A wormy and itchy question

alsxx

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I have recently bought a weanling straight from stud, and he arrived in late January. Last worming history was panacur 5 day in December. When he arrived I did turn out straight away with companion as naturally didn't want to keep a baby on his own (they are kept at home). Worm counted a couple of weeks after arrival, along with my other horse, and results for both were less than 50 epg/No eggs seen - droppings for each were collected from their stables so definitely not a case of collecting the same horses poo for both samples.

During the spring weather that randomly appeared a couple of weeks back I started seeing pinworms in his droppings (fields poo picked daily). Spoke to the lab and recommendation was to double dose with Strongid P. He was riddled with roundworms! I was amazed to see so many yet his worm count didnt suggest this.

He is still passing bloomin pinworms though, and since he was wormed he has started scratching like crazy which he wasn't doing before hand, despite the present of pinworms. He is scratching his bottom but more so his chest, which he is rubbing very badly and has now broken the skin in a couple of places. I have spoken to the lab again and their suggestion is panacur 5 day in 3 weeks time.

To look at, he looks fabulous and you certainly would not think he had that worm burden, I'm incredibly surprised and despairing, not least as where he came from breeds county standard stock.

I will be having a chat with my vet next week, but can anyone share any knowledge or tips on getting rid of pin worms... !? I'm guessing that I'm still seeing them as they are still completing their life cycle I.e. laying their eggs and dieing, and have not been knocked on the head by the wormer. Of course with him being so young I'm wary of the anthelmintec use too.

Also, any thoughts on the scratching? I wondered about lice, but he's only started scratching since he was wormed.
 

Mule

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I have recently bought a weanling straight from stud, and he arrived in late January. Last worming history was panacur 5 day in December. When he arrived I did turn out straight away with companion as naturally didn't want to keep a baby on his own (they are kept at home). Worm counted a couple of weeks after arrival, along with my other horse, and results for both were less than 50 epg/No eggs seen - droppings for each were collected from their stables so definitely not a case of collecting the same horses poo for both samples.

During the spring weather that randomly appeared a couple of weeks back I started seeing pinworms in his droppings (fields poo picked daily). Spoke to the lab and recommendation was to double dose with Strongid P. He was riddled with roundworms! I was amazed to see so many yet his worm count didnt suggest this.

He is still passing bloomin pinworms though, and since he was wormed he has started scratching like crazy which he wasn't doing before hand, despite the present of pinworms. He is scratching his bottom but more so his chest, which he is rubbing very badly and has now broken the skin in a couple of places. I have spoken to the lab again and their suggestion is panacur 5 day in 3 weeks time.

To look at, he looks fabulous and you certainly would not think he had that worm burden, I'm incredibly surprised and despairing, not least as where he came from breeds county standard stock.

I will be having a chat with my vet next week, but can anyone share any knowledge or tips on getting rid of pin worms... !? I'm guessing that I'm still seeing them as they are still completing their life cycle I.e. laying their eggs and dieing, and have not been knocked on the head by the wormer. Of course with him being so young I'm wary of the anthelmintec use too.

Also, any thoughts on the scratching? I wondered about lice, but he's only started scratching since he was wormed.
Perhaps it's a reaction to the wormer, some sort of sensitivity rather than an allergy. It could well be something completely different and the timing may just be coincidental. I think the best thing is to get your vet's opinion. We can only guess over the internet.
 

Leo Walker

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Worm counts arent always accurate sadly and it looks like one of those times. Worm eggs shed in cycles so you can miss them completely on the odd occasion. I'd have wormed when he first arrived before he went out. I'd also be a bit wary about relying soley on eggs counts for a foal.

Itching on the neck and chest can be caused by thread worm, so I'd be treating for that and hoping it does the trick. If not then it does sound like a vet job.
 

ester

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I would ignore the FEC, it’s not that difficult to get a false negative.

If they are def pinworms it isn’t often advised to treat rectally (with pyrantel) but you also need to scrub everything he is rubbing on.
 

windand rain

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yup rectal worm is the only way to get rid of pinworm 5 day panacur can but there may be resistance so rectal pyrantel would be my first choice. As to worming foals need regular worming at least for their first year. I found a few roundworms in poo after mine was wormed three weeks prior to arrival with equest but I think it is quite usual as it stored in muscle but am willing to accept that might be wrong and just something I have heard. Mine are all due to be wormed just been waiting for the foal to get to 8 weeks. Chest rubbing could be thread worms could slso be lice if he has a huge coat. Ivermectin wormer may help with both
 

Peregrine Falcon

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My vet also gave me a solution to apply to the anal area twice daily to help eradicate pinworm. It is tricky to shift though. I think it was ivermectin based.
 

BeckyFlowers

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My horse had pinworm and after a massive amount of effort I managed to get rid of them last year. According to my vet rectal administration of anthelmintic is pointless as it doesn't go up far enough. I was advised to worm (orally) with first with moxidectin and then every 12 weeks with ivermectin (this was over late winter, spring and summer last year) and practice good husbandry techniques. These included disinfecting all surfaces like field gates and fences that he may scratch on, disinfecting grooming brushes, buckets, troughs, rugs etc and wiping my horses bum with wet wipes every day (preferably twice a day) to remove the laid eggs. He was in restricted grazing over spring and summer (as he always is) with another horse so we poo picked every day. I also applied neem oil to his bum area every day, although I think it irritated him after a while so I stopped, but neem oil is good for treating pinworm. I imagine your vet will advise you to perform the sellotape test to check the presence of pinworm eggs. It's important that any field mates are also checked and treated as some horses will be burdened but won't show any signs of scratching.

I hope you manage to get on top of the pinworm. Be warned, they have a five month life cycle so you will need to keep treating for at least that amount of time to disrupt the life cycle at all stages. I battled this for about two years on and off and couldn't understand how he kept becoming reinfected - it was because another horse had pinworm (eventually proven through sellotape test) but wasn't showing signs is scratching, whereas mine would scratch furiously when he was burdened.

Regular worming (as per your vet's advice), bum wiping and good husbandry will get rid, but be prepared to persevere. Good luck!
 

ester

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I don't quite understand the concept of not going far enough, get a longer syringe :D. You don't do it exclusively rectally you do both and AFAIK pyrantel embonate is usually recommended given the current resistance profile but if that doesn't work probably good to move on to other options.
 

alsxx

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Thanks for replies. Yes, definitely pinworm. Hopefully vet will be able to suggest a program to get on top of them. I have already started cleaning and disinfecting however think I will be doing this for some time to come. I will also start wiping with baby wipes, and I do have some neem oil knocking around somewhere.

Hopefully vet can suggest something for scratching too... happy to try an ivermectin based wormer but my wariness comes through potentially needing to use different drugs close together, and that's where I want their guidance.
 

BeckyFlowers

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I don't quite understand the concept of not going far enough, get a longer syringe :D. You don't do it exclusively rectally you do both and AFAIK pyrantel embonate is usually recommended given the current resistance profile but if that doesn't work probably good to move on to other options.
Because you're only getting into the rectum, not the colon. They don't just live in the rectum, only the mature females who are about to lay go to the rectum the poke out of the anus to deposit eggs. According to new guidance it's a waste of drug and therefore a waste of money. Before this new guidance came out, my vet prescribed my horse some ivermectin solution (it was like water) to be administered rectally, and to be fair they were almost flying out of his bum, never seen so many worms in my life! But again, these were only the ones who were due to come out anyway.
 

windand rain

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Thats why you do both ends at once oral medication for the ones in the gut rectally so you get the ones about to lay this is what my vet does
 

BeckyFlowers

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I'm just saying what my vet told me (approx 8 months after I was prescribed rectal medication) - the current advice as per BEVA guidelines is to not treat rectally. Oral ivermectin treatment should kill all stages of the worm. Worked for me anyway. Do what you have to do.
 

Zuzzie

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Here is my post from 2017:

The general consensus now is that Panacur Guard 5 day wormer is the best one to use followed four to six weeks later by another wormer with the right chemical in it - Pyrantel Embonate (found in Strongid P and Pyratape P). These pinworms are becoming more and more prevalent and vets are only now waking up as to how to deal with them.


The pinworms live inside the rear end of the horse. They come out when the horse is resting, normally at night, and lay their eggs around the anus. You might see a sticky substance containing the eggs deposited by them around the anus. The eggs drop off into the bedding and pasture or by being rubbed onto stable walls and fences. Horses carrying these worms will often scratch themselves to the point of making sores which can get infected. But not all horses scratch. They can be a complete nightmare to get rid of and can take up to 18 months to 2 years to eradicate. This is because you need to break the cycle of the horse ingesting the eggs and then breeding again. The eggs can remain viable outside the body for about 6 to 10 weeks.
Ingested eggs hatch in the small intestine releasing the L3 larvae that penetrate into the mucosa. About a week later they molt to L4-larvae that attach to the mucosa of the ventral colon. About 2 months later they complete development to adult worms. Sexual maturity is reached 3-4 months later.

The time between infection and first eggs shed (prepatent period) is 4-6 months, although there are reports suggesting that it may be shorter based on the observation of foals not older than 3.5 months that already carried Oxyuris egg masses in the perianal region.

It appears that normal wormers are ineffective because they are absorbed before they get to the worms in the hindgut. The only success most owners report is using 5 day panacur guard combined with the use of Neem Oil. You can buy organic Neem Oil cheaply on Ebay. You need to paint the Neem Oil on every day, preferable twice, but more importantly at night. This oil prevents the eggs from sticking and also is a powerful insecticide which harms the worms if they touch it. Some people say that it also interferes with the hormones of the worms - not sure about that though. Some owners have also used syringed wormers by inserting them in the anus but some vets say that this does not work.

It is advisable to disinfect the stable, (walls and destroy bedding) tack and the grooming kit.
Apart from being ugly and creepy they don't actually harm the horse unless, of course, the horse is causing sores from scratching.

Update: Our vet now has a cream which is applied to the anus in order to kill the worms when they appear outside the body. You should ask your vet if they have something like it.
 
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