Currently, equine internal parasites can resist all classes of dewormers on the market. This is especially concerning as internal parasites can cause so much harm—and there are no new dewormers on the horizon. However, there are some things horse owners can do to keep horses healthy naturally, reports The Horse.
Veterinarians originally recommended that horses be dewormed every two months, as that was when parasitologists began seeing worm eggs returning. Now, strategic deworming and an integrated approach to parasite management is preferred. This includes only deworming the horses that need it and not blanket deworming all horses on the farm.
Other ways to prevent worm burdens include:
- Quarantining new horses—this includes not turning them out on fields other horses will eventually use. The point is to keep the horse and the worms it os carrying separate long enough for the eggs to pass through his system.
- Feeding off the ground to prevent ingestion of larvae
- Ensuring feed and water sources are not contaminated with manure
- Removing manure piles before eggs hatch
- Composting manure at temperatures above 104 degrees F to destroy eggs and larvae
- Keeping grass taller than 3 inches to minimize larvae ingestion
- Dragging fields on hot days to expose larvae in manure to temperatures they cannot survive
- Implementing pasture rotation, which disrupts the parasite life cycle
- Stocking pastures with an appropriate number of horses (one horse per acre at minimum) to reduce grazing around manure
- Renovating pastures for better forage options
- Including other species in the pastures with horses so different plants get eaten
Read more at The Horse.
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