Microsoft word - deworming protocols.docx

Different horses and different situations require different solutions to control parasites. Thereis no One-Size-Fits-All plan. The following are sample protocols that you can use. If youneed help deciding which is best for your situation, call our office and a veterinarian canadvise you. Be sure to read the accompanying handout on Deworming Principles.
Deworming Protocol #1
This protocol refers to a horse pastured alone, or in a small group on adequate land, and afairly closed farm (a herd where new horses are seldom added) that have also had one of thefollowing:a) At any time of the year, it has been 6 months or more since the last de-worming and theyhave a recent negative fecal testb) During the spring and summer months (April-October) it has been 4 months or more sincethe last de-worming and they have a recent negative fecal test.
TREATMENT: De-worm once per year (usually in October) with Ivermectin with
Praziquantel (any brand is okay) or Quest Plus. The same de-wormer should be used
year to year until instructed otherwise by a veterinarian.
Deworming Protocol #2
This protocol refers to farms that have a high population of horses or horses that frequentlycome on or off the property and also had one of the following:a) At any time of the year, it has been 6 months or more since the last de-worming and theyhave a negative fecal testb) During the spring and summer months (April-October) it has been 4 months or more sincethe last de-worming and they have a negative fecal test.
TREATMENT: De-worm twice per year (usually in April & October). Once per year
with plain Ivermectin or Quest and once with Ivermectin with Praziquantel (any brand
is okay) or Quest Plus. Continue to use these same products year to year until directed
otherwise by a veterinarian.
Deworming Protocol #3
This protocol refers to farms with a very high population of horses or with many transienthorses or in the case where a horse had a negative result on a fecal test but then had apositive fecal test 4 or 6 months later (4 months if during April-October, 6 months at anyother time of the year) TREATMENT: De-worm once in April, July & October. Use plain Ivermectin (any
brand) or Quest two of the three times and Ivermectin with Praziquantel or Quest Plus
once per year. Continue to use these same products year to year until directed otherwise
by a veterinarian.
Deworming Protocol #4
This protocol refers to horses that have had repeated positive fecal tests or other factors thatare considered to be a problem by your veterinarian.
This program will have to be customized by a veterinarian.
The following holds true for all protocols
***Anytime a fecal test comes back positive a second fecal test is recommended 14 days
after de-worming with either Ivermectin or Quest (no sooner than 2 weeks)
**With this de-worming protocol it is now VERY IMPORTANT to dose the de-wormer
correctly (estimate the horse’s weight and add 20%), make sure the mouth is completely
empty and that the horse swallows ALL of the de-wormer. If horse should spit any of it
out, give more. With foals and weanlings, it is important to dose exactly according to
weight. Overdosing in these young horses can be dangerous with certain dewormers.
**It is now VERY IMPORTANT to run fecal tests on all horses at least once per year,
preferably during the summer (April-October). Tests may need to be run more often if
recommended by veterinarian.
**Not every horse in the herd will be affected by parasites in the same way. One horse
can suffer from a heavy parasite infestation while a pasture mate can be completely
worm free. Identifying the shedders from the non-shedders is an important part of
parasite management.
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Source: http://keenanmcalister.com/sites/site-3575/documents/Deworming%20Protocols.pdf