Advice on worming please!

[AimeeLou]

My mare come back from stud on Monday. She has lost alot of weight, and has gone totally off her food. The stud explained that they moved her fields to put her on better grass, but to no improvement. Yesterday, we went to our local horse shop to get a wormer, thinking that this weight loss may be due to worms. The worming expert gave us a wormer and explained that it would be fine to give to a newly pregnant mare. I wormed her yesterday. She is 29 days in foal. Today to my horror I was reading through a breeding book, to check I was doing everything right, and it said not to worm mares during the frist 3 months of pregnancy. Eekk! I am seriously worried now. How and when do you worm yours??
Thanks

p.s. getting dentist out on Monday. She's seems to have settled a bit better today, and had a small bucket of food earlier.

 

[_jetset_]

I had to worm Hannah when she came back from stud (at 28 days in foal) because it is yard regulations... So I did it with a milder wormer, Strongid P. Ideally, you should worm before putting them in foal but obviously that is not always possible.

All I can say is that Hannah and Troy were both ok, but I would phone your vet asap to just double check for your own piece of mind.

 

[reynold]

eqvalan is safe for mares in foal - I don't use any other wormer for in foal or lactating mares - and have never had any problems

def. don't use pramox on in-foal mares

 

[eventrider23]

I have used pramox on an in foal mare as she had a serious worm burden - this was at th evets and the worming experts advice - so far so good as she is still in foal and is now about 80 days along.

 

[eventrider23]

Sorry to post again but too late to edit. I know that pramox is not generaly suitable for pregnant mares but this is only because it has yet to be tested on them in trials - so far so good - my mare is still in foal (we believe - as not come back into season since her 36 day scan and should be now about 80 days along) and should now also be free from her worm burden.

 

[S_N]

The stud where I work, we use Equimax and Eraquell - possibly because we are sponsored by them

 

[S_N]

Hope this helps

http://www.wormers-direct.co.uk/brands.html

 

[Damien]

Pramox carries the warning "Do not use during pregnancy and lactation in mares."

Surpised to hear that your vet advised you to use it depsite the manufacturers warning, glad your mare still has her foal though! Did he offer you an explanation why it was ok to do so?

 

[AimeeLou]

I used Eqvalan, so should be ok. Will ring the vets anyway, best to be safe

 

[eventrider23]

I was surprised myself - was told that yes it's not supposed to be used on pregnant mares but that that is only because it has not yet done the rigorous tsting in trials on pregnant mares that wormers are supposed to do and taht in reality the gut system is quite 'closed off' from the repro system and so essentially wormers should not really have any effect on their pregnancies.
Her case was special tho...she's a beautifully bred mare, etc. that we bought this year as a broodmare as an injury prevents her being ridden. Came from what was in theory the 'perfect' home - oodles of money, didn't want for anything, etc. etc. BUT she was into 'natural horsemanship' and therefore did not believe in worming (garlic instead) and had owned her for 7 years (now 10).
Hence when we got her we discovered she had a massive worm burden which we had to ride her off, only prob was that when she came she went straight off to stud and although we wormed her on arrival it was not enough to clear the burden. She is now thankfully clear.
Thankfully as well she is still in foal...I hope - is now about 83ish days along and no sign of coming back into season. My only worry is that she had the pramox just after her final scan at 36 days but that said she has shown not a single sign of coming back into season, etc. etc. and is her normal chilled out pregnant mare self (temperament not normally quite so chilled and relaxed when not preggers).
We are more than likely going to have her scanned sometime this month though so that we are sure she is pregnant as she is under 1st Oct term tho.

 

[Damien]

I thought that might have been the case, we also use spot on in the spring to treat for lice, darned pigeons have a habit of infesting the youngsters at that time of year, anyway the vet happily provides us with spot on as is used on cattle but we are always prewarned that it is not subject to license on horses as has not been tested, his theory is that if its safe on pregnant cattle then horses will be fine and we are happy to go along with that.
Sorry to hear she is having a hard time of it, hope she has picked up now, I stuggled woth a youngster once who was on livery years ago and it was really hard to get on top of it and we will never know the extent of the long term damage what is maddening is when its through no fault of your own, and worming on livery yards is often haphazzard and di not know about worm resistance at the time. On top of it all now though and the sheep help too!

 

[eventrider23]

I too have used spot on on my youngster which I got from our neighbouring farm....works a treat and reduced the flies on them as well! The only reason it is not licensed for horses is because it hasn't been tested on people and so because we tend to cuddle our horses more than we do our cows they say it shouldn't be used - I haven't collapsed from it yet!

This mare i had was on her own land, etc. with 3 others and so you would think they'd been kept on top of but because she didn't believe in wormers she got so bad. I have told her how bad it was but she still doesn't believe in it - thinks the chemicals will poison them, etc. I just hope all is well now but the pramox worked a treat and she is clean so she is just on a regular programme with the other preggers broodmares and my 2 yr old now. Just got everything crossed for next year now though as can't wait for the babies to arrive - hers should be lovely (if I do say so myself) as she is a gorgeous mare, Beach Boy/Flugel Van La Roche lines and daddy is a STUNNING 3 yr old from Argentinus/Ladykiller/Gotthard lines. It is her first foal so we'll see what she throws and then decided on who hubby for next year will be...although got several ideas - including Umenno Opie

 

[Damien]

natural worming... yeah well right........ some lovely bloodlines cant wait to see the foalie... whos is the argentinus son? sounds fab.....

 

[eventrider23]

He's called El Thuder - is a grandson of Argentinus and by Thunder Van de Zuuthoeve himself (spitting image of his dad) - see http://www.zuuthoeve.be/html/thunder_e.html for details and out of a Landgraaf/Ladykiller mare. He's standing at Brendons in Sussex. They only imported him this spring and he breezed through his grading only 4 days after arriving in the country...blew the judges away apparantly. I absolutely fell in love with him and his temperament is beautiful! Have got 2 mare's due to him next year.
Here's a pic of his dad (who he is the spitting image of - except no socks)