Good pasture management and animal husbandry techniques help to reduce your reliance on chemicals to control your horse’s worm burden.
Parasites depend on the pasture to complete their lifecycle. Eggs passed in droppings develop into larvae that migrate onto surrounding grass and are then ingested by grazing horses.
Breaking this cycle mechanically is one of the most powerful tools we have.
Follow these simple guidelines and read some of our more in-depth articles (below or right) to help keep your horses and their grazing environment as healthy as possible.
A fresh perspective on parasite control
- Keep horses with the same grazing companions for herd stability. Rest and rotate grazing and don’t overcrowd fields.
- Poo-pick at least twice a week to keep parasite levels down and try to leave some fresh dung piles to help dung beetles do their bit too!
- Cross graze pasture with other species eg. sheep.
- Keep new horses separate until tested and treated accordingly.
- Don’t worm and move; after worming ensure horses stay on the same pasture for a few days to help slow down resistance.
- When first starting on a targeted worm control programme all horses should be tested when worming is due or slightly overdue so as to get a true result.
- Check for resistant worms; if a positive result is found, treat the horse then use a reduction test to sample again in about 10-14 days. If the wormer has been effective the second count should be either ‘no eggs seen’ or very low.