# How to worm a horse that has never been wormed



## riccil0ve (Mar 28, 2009)

I would give her Ivermectin first, since it kills just about everything. I don't think it kills ascarids [whatever they are] though, so depending on her age, you might need to look into something that will take care of that.


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## iridehorses (Oct 22, 2007)

Whenever I get a new horse in, I approach worming as though the horse has always been wormed. I'll may first check his reaction to putting something in his mouth by using my finger a few times but then I'll do it at feeding time so he gets the taste out of his mouth and dives in the his feed.

I'll also hide the syringe until the last moment even if he isn't a problem. A friend was telling me about a horse they once had that would run to you if she saw the wormer - she loved it!


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## Alwaysbehind (Jul 10, 2009)

If your vet is recommending the fecal check system in your area I say simply start there.

Have a fecal sample tested and go with what the vet recommends. The vet practice I use likes to cater the de-worming system to the horse and the situation.

In the big picture it has saved me money too, since I am only de-worming 2x per year and doing a fecal 2x per year.



I cheat when administering de-wormer. I squirt it into their feed. Some wet beet pulp or even plain pellets made into a soft mess with de-wormer stirred in goes down easily.


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## kitten_Val (Apr 25, 2007)

I went with Zimmertin Gold when I had my horse (never dewormed) delivered (BTW, we didn't do any fuss, but just popped the tube in mouth next moment she stepped off the trailer). 

Even though she did NOT have worm-looking belly, I could of invite the vet college to study what kind of worms can live in the horses. :? For the whole week I got all possible species in her poop. Was somewhat interesting, but quite disgusting.


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## Ryle (Jul 13, 2007)

You can start with anything in an adult horse and most likely will not run into a problem with an impaction from the number of parasites dying. However, many people like to be a bit cautious at first just to lower those chances even more. In that case using fenbendazole first and then following up in a week with moxidectin if the horse isn't underweight is a good way to go. This is because the fenbendazole will likely not be extremely effective due to the resistance issues but will kill some of the parasites and lower the burden. Then you come back with moxidectin and get a good kill including encysted strongyles. 

If you want to just go ahead and deworm normally---we did this often with new horses with no deworming history at the equine hospital--just use ivermectin/praziquantel (Zimectrin Gold) or moxidectin/praziquantel (Quest Plus) right off the bat. 

Then go straight into deworming based upon fecal egg counts. There is no need to use any other type of deworming program for a while just because the horse hadn't been dewormed previously. So after you treat with ivermectin or moxidectin you will wait several months (3 after ivermectin or 4 after moxidectin) and then collect a fecal sample and have a fecal egg count run.

For the first couple of weeks you want to be sure to quarantine this horse and pick up feces out of the paddock daily.


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## riccil0ve (Mar 28, 2009)

I agree with the folks that just say pop in the squirter. =] Ricci tolerates fine, and Gracie just LOVES it, she comes up licking and chewing, I don't have have to touch her to give it to her, haha.


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## mom2pride (May 5, 2009)

For a horse that has never been wormed before, until you have a chance to really work with her accepting you messing with her mouth and shoving things in there, I would simply mix her wormer up in some sweet feed; make sure you mix it well, leave NO paste visible, make sure it is thoroughly mixed into the grain. Mix the wormer itself in with about 2 cups of feed, then add a couple more cups and mix that together, so she doesn't smell or taste the wormer so much. I've never had a horse not eat 'baited' wormer. Lol!


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## SavvyHill (Jun 29, 2010)

Be careful using Quest. Don't use nearly as much as you would with Ivermectin or any other wormer, because it's ridiculously strong. I gave my 16hh App mare 3/4 of the tube and she wouldn't eat for the rest of the day, which was unusual because we'd wormed her before with other wormers and she went back to eating as soon as we let her.


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## Ryle (Jul 13, 2007)

SavvyHill said:


> Be careful using Quest. Don't use nearly as much as you would with Ivermectin or any other wormer, because it's ridiculously strong.


This does NOT mean to give less than is labelled for a horse at a given weight. It just means that you don't want "just give the whole tube" no matter what a horse's weight is. You should also not give Quest to underweight or ill horses or horses under 6 months of age. 

You should ALWAYS (no matter what dewormer you are using) get a good weight on the horse and dose for that weight.


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