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Winter Advice
As the weather draws colder (on and off) and we are heading into winter its time to start thinking about your plan of action for winter worming against encysted & inhibited forms of small redworm. These are stages of a small redworm’s lifecycle where the worms can enter a dormant state burying into the gut lining and laying undetected, then when the weather warms up in spring they can all emerge at once causing extensive damage in some cases. Not all small redworms will encyst, and the exact triggers can be complex, but low temperatures are linked.
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What we need to consider is how to tackle this issue: Using either a targeted dose against these stages or else for suitable equine candidates using the small redworm blood test via your vet. There is a lot of information and misinformation out there about the subject, and the recommendations change all the time as new research emerges, but this will hopefully give you a brief overview of options. More indepth information can be talked through individually with our RAMA (SQP).
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The first step is to risk assess your horse using the new information available. There is a new online free to use tool at https://whatsyourwormrisk.com/ which allows you to identify your horse’s risk level and see what's recommended. You can also use the new risk table from CANTER below (click on the image for a larger version).
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For low risk horses:
A blood test is now available via your vet that can detect encysted stages of redworm, which can be very useful for suitable horses. If your horse routinely tests low or clear on FEC throughout the year he or she may be a good candidate for the test, and this could be a good alternative to routine dosing if not needed. If your horse has tested medium or high on FEC during the year it may not be the most suitable choice and a treatment of moxidectin would be advised. It may be that your horse doesn’t require any treatment this winter.
For moderate and high risk horses:
When going down the dosing route most healthy horses and ponies can be treated for encysted small redworm during mid-late winter using Equest (moxidectin) or Equest Pramox (moxidectin/praziquantel combo). Choose Pramox if you need to cover tapeworm in the same dose and haven’t tested or treated for this worm type in the last 6 months, or if you have just had a positive EquiSal saliva test result for tapeworm. Both Equest and Equest Pramox will also cover bots if given after a good frost to help break the bot life cycle. Timing wise ideally we want to delay treating until the weather has turned properly cold, with temps of below 6 degrees during the daytime for a number of days if possible. If temps remain mild throughout winter, still dose before the end of winter with the above.
For some horses such as very young foals, very old, those with extensive health issues or certain miniature horses Panacur 5 day guard may be more suitable. There is a higher level of resistance to the chemical fenbendazole in Panacur guard than there is to the moxidectin in Equest products, so its best to only use this if the Equest products are not suitable for your horse or pony and to ensure you perform a resistance test (FEC) 10-14 days after dosing.
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For 2024 weanling foals Equest is licensed from 4 months of age and Pramox from 6.5 months of age. The tricky part of using the moxidectin based wormers on foals is estimating bodyweight successfully as weigh tapes are not always accurate on very young animals. The chemical is stored in body fat so those without much covering may struggle to metabolise it and the Panacur Guard may be a safer route in these cases.
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For donkeys Equest products are not officially licensed for this type of equine, so Panacur 5 day guard would be the treatment of choice during winter to target encysted stages.
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One final note regarding winter dosing is that the chemical moxidectin is toxic to invertebrates such as dung beetles and to aquatic life, so if the horse is turned straight back out after dosing this can be an issue as residues pass through the dung and potential run off seeping into the waterways. While everything that passes through should be dead, it can be useful to stable horses where possible for 24-48 hours to help protect the environment after using an Equest product. This also applies when using Pramox especially, as when the chemical kills any tapeworms the adults can burst open upon death as they disintegrate which can possibly release viable tapeworm eggs out into the dung, so advice is still to stable to avoid this happening.
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If you need any help planning your winter worming schedule, timing your dose, finding out if your horse could be a candidate for blood testing or anything else pop us a message or send an email to info@poopost.co.uk, we are always happy to help.
Team Poopost