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Horse Worming: How Often to Deworm a Lone Horse?
Which equine dewormer should you use?
Horse owners do not necessarily own several horses. An owner can have just one horse. But what if your lone horse needs to be exposed to a public arena for exercise, is he at risk of parasite infestation? How often do you deworm in this case? You could be one of those owners who face these questions and who only own one horse. Nevertheless, special care still needs to be given to the animal to make sure that he always stays in good shape.
Avoid resistance - dont overworm
When you own one horse, it may not be necessary to deworm every other month. That would be overtreating the horse. A fecal sample will give you an idea on how much deworming you will need. If the fecal test results show that your horse only has minimal worms, giving treatment every other month is not just a waste of the equine dewormer or money, but also, it is contributing to the development of resistance.
If your horse is in tip top shape and fecal samples do not reveal significant worm burdens, there is really no need to treat. In addition, if your horse is a lone animal, frequent deworming is just not necessary. If he is alone, it only means that he can be the only source of infection. If your horse is a low shredder and you have spacious pasture, the risk of infection is extremely low. Visiting open and public arenas to take a horse to exercise unlikely contributes to parasitic infections, since these infections are usually acquired when grazing on infected pastures.
When to have a fecal egg count
What’s best for an adult horse is to have a fecal egg test performed twice each year. This is preferably before and nearing the end of the grazing season. Treatments can be given if fecal egg count results show that there are more than 200 eggs per gram of manure. For lone horses, mimimal deworming treatment shall be needed so long as the animal is perfectly healthy and a fecal egg count test will be performed every year.
The best deworming agent to use will only depend on the result of the fecal exam. It depends on which parasite is present in your horse. Your veterinarian can help you with the fecal exam and together, the best worming program can be developed.
For your horse worming needs, whether for a lone horse or a herd, Abler has got it all.
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