Foal Worming

mikec · Postby **mikec** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 6:41 am

This is exactly why I find this board essential. I only wish I had found this particular thread earlier than today. Just got finished giving our pregnant mares and pleasure horses a dose of Quest in December and already we have one of them rubbing ( itching ) the hair almost completely off above her tail. Didn't seem to effect any of the others but it's interesting that this is the first time I've ever given any of them Quest as part of the worming schedule. Won't happen a second time !!!

casallc · Postby **casallc** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 10:09 am

Sounds like the argument about alfalfa. I think the thoughts shared with me by an old-timer about alfalfa would be the same for wormers. "There have been a helluva lot more that have died from lack of it - than from it".

cj55 · Postby **cj55** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 9:30 pm

Cathy D wrote:Madelyn is right. Don't give Moxidectin (Quest) to foals, weanlings, or even yearlings. My vet doesn't use it in his practice, and recommended to me to avoid it based on reports in a veterinary journal of some yearlings dieing within 24 hours of administration. According to the journal, they were not overdosed, and no one is sure why it happened. Despite the labeling, it is not safe to use in young horses.

PLEASE DON"T USE IT! Not worth the chance, just last month a good friend of mine used it on a beautiful, healthy, yearling. It was dead the next morning and WAS NOT overdosed.

surprisewind · Postby **surprisewind** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 1:04 pm

As with everything else, caution is best.

Moxidectin is great for encysted strongyles because it is stored in fatty tissues (as another poster stated). Fatty storage allows it to release a little more slowly, so the parasites are exposed for a longer period of time. The panacur powerpack has a high rate of efficacy, as well - but since fenbendazole goes through the system too quickly, you have to give multiple doses over a series of days. Moxidectin just eliminates the multiple syringes.

That being said, if a horse has very little fat - as a young horse, a malnourished horse, or a very, very fit horse might - the best available fatty tissue deposit in - yep! you guessed it! - the brain. Too much moxidectin there, and you wind up with serious neurological issues.

We only use quest on our puffy-ponies.