Just remember Ginger: NTWs do not show in a fecal because they don’t live there. They reside in soft tissue, joints and ligaments.
I use Quest and Quest Plus, too, as part of my rotation - yet here in the South AKA Parasite Heaven/Land of the Gnat, my horses still get the itchi/scaly/scruffies because of the NTW microfilia emerging. When they show their nastiness, I doa DD of Equimax right away. Then resume my normal deworming rotation program.
ChocoMare, I know that, from reading (some of) this thread. Frankly, I don’t think NTWs are a major problem for my ponies, I certainly haven’t noticed the issues that others have posted. But since I do use Iver/Moxi, perhaps I am controlling them adequately?
My questions are: (i) do Iver/Moxi sterilize female Onch, and if so, for how long; and (ii) are others using the strategic deworming protocol with success?
KY is hot in summer, but not as hot as GA, so I don’t know how our climate affects the decision of when/when not to worm. I’d like to worm March/June/Sept/Dec, but with a FEC of zero right now, do I even need to?? My vet says go ahead, and I probably will, but… argh, perhaps I am over-thinking this…
By “iver/moxi”, what exactly do you mean? Alternating between them? A moxi-only protocol would only be 4 times a year.
But yes, if your FECs continue to show low-no counts, then you’d really only need to be concerned with tapeworms twice a year. I probably wouldn’t even worry about a power pack, since if there are encysted strongyles, they’d eventually emerge and show in a FEC. But, that would be your call if you wanted to take a precaution.
Ah, sorry dear. Should not have assumed 
Alas, the question about sterlizing the females is outside the realm of my knowledge. I’ll have to poke into it.
Although your FEC is zero, stay on your schedule lest some critter o’the day takes up residence. Best to keep a clean house 
And I TOTALLY understanding the “overthinking” part…we can make ourselves crazy if we’re not careful. :winkgrin:
I don’t understand how a horseowner can rely on negative FECs?
What about encysted forms, bots, NTWs, tapes, and other “nasties” that do not shed eggs? Or is all of that covered by the few dosings of iver/moxi/praziquantel. ??
living in the land of wet pastures, little to no drying, little sun to kill the larva in manure.
Yes, those would be covered by twice a year use of the proper chemicals. I know many areas of the country recommend 2x year dosing for tapes, and also 2x year for bots. It would be nice if one of the tape treatments could be a dd of pyrantel pamoate, just to avoid another use of ivermectin, but that means only 1x year for bots. But, if you’re only using, say, ivermectin/prazi once a year, and let’s say moxi/prazi once a year, that mitigates things a bit, and deals with bots, tapes, and encysted (except for L3).
living in the land of wet pastures, little to no drying, little sun to kill the larva in manure.
Yeah, that’s bad news
Gabz, I’m not relying solely on a negative FEC. That’s just one measure. It means that, right now, the December moxi was very effective, my ponies have no adult worms shedding eggs and that any larvae remaining have not emerged yet. In other words, they are all low contaminants. JB has it right: rotating ivermectin and moxidectin (w/ praz once a year) will get most of the nasties. But I’m reluctant to use only Moxi because of concern with promoting resistance.
Thanks all for your responses, I think I will try it for a year and take a number of FECs periodically to make sure I’m controlling the small strongyles. I’ll let you all know how it goes!
And ChocoMare, if you find out anything about that sterilization question, be sure to share! 'Cause if iver/moxi does this, and we find out for how long, would that affect how you approach the NTW issue?
You might want to consider using prazi twice a year - Equimax once, Quest Plus once. The mites that carry tape worms are in the soil, on the blades of grass, very very difficult to not ingest them.
OK, I could do DD Strongid in June and Moxi/Praz in December. Would that be a good schedule for tape for this region? I have heard KY is a high-tape area.
(BTW, to keep this thread NTW related, I did once have a horse with a mysterious weepy eye that cleared up after a routine dose with ivermectin… 
)
That would certainly take care of the tapes twice a year. If you are comfy treating bots just once a year, then this will work.
yall might enjoy this story my vet shared with me.
Guy buys a proven cutter. Finds that horse collapses - as though narcoleptic- when girthed up. Did all manner of tests, can’t find anything. Do find his BP drops when girthed up, hence the fainting spell. It’s readily reproduced. Once the horse awakens, he’s fine.
Vet wondered if onchocerca in the area of the spine, I think he said, might be the issue. Compression of girthing him up would slow the already compromised blood flow…hmmm. Ivermectin every two weeks, for 6 weeks. Horse was also put on steroids…but he was thinkin’ the steroids would likely just suppress the response.
Horse made a full recovery…in that he quit collapsing, the steroid were suspended, and the symptoms did not return.
Wow, that is a REALLY interesting! There’s a thread on another board where someone is wondering why grabbing mane right at the base of the withers, such as when they get on bareback, causes the horse’s knees to buckle. It doesn’t happen when they get on the saddled horse as they are not grabbing there. I hope you don’t mind if I copy your post over there
Well heck, now I’m confused. I just completed a power pac for a horse that does have a rather large bump on his wither (I thought it was a saddle sore from before I got him), creeping crud, and his slightly underweight with a big belly. I was going to do the followup of the 1 1/2 dose of anthelcide, but should I try the Equimax instead? And then how do I get back on schedule? He also has scratches, and today I noticed that post-powerpacking he has a weird lump on the side of his neck. Doesn’t look like a bite or kick, just a weird knot.
Any suggestions?
My filly has small lumps under the skin between her hind legs. They are just under the skin and aren’t attached to the flesh underneath. She has a couple on each inner thigh, and she just loves to have me scratch her there.
Could this be what y’all are talking about?
I’ve got plenty of Equimax and ivermectin at hand, and could try the worming protocol.
Rather than my having to go back through the huge number of responses to this thread to find out how much and when, would someone mind reviewing the accepted treatment?
viney, if you chose to do it, it’s a double dose (by weight!) of Equimax, and another double dose 2 weeks after. You’d judge the reactions to the 1st and 2nd doses to determine if a 3rd double dose (of probably just ivermectin) or a single dose of ivermectin might be warranted in another 2 weeks.
That’s the protocol, with variations based on what individuals are seeing, or not.
Go ahead and Double Dose Equimax. No need to fear a large die off since you just PP’d.
If you’re concerned about resuming your regular rotation, then just have the vet pull a FEC beforehand to see if it’s needed.
How soon after the PP is it safe to do the equimax?
So far I’ve made it all the way through page 16 and will continue to read up on the whole thread. Don’t know if my question has already been answered on other pages but don’t want to wait with treatment… for several more day’s until I make it through page 54:D:
I have one horse who tolerates most anything EXCEPT deworming. So my question: Is it alright to divide the Double Dose Equimax between AM & PM on the same day AND mix it in within the grain ration? 
I always mix my mares dewormer in their soaked beet pulp. Add a little cinnamon and down it goes 
Just wanted to mention that the Country Supply catalog website still says they are out of stock on Equimax. I’ve been checking the past several days and the Shipping Date keeps inching up a day or so every day. Now it says March 4th.
I went ahead and ordered several boxes of Equimax from Smartpack to be shipped with my next order. It’s more expensive through them but they aren’t saying they are out of stock either. They also have a really cheap, $2.99, generic Ivermectin. I can pay $6 or $7 for the same thing from the only farm store in my area and it is usually expired.
Another suggestion, Equine Affaire is next month in Columbus, OH. That’s a good place to buy all of your dewormers at once. You just have to pay really close attention to the expiration dates.
By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. You may also receive promotional emails from The Chronicle of the Horse. You can opt out at any time.
For Customers
Company
Terms of Use
