on the abdomen of my short haired dog”, writes this reader in her submission regarding the dark green worm-like critter pictured below. “The vet had no idea. The dog was born in South Carolina but has lived six years in western NY, including time spent in one of the finger lakes.” To start with, we want to compliment our reader on the fantastic photo she took, and thank her for it, as it really helps us narrow down what the organism could be. The photo shows a long stripe running down the middle of the worm’s body, and also shows what looks like a bulbous, black head. Additionally, it looks almost as if the worm is more flat than round in shape.

“I read an article about a little white worm, but the person who posed the question didn’t include a picture”, writes this reader in her submission, attaching a picture of a little white worm herself. “The description matched a worm I recently found. Location: St. Louis, Missouri. My dog is on normal flea, tick, and heartworm prevention, but I discovered a very tiny and thin, white worm on the surface of her fur. We had just been outside in the grass. I assume she picked it up from there. Here are a few photos of what the worm looks like. It’s not very long, but if it crawls, it can stretch itself out to a little over half an inch. If it stays still and doesn’t move, it is half a centimeter. I hope the pictures are good enough. It was hard to focus the camera. Appreciate any insight! Thank You!”

“I found this worm on my sofa”, states this reader in her submission regarding the segmented, pink worm-like organism pictured below. “It’s the third one I’ve found over the last month – all on the sofa. I am unsure if it’s from my dog (who lounges with us), or an infestation from another source. I’m including a picture for help! Thanks!” Based on the photo, we would say this is a caterpillar of some kind, meaning the larva of a butterfly or moth, though what species in particular we are not sure. We thought it could be a palm flower caterpillar, though the color of its head is darker than most palm flower caterpillars. Alternatively, we thought it might be a leafroller caterpillar, based on its shape and feature, though most leafroller caterpillars are not this pink, but more green.

“I live in South Louisiana and have recently been having worms in my bed sheets”, states this reader in her submission regarding the minuscule organism pictured below. “They are black to white in color. I think they might be moths as I have let some clothes stay outside in the laundry room, but would like a more clear identification.” Upon zooming in on the photo, we would say that these are probably not moth larvae, but rather flea larvae. Not to worry though, flea larvae are not harmful to humans or animals, unlike their adult counterparts. While the adult flea is an external parasite (ectoparasite) that attaches itself to the skin of mammals and sucks their blood, their larvae solely feed on dead insects, faeces, hair, fur and other dead or decomposing organic matter.

“Can you identify these worms I’ve found around my new rental house since moving in?” asks this reader in Ontario about the worm-like organisms pictured below. The creatures range in color and shape, and she found some of them in her dog’s waste.

This reader “would be extremely grateful” if we could help her identify some parasites that have invaded her family. Our reader writes to us in the hopes that the answers that we provide may “hopefully prevent others from experiencing a terror” such as the one our reader has faced.

“Can you identify this worm?” asks this reader about the striped, red worm pictured below. “I found it right next to my dog’s poop.”

“I live in South Carolina, and woke up this morning to dozens of these”, states this reader concerning the white larva-like creature pictured below. “What are they, how can I get rid of them and prevent them in the future?” she asks.