Worm count/worming help please

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Mancha

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I have just had a worm count done which has come back as <50epg no eggs seen, am i right in thinking that there are some eggs/worms which do not show up on a worm count or am i ok to leave him now until the next worm count is due?

I have always been on yards previously that insist on regular worming but i have now moved and have decided to worm count as much as possible and only worm when necessary so i am wondering if i need to worm now and if so what with?

Horse is a 15 year old that has always been regularly wormed, lives out 24/7 and is regularly poo picked.
Thanks
 
I am just starting this myself so have looked into it!! The best thing to do would be to call your vets, they will be able to give you some good advice as to when you will need to worm and what with! I did this with mine as I will be worm counting with them and only worming when needed (they recommended this).

I will be worming now for tape worm and then I think there is also one at the end of the year you need to worm for which worm count doesn't pick up? :confused: I may be wrong so don't quote me on this!

But after doing the tape (which also a double dose is best this time as we have had a very mild winter, again advice given) I will be worm counting every 13 weeks :)
 
Well done for worm counting, the less routine and more targetted we can get worming, the longer we can keep wormer resistance at manageable levels.

The two main types of worms that dont show up on worm count are

I) tapeworm
For this either blood test and worm if positive result, or worm as a matter of course. Blood test is preferable (I have mine done same time as annual jabs and teeth, all part of MOT!) as resistance is growing to some of the wormers and tapeworm is on the increase. Normally done autumn and spring to be safe, tho if horse has had negative blood test in the past you can prob just do one or the other.

II) the encysted lifecycle stage of the redworm
This you need to worm for once a year whether or not you use wormcounts as they can be up to 90% of the redworms present in the horse. They are trying to find a blood test for it but there isnt one yet. Normally you would worm for it in winter but still can be done now but dont delay (you want to catch them before they emerge as they can do it all in a mass and cause fatal colic)

Each of the above worms have two wormer active ingredients that are effective against them (but its a different two for each). Try to alternate which active ingredient you use against the worm type and ensure you dont underdose (which would allow worms to survive and be resistant to the chemical next time). You can get combination wormers like Equest Pramox which do both tapes and encysted redworm but some horses cant cope with such a powerful cleanout so I would be wary with anything that isnt young and robust with that. Personally I would go for separate wormers a couple of weeks apart, probably encysted redwormer first (something like Equest unless you have been using it/something with the same active ingredient for donkeys in which case you want the other type of encysted wormer available like Panacur Equine Guard) so you get them before they emerge, and then tapeworm in a couple of weeks (with something like Equitape unless again you have been using something with the same ingredient in which case go for the other ingredient tapewormers like Pyratape P). Some tapewormers need a double quantity to work for tapes, others just a single so check before you buy).

Here is the list of wormers and the active ingredients they contain.
http://www.wormers-direct.co.uk/ingredients.html

Other worms will normally be picked up by regular worm counts, tho if you get unusual specific symptoms you should certainly consult a vet as they may have some wormer resistance or some specially big infestation of something.

You can also check with a SQP (qualified person) wherever you buy your wormer on whats best before you decide what to buy (although I havent had very accurate advice from some of them so have had to gen up myself!)
 
Wow it's all very confusing isn't it! He has had pramox before without problems so do you think this would be ok to go with?
 
It sounds like he would probably cope with it OK if he's had it before, as long as he's as fit and well as he was then. Yes it is VERY confusing!

If you do use Pramox then given the time of year theres no point redoing the tapewormer until autumn, so the pramox would be all you would use to cover both encysted and tape.

But the only caveat is that you wont really know if Pramox is working or if the horse is resistant to the chemical in it unless at some point you do go for the blood test, so sometime it would be worth doing that when you have the vet in for other stuff anyway, it isnt very expensive if you arent calling them out specially. From memory maybe £20 odd for mine. One of my horses has a tape problem, the other not at all, despite shared grazing.

If you have used Pramox/Equest a few times in succession for encysted redworm and tape then look to use something else instead (which would mean a separate tapewormer and encysted wormer as there isnt a combination wormer using the other active ingredients)
 
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