Ask Questions - Please feel free to ask worming and testing questions and an E-SQP will get back to you.





Wednesday 12 December 2012

Worming horses to treat for encysted small redworm


Worming experts at Pfizer Animal Health are alarmed about the results of the National Equine Health Survey (NEHS) May 2012 survey
A recent survey of horse owners has shown that nearly half are not worming their horses correctly when it comes to treating encysted small redworm. Encysted small redworm (small strongles/cyathostomes) are the most common worms found in horses today and may account up to 90% of the redworm burden in the horse 1. The recent survey has revealed that treatment for encysted small redworm is only been done by about half of the survey respondents.
The survey which was conducted in May 2012 as part of the National Equine Health Survey (NEHS) showed that out of 1095 respondents only 505 had wormed their horse with an effective product for the control of encysted small redworm. The remainder had either used a product that they thought treated encysted small redworm when in fact it did not or they simply did not worm their horse or pony at all. The most common reason for not treating for encysted small redworm was that the horse had had a clear faecal egg count.
“Encysted small redworm won’t show up in a standard faecal worm egg count – even if the horse has shown a negative or low count it could still be harbouring several million encysted small redworms 2, which can present a potentially fatal health risk to the horse” says Wendy Talbot Pfizer’s vet advisor.

Encysted small redworm can remain dormant inside a horse for up to 2 years, but usually develop and emerge from the gut wall all at the same time in the early spring. In severe infestations mass emergence can lead to a disease syndrome known as “Larval cyathostominosis” causing diarrhoea and colic with up to a 50% mortality rate3.
It is most important to use a wormer containing moxidectin or a 5 day fenbendazole course licensed to treat encysted small redworm. It is important to remember that there is now widespread resistance to fenbendazole in parasite populations4whereas moxidectin has been shown to be effective against benzimidazole resistant worms and has a 13 week recommended dosing interval
1          Bairden K. et al (2001) Veterinary Record 148, 138-141
2          Dowdall S. et al (2002) Veterinary Parasitology 106, 225-242
3          McWilliam H. et al (2010) International Journal for Parasitology 40, 265-275
4          Matthews JB (2008) An update on cyathostomins: Anthelmintic resistance and worm control. Equine Vet. Education 20 552-560

Thursday 30 August 2012


Buying Medicines on the Internet
Here is an extract of the current text on the VMD’s website regarding the newly introduced Accredited Internet retailer Scheme. We at www.wormers-direct.co.uk are delighted to be included on that list as we have always strived to maintain not only a great customer service but one that works within all legislation and codes of conduct. As we are totally committed to such a course of action we ask you to bear with us when filling in your order forms for our SQP’s to scrutinise.

“The Accredited Internet Retailer Scheme is the VMD's way of facilitating self regulation by UK based internet retailers selling veterinary medicines. It is a response to concerns about the increase in the number of internet retailers and the extent to which they comply with the Veterinary Medicines Regulations (VMR). Whilst the majority of websites based in the UK are run by qualified professionals, some sites breach the VMR by selling veterinary medicines:
  • without the advice of a veterinary surgeon, pharmacist or Suitably Qualified Person
  • that are not authorised for use in animals in the UK.
The VMD is issuing internet retailers who have met the accreditation scheme's requirements with a logo to indicate their accreditation. Internet retailers can then display the logo on their website. The logo contains a unique number. Customers can confirm accreditation by clicking on the logo to access the internet retailer database on the VMD's website.
The VMD's Accredited Internet Retailer Scheme will help you as an on-line buyer of veterinary medicines by:
  • showing you that the retailer has voluntarily applied for and has been granted accreditation
  • confirming that the VMD has inspected the website and found that it complies with the Accreditation Scheme's requirements and the Veterinary Medicines Regulations
  • reducing the risk of you buying unauthorised veterinary medicines
  • reducing the risk of you buying inappropriate or ineffective veterinary medicines for your animals.”
By clicking here you will be taken to our home page and the VMD accreditation logo is on the right hand side of the page, click it to view our individual accreditation

    SH Wetherald E-SQP

Friday 24 August 2012


Fleas 
There has certainly been an explosion of flea bites and infestations this year mainly due to the weather, wet and mild is meat and drink to fleas, but when you are treating your actual pets don't forget to treat the environment as well.
View a suitable spray here 

If there is a cat or dog in your house there are most certainly fleas as well. Adult fleas live on pets feeding on the blood, breeding and laying up to 50 eggs per day. The adult egg population represents only about 5% of the total the rest being eggs and developing larvae. Your pets acts as the distributor for these eggs kindly depositing them on their travels to end up in soft furnishings, carpets bedding and also in your car. The larvae like it dark, they are blind and worm like feeding on such things as human skin scales or flea faeces. They remain like this until they pupate. The pupae are the cocoons from which the adult will eventually hatch perhaps triggered by central heating or humidity. Mere vibration from humans and pets sometimes trigger the pupae to hatch into hungry adult fleas looking for a tasty meal of blood in as little as a week. Others not triggered to hatch may lay dormant for up to a year. Adults then lay eggs which develop into larvae then pupae and then the life cycle of the flea is complete.
As such a small proportion of the total flea population actually live on your pet it is absolutely vital to treat your home with  a household spray. Fleas are not only an irritant to your pets they can cause allergic skin reactions, skin lesions and infection. Also remember that the fleas can transmit tapeworm to your pets.






   SH Wetherald E-SQP
   Animal Medicines Advisor
   www.facebook.com/wormers

Wednesday 8 August 2012

Lungworm in horses (dictyocaulus arnfieldi)


Lungworm in horses (dictyocaulus arnfieldi)

                                       

The lifecycle of lungworms is different to other nematodes as adults settle in the lungs rather than the intestine. Eggs are laid then travel up the trachea, are swallowed and passed out in the faeces. Further development then takes place on the pasture, infective larvae are swallowed by horses or donkeys to further develop into egg laying adults.

It is extremely rare for lungworm larvae to develop to full maturity in horses as the horse is not a good host for that particular parasite.  Horses can be infected with lungworm but as they do not mature in to egg laying larvae in any numbers to sustain a population on the pastures.  Exceptions to this in horses can arise in very young or old horses and seriously depilated horses whose immune systems are impaired.

Up to 70% of donkeys carry lungworms often showing no clinical signs of infestation and it is in donkeys where the parasite reaches full maturity.  Donkeys do not always develop the symptomatic cough that is seen in horses but if horses are grazed along side donkeys then particular care must be taken to treat for lungworms accordingly with particular attention to foals as they can sustain permanent lung damage if infected.

Diagnosis can be done through the actual physical and clinical signs which might be moderate coughing,  a slightly increased respiratory rate or even severe persistent coughing and respiratory distress. Fecal egg counts can be used to determine lungworm levels but a sedimentation test is required so at least 3 times the amount of fecal matter needs to be supplied to the laboratory.


SH Wetherald E-SQP
Animal Medicines Advisor
simon@wormers-direct.co.uk
www.facebook.com/wormers


Tuesday 26 June 2012



FEC Equine worm egg counts? ----What do the results mean?


The results are measured in EPG or eggs per gram which indicates the actual level of worm eggs found.
When you see the symbol
  <  followed by a number such as <200 EPG this means that the level of worm eggs found is less than 200 per gram.
If the count is less than 200 EPG then it is a
Low count and would suggest that your worming measures are working which would then suggest delaying the next treatment.
If the count is between 200 EPG and 1200 EPG it is a
Medium count which would mean that that particular horse needs treatment and perhaps the overall strategy needs some attention.
If the count is more than 1200 EPG it is a
High count that horse should be treated without haste and the management and worming strategy and planning will need considerable attention.
Please note the following:
Results cannot show encysted stages of redworm potentially the most harmful stage of the redworm parasite. Horses can have burdens in the order of several million encysted larvae yet show a negative or low (<100 epg) FWEC 
(Dowdall et al. 2002, Veterinary Parasitology, 106, 225-42).
Pinworms are not reliably detected in standard egg counts because they don't consistently lay eggs as part of their life-cycle and bots are not identified in FECs either as Bots will rarely appear in a dung sample.
It is not a definitive test for tapeworm. 
Eggs are not shed at a constant rate and immature parasites don't lay eggs, so a FEC will only ever provide a snapshot of a horse's adult worm burden at that particular time. FECs are useful to identify which horses are shedding high numbers of worms but are not the whole answer.
Usually results will say Stronglye eggs. This is redworm, the most common parasite that affects horses. When you interpret your results a full risk assessment needs to be undertaken and one could never specifically say that NO treatment is necessary as there are many factors to be considered. There are occasions when the results are less than accurate due to variations with regard to sample taking, seasonal timing and the actual larvicidal cycle. The age of the animals can also affect the result. Older animals tend to have greater resistance to internal parasites, so the correlation between number of parasites and worm egg count is not always as clear as with younger animals


We can supply your next testing kit.
http://shop.wormers-direct.co.uk/worm-count-kit-p-47.html and help you to interpret the results and act accordingly. 

Friday 13 April 2012

Lungworm in horses

The lifecycle of lungworms is different to other nematodes as adults settle in the lungs rather than the intestine. Eggs are laid then travel up the trachea, are swallowed and passed out in the faeces. Further development then takes place on the pasture, infective larvae are swallowed by horses or donkeys to further develop into egg laying adults.


It is extremely rare for lungworm larvae to develop to full maturity in horses as the horse is not a good host for that particular parasite.  Horses can be infected with lungworm but as they do not mature in to egg laying larvae in any numbers to sustain a population on the pastures.  Exceptions to this in horses can arise in very young or old horses and seriously depilated horses whose immune systems are impaired.

Up to 70% of donkeys carry lungworms often showing no clinical signs of infestation and it is in donkeys where the parasite reaches full maturity.  Donkeys do not always develop the symptomatic cough that is seen in horses but if horses are grazed along side donkeys then particular care must be taken to treat for lungworms accordingly with particular attention to foals as they can sustain permanent lung damage if infected.

SH Wetherald E-SQP
Animal Medicines Advisor
www.wormers-direct.co.uk

Wednesday 1 February 2012

Equine Pinworm burden in the UK

Pinworm burden is becoming an increasing problem for UK horse owners. Pinworm (Oxyuris equi) is not generally thought to be harmful but more of a nuisance and an irritant. However it is becoming more difficult to eliminate. The female can grow up to approximately 10cm in length and are white in colour. They reside in the large intestine and attach them selves to the intestinal wall to ingest the contents for food.
Adults produce eggs approximately 5 months after the initial infection which are found on the pasture, in faeces, contaminated water fences and walls.
Eggs are ingested by the horse and L3 larvae are released in the small intestine, they then migrate to the large intestine to develop into the mucosa to L4 larvae which then emerge and mature into adults. The female adults then migrate from the large intestine to the anus where they lay eggs in clumps in a sticky substance on the skin causing irritation around the anus leading to tail rubbing.  These can be removed on a daily basis by cleansing the area around the tail, anus and hindquarters with warm diluted disinfectant.

On occasion the actual female worms can be seen in the process of egg laying.

Active ingredients that treat for adult and pinworm larvae are Moxidectin,  Ivermectin, Febendazole and Mebendazole with Pyrantel treating adults only.
Not all brands are licensed so care needs to be taken by checking the brand’s label.

Extra care should be taken in the stable environment to help reduce the risk of re-contamination from buckets, feed bowls, haynets and rugs etc. Do not share grooming brushes.  A thorough clean with a heavy duty disinfectant in these areas and most importantly the stable after removing all bedding will help and is always a good idea in areas of animal care and management.

In some circumstances it may be possible for your vet to prescribe special preparations or treatments.


0844 808 6070

Tuesday 24 January 2012

Correct dosing levels when worming your horse.



A common mistake when worming horses is under dosing so ascertain the weight of your horse as accurately as you can either by using a weight tape or even better a weigh bridge. Correct dosing is important, if you under dose your horse the product will not work efficiently and could lead to resistance.
If you administer a sub therapeutic level of the drug and thereby expose the worms to the drug, but perhaps not at a sufficient dosage to kill them. Worms that survive treatment may pass on their “immunity” to subsequent generations and those generations will become more adept at surviving chemical treatments with the potential for resistance to develop to that drug.
There are brands on the market that now that treat up to 700kg in a single syringe and now some available in tablet form with each pack treating up to 800kg. These larger syringes and tubes give that little bit extra to play with when dosing. Also there are some very popular and efficient brands that only treat up to 575kg of bodyweight so you may need to take care when working out the doses required with many horses needing more than one syringe.
When you estimate the weight of your horse remember we all lie about our weight so if in doubt, when estimating the weight err on the generous side. Although a slight overdose of wormer is unlikely to have harmful effects, as with all drugs, it is important to dose accurately and in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations.

SH Wetherald
E-SQP