Does your yard worm count or just worm regularly?

Cinnamontoast

Cinnamontoast

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Just interested. My vet says it's hard to get a proper schedule for a yard over a certain amount of horses, but surely it can be done? I'm concerned that resistance is on the increase and I'd rather not worm if it's not necessary.
 
Worm count alongside worming for tapeworm in spring and autumn. Yard has 40 horses on DIY. Each field/herd has someone who takes responsibility for organising the worm count as and when asked by the YO.
 
worm autumn and spring or encysted red worm as i think this does not show in worm count? but we do worm count as well a few times a year just to check it is working. normally the count is barely anything so we don't need to worm. annoyingly it is getting more expensive to worm count- nearly £10 a horse.

i don't see how number effects it? you can send off for worm counts for as few or many as you need and worm accordingly
 
Current yard worm counts but does tapeworm and encysted redworm as routine. Any horse that has a positive worm count is wormed additionally. Some other yards I have been on do the same. All insist that any new horses come with a worm count or have one done as soon as they arrive.

CT I think we may use the same vet practice and I've found them a little behind in this area. I was talking to one senior vet about worm counting and he said "why not just worm as by the time you've paid for the count it's just as cheap to buy the wormer" and the yard I was on that had the most aggressive blanket worming practice was one devised by the other senior vet at the practice.
 
We do regular worming but in addition to this I do regular worm counts and the tape worm saliva tests as I need to know that what I am giving my pony is working as I understand some horses are more susceptible to worms than others and he got very ill with a tapeworm infestation a few years ago at a previous yard even though the horses were receiving the recommended 2 tapewormers a year.

The yard I am currently on is low risk though as the fields are poo picked, rested and rotated as well as the horses being wormed. With the results I have been getting back he could probably go down to one or two wormers a year with regular testing. Testing though is more expensive than worming especially if you are going to do it every couple of months just to make sure things are stable.

The horses are also weighed once a year so that we have a fairly accurate idea of what they weigh too which helps us work out how much wormers to give. I think a lot of people underestimate their horses weight.
 
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We don't have anyone overseeing our worming, luckily everyone is conscientious. Some now worm count through Westgate. I use intelligent worming and have done for 5 years it's good for me as my work is hectic and takes me away and I don't have to worry about forgetting it. One or two liveries worm following vet programme. We have our own paddocks and poo pick at least once a week, some daily depending on work schedules.
 
We have 35ish horses here (diy) and 10 elsewhere and do egg counts and tapeworm tests for all then worm the ones that need it. We Equest everything at Christmas time. If in paddocks they are poo picked, if in fields they are not, fields are massive. All samples taken by the farm manager.
 
Our horses are in individual paddocks that are poo picked daily. We do worm counts & I am the one who takes responsibility for collecting the samples, sending them off & passing out the results. There are only 5 at our present yard so it's easy but at previous yard there were 27 horses that I did. I don't know what the issue with people is, it's quick & easy no matter how many horses are on the yard. I do the paperwork & pots the night before & then collect samples & post the next morning. You need to designate one person though & that way they can ensure that everyone's horse has a sample sent off. On our yards all horses were stables so it was easy to collect, if they are living our in a herd then I'm not sure how you'd do it?

We normally dose them with a Pramox in November for Tape.
 
I've always worm counted and done my own thing :o

I was at a yard for a long time which did very sporadic random worming with no counts- that's when I started to go my own way.
Next few yards were a bit more intelligent which helped!

Now only 3 at home to manage so they are poo picked daily, worm counted about every 12 weeks, have a dose for tapeworm in autumn and something for encysted small redworm later.

2 are always <50epg on their counts and the other goes a bit higher but she was exceptionally wormy when she arrived so perhaps she's just one of those that is more susceptible. This routine seems to be working well :)
 
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