2021 October NL
It is Fall and time to do fecals or deworming. 2021 babies need to be vaccinated and dewormed.
Strategic Worming schedule/fecal Oct 15
The horse has another molt of larvae to adults now (it has been 6 months since the spring molt and green grass grazing where parasite larvae on the grass are eaten).
If the horse is more than 3 years old, we do a fecal exam to see if they have adult worms shedding eggs and then worm accordingly. Most horses develop immunity to worms so they don’t have many. The horses with less immunity will have worms and are shedding eggs on the pasture. In a herd of 10 horses, 8 will have few worms and 2 will be shedders. By doing fecals, we identify the shedders and worm them more frequently (3-4 times a year). Young horses do not have good parasite immunity and should be wormed 3-4 times a year. Low shedders need to be wormed 1-2 times a year (April 15 and fecal Oct 15). Gone are the days of worming every 2 months which created resistance to wormers. We worm at strategic times now.
Worms do not reproduce (shed eggs) in the extreme hot of Texas summer and the cold of winter. We used to worm in January for the bots (1 month after the first freeze that killed the bot fly adults). The other worms are dormant in January so we worm for bots with the spring worming April 15. We worm babies and yearlings every 2 months in spring and fall.
Worm babies with Panacur or safeguard now
Worm yearlings and shedders with Strongid (pyrantel) now.
Fecals
Fecal samples can be collected and brought in fresh or refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.
We do an egg count which correlates with the number of adult worms present passing eggs. If there is a high egg count, we deworm. If there is a low egg or negative egg count, we do not.
If we are checking to see of your horses have resistance to the deworming products, we do a fecal now and then another fecal; 4 months after Quest, 3 months after Ivermectin, 2 months after Strongid (pyrantel).
Ivermectin and Covid
Do not use horse ivermectin wormer for prevention or treatment of Covid. The horse wormer is double strength which overdose can cause liver problems. There are human ivermectin tablets that are prescribed by some doctors. Ivermectin is a drug used for years in humans against parasites. It is used for the river blindness caused by parasites in the eyes in Africa. It is used for swine viral diseases. The Ivermectin stops the virus from entering the cell nucleus and multiplying. It is given the first day of illness.
Bots
Tis the season for bot flies. They have emerged. If you see a bee like insect flying around your horse’s legs or belly, it is a bot fly trying to deposit those small yellow eggs on your horse’s legs. Fly spray sprayed directly on the bot fly will repel it and works fair for keeping the bot flies repelled from your horse. Or you can kill it with your hand.
The life cycle of the bot fly starts with the eggs laid on the horse’s legs. The horse then scratches that area with his mouth and picks up some of the eggs and swallows them. The eggs molt to larvae the attach to the stomach wall. Those larvae are passed out in the manure to hatch and become a bot fly.
Treatment is with those wormers that will kill the bot fly in the stomach such as Ivermectin or Quest used in the spring. Or a part dose (250lb dose) in January, 1 month after the 1st freeze which kills the adult bot fly. Remove bot eggs from the legs with a lava stone or bot knife weekly to prevent infestation.
Colt Vaccination & Worming
Babies get a Core vaccine (East/West Encephalitis, West Nile, Tetanus, Rabies) now along with a Panacur wormer or Safe Gard
1 month later (November) follow up with a 7 way (East/West encephalitis, West Nile, Flu, Rhino) or EWT West Nile and worm again with Panacur.
1 month later booster with a Rhino/Flu vaccine in December.
Next spring, we use ivermectin wormer
October 11-16 the signs are right to CASTRATE. The cooler weather is here so Dr Hayes is now scheduling castrations.
HORSEWEEK.TV presents horse week Oct 3-9 2021 free equine videos
Join on any smart device by tuning in to www.horseweek.tv
Presented by Boeringer Ingleheim (maker of Vetera equine vaccines, Prasend)
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