# My Big Scare Using Quest Dewormer



## caseymyhorserocks (Apr 5, 2010)

Yes, I do... However, not to contradict your vet here, but horses really should get at LEAST one dewormer a year to catch any tapeworms or bots or some other worms that slid by the fecal egg test. I like to do Ivermectin the fall (usually after the first frost) and Equimax in the spring. As well as a fecal egg test in Spring and Summer.


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## CLaPorte432 (Jan 3, 2012)

Ive been told for over a decade not to use Quest because sooo horses have had bad reactions to it. Luckily, ive stayed away from it. Pyrantol or Ivermectin for us, we rotate every 8 weeks. 

Im considering doing a fecal in spring/fall and not deworming unless its necessary. Too many species of worms are evolving and becoming resistant to the dewormers that are being used. (thank you microbiology) 
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Gmac (Aug 6, 2008)

I've heard you really have to be careful with the dosing of that stuff, make sure you really know how much your horse weights.
Also, from experience, horse wormer is not something you let your dog get into it. 
I made the mistake of worming my guys in the cross ties that are in the yard, and I dropped some, didn't think anything about it. My mini dottie got into it, blinded him temporarily and a night stay in hospital, and I was using cheap ivermetic.


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## gypsygirl (Oct 15, 2009)

quest is a great dewormer, but one that you really have to be careful you dont give them too much. i strongly disagree with not deworming at all, because the fecal egg counts miss tapeworms and bots. i deworm twice a year.


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## Susan Crumrine (Oct 5, 2009)

My first time 30 years, I am having fecal egg counts done as I write! My vet recommended it to me because he said worms are resistant to my old standby worming rotation..
He said now they just fecal sample to avoid over medicating the horse.
It cost $15.00 a test, not much more than a tube of dewormer!


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## DuffyDuck (Sep 27, 2011)

I've never had a problem with Quest... o.0
Or known anyone else too.. unless its slightly different over here... who knows.


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## COWCHICK77 (Jun 21, 2010)

I have always just wormed twice a year. But just started the fecal egg counts. I worm with the Ivermec and the Equimax for the Tapeworms as well. I have used Quest in the past without issues.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## gypsygirl (Oct 15, 2009)

yeah and its even cheaper if you think that you only have to deworm twice a year instead of 6 times a year =]


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## smokeslastspot (Jan 11, 2012)

I only worm spring and fall. My guys fecal floats are always clean, but tapeworms will not be seen most times unless the load is very large so I worm those two times to be on the safe side.


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## yadlim (Feb 2, 2012)

I have used Quest in the past and do still on occasion. The thing with Quest is that unlike the other brands of wormer, you can easily overdose a horse. Most wormers you can give or take a few hunderd pounds with no big deal. Not so with Quest. In fact, you are better off underdosing. 

The other thing with Quest is that it will kill off EVERYTHING in your horse's system. That means if for some reason he is carrying a large load of worms, the massive dieoff with cause a toxic shock and could easilly die from it. I only use Quest if I have been very good at keeping up my 8 week regimine of worming - or if my horses are on a daily dewormer. Then when I do my twice a year dewormer, I will use Quest. 

Otherwise, I rotate between the brands and kinds of wormer, every eight weeks, give or take. I like one of those rotations to be Quest. I have done fecal counts before, and there will still be a slight count after worming, even with ivermectin, but never with Quest - but you HAVE to be careful!

Because the stable I am at also does horse trading, there is a serious turnover of new horses coming in, getting fattened up, and sold. I have actually been talking with the stable owner and she is thinking about adding daily wormer to the board bill to make sure to keep this situation under control. 

Please give both of your horses a hug for me! There is nothing more scary than one of them getting ill! Mine got hugs yesterday - but it is pouring down rain today so I won't be goingn out today.


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## spirit88 (Jan 12, 2011)

Yadlim could you send some of that rain my way were in serious need of rain. Iv used quest before never had a problem. I even give all three horses a full tube no ill effects iv had more trouble with zimectrin gold. After worming with zimectrin gold all three of my horses got horrid ulcers in their mouth.So i avoid zimectrin gold at all cost.


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## Emerald24 (Mar 17, 2012)

Great advice! I'm definitely looking forward to getting my boys on a healthier deworming rotation. Shadow is still improving (thank goodness!). Thank you all for the input and well wishes for Shadow!


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## yadlim (Feb 2, 2012)

*entirelly off topic....*



spirit88 said:


> Yadlim could you send some of that rain my way were in serious need of rain. Iv used quest before never had a problem. I even give all three horses a full tube no ill effects iv had more trouble with zimectrin gold. After worming with zimectrin gold all three of my horses got horrid ulcers in their mouth.So i avoid zimectrin gold at all cost.


You can have all the rain you want!!! In the last month we have had three, count them THREE days without rain. I live on the side of a mountain and there is standing water everywhere. I am so tired of rain I can't see straight!

One maybe two more months and we will start getting more sunny days than rain... sigh. I love trees, and green, but enough with the rain! We live in the Pacific Northwest where we average 300 days of rain a year... but have beautiful trees....


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## mls (Nov 28, 2006)

spirit88 said:


> Iv used quest before never had a problem. I even give all three horses a full tube no ill effects iv had more trouble with zimectrin gold. After worming with zimectrin gold all three of my horses got horrid ulcers in their mouth.So i avoid zimectrin gold at all cost.


Bingo! Anything we give our horses has the chance to cause a reaction. Some horses react to fly spray, shampoo, etc. Just like humans.

The key is to know what is normal for your horse. When you use anything new be EXTRA alert for a reaction. Hives, swelling, disorientation, ataxia, etc. Just because you have used XYZ product for 'years' doesn't mean they didn't change an ingredient or your horse may have developed a reaction.

I plan deworming and vaccinations on a day when I know I am around for at leat 24 hours.

Knowing your horse is key to helping your horse in any given situation.


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## gypsygirl (Oct 15, 2009)

yadlim, i would not put your horse on a daily dewormer, that to me equals resistance ! also the risk of colic goes up if you use those. 

i would suggest you also not deworm every 8 weeks [again, resistance !] but start doing fecal egg counts and only deworming 2-3times per year, as needed. 

it doesnt matter too much if new horses are being introduced. 50% of horses can control their parasite load on their own, so even if there are other wormy horses your horse could be just fine. i would do fecal tests once or twice a year. =]


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## mls (Nov 28, 2006)

gypsygirl said:


> *50%* of horses can control their parasite load on their own


Where does that figure come from?


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## yadlim (Feb 2, 2012)

:lol:It has been my experience that there are two general thoughts on worming. Those who believe the horse can handle most of what it encounters, and those who don't want a single icky thing in thier horse. 

I tend towards that later.:lol:

I will say this, when my horse has no contact with new horses and I know that those horses he does have contact with are worm free - I don't worm but maybe once a year or less. 

I have been in barns where no horses were allowed to be wormed or given shots because it was unhealthy... we didn't stay too long.

Right now, with the stable we are at, there is a constant influx of semi healthy horses that are then brought up to health and resold. This happens two to four times a year. The stable owners also spend all summer going on organized rides every weekend, the kind with a couple hundred of their closest friends.

This means that my horses are exposed to constant influxes of worms, rain rot, and every other horse borne critter or disease out there. Because of this, I take extra precautions.


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## Foxhunter (Feb 5, 2012)

It has been proven that many worms are resistant too Ivermectin and therefore a good worming programme is to vary the wormer each year.
On top of that Ivermectin (pyrantel and fenbendazole) have little affect in killing cyathostomin (small redworm) that are encysted in the gut lumen.

Cyathostomin do not show on a faecal worm counts yet these worms, with high worm burdens, cause a high percentage of deaths (50%) even when treated intensively.
Three classes of wormers are affective against these encysted larvae, macrocyclin lactone, moxidectin and bezimidazole. 

I have used Quest as part of a worming programme with no problem, horses that have low worm resistance (most have a high resistance) will show adverse reactions if wormed with something that is hitting the worms. 

Faecal worm egg counts can be done in the spring/summer but in the autumn/winter larvicidal treatments should be ministered.


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## gypsygirl (Oct 15, 2009)

mls said:


> Where does that figure come from?


my vets went to a conference in las vegas 2 years ago [maybe 3 cant quite recall] and talked in length about deworming and learned this. i can ask them for a study or some kind of evidence supporting this if you would like ? as someone who actually runs fecal egg counts for my job, i will tell you that on this deworming program we have many many horses that have no parasites or a very low level of parasites [with in normal range]. we have people deworm and retest if they have over 100 eggs per gram. most places on have people retest if they have over 300 eggs per gram.


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## waresbear (Jun 18, 2011)

You didn't use fly spray with that dewormer did you? That'll cause a reaction.


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## sirgalahadkem (Apr 24, 2012)

I rotate every 2 months between Equimax, Safeguard, and Strongid. The girl that owns the other horse in the pasture and I are very paranoid after getting our horses out of a hellish environment and make sure we both worm on the same schedule, same med, and same minute! I've discussed daily wormers with her but for now, since I'm between jobs, I can't afford to do it. We've even gone as far as having a nutritionist come in to check our feed and hay and recommend the right feed for our horses. We do every shot possible for our area too.


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## Skyseternalangel (Jul 23, 2011)

Mls is very correct. Know your horse, and what it is allergic to.

I have given my horse Quest (he requires 1.5 wormers due to his size) and he gobbles it down without an issue (he's a funny horse...) 

The past owner screamed to the hills about how he was so reactive and would break out in hives, etc.

I have yet to see that happen... soo... *shrug* :lol:

Just be careful. Anything has a risk attached to it. Read the warnings on a tampon box, for example. Or White Lightening for white-line on hooves.. etc. etc.


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## ~*~anebel~*~ (Aug 21, 2008)

The barn I board at has a home testing kit for worm counts, and they do send some poo to the lab too to make sure the tests are accurate. There is a very low worm count at the place, which is really nice. Generally the least that the horses get wormed is once in spring and once in fall, usually with Ivermectin. 
Ivermectin is toxic to dogs though, so you have to be careful using it. The barn uses a liquid form so the dogs have a tougher time getting any that falls on the ground (as opposed to paste).

You do have to be careful about dosing with Quest though. There are higher risks with overdosing Quest than Ivermectin.

I used to worm every two months on a pretty tight schedule, but now that I am at a place with low worm count and have been reading about resistances, I've switched to the testing idea and only worming when needed.


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