Pedigree Query

How importamt is it not to administer too much worming paste to a weanling?

griff

well, obviously it is important to dose the horse for the correct amount of weight! however, if you accidentaly overdose a horse it should not suffer any ill effects! it would be better to overdose a little bit than underdose.
use a weight tape!

Underdose can be really harmful. Under NO CIRCUMSTANCES EVER give a foal Moxidectin (Quest). I don't even give that poisonous crap to my full grown horses. It kills more than the parasites.

Figure the weight of the foal and give them something relatively safe like Ivermectin, pyrantel pamoate or fenbendazole.

I have a weigh tape that works very well. I worm my foals once a month for the first year of their life and then they are on a regular schedule. I only use ivermectin, pyratype p, and pancur.
teb

madelyn, how can you state that moxidectin is poisonous crap?!?
it's in the same family as ivermectin. its safe to use in foals over the age of 4 months. i have used it many, many times and never had a problem.

Overdosage of moxidectin can kill a horse. It is not the same. Not at all.

I didn't say its the same, I said that its in the same class as ivermectin...
In your opinion, by how much would you have to overdose a horse in order to kill it? I am sure it wouldn't be available at any tack store if you could easily kill a horse with it...

There are studies somewhere.. but it is quite a low threshhold, something like a double dose, so giving a 1300lb tube to a 600 lb horse...

With ivermectin, it is something like 500x the dose to be harmful. Fenbendazole and pyrantel pamoate out there further in the realm of not possible to get a horse to eat that much paste.

My vet says Moxidectin is no more effective than Ivermectin or Fenbendazole, but it is much more dangerous and I believe her so I NEVER use Quest.

I agree and will not use Quest EVER on ANY of my horses...

I was not impressed with Quest when I gave it to my horse a few years back. Within 3 weeks, he was scratching his tail and I had to dose him with another wormer. Many vets I know don't recommend it either.

I do a 5 day 60cc course of Panacur every spring, but other than that, it doesn't do much of anything in a single dose.

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.

Quest is perfectly safe. We use it. OSU uses it on yearlings, pregnant mares, and breeding stallions. It is not approved for horses under six months of age and can cause lethargy if given in too large a dose to horses that are too young, ill or in poor condition. The product is safe. I have seen no ill effects be it abortion or death. There has been this virtual urban legend going around about the stuff for ages and it simply is unfounded and no I don't have any business ties to Fort Dodge

You can check out their website and view their studies

http://www.questgel.com

Quest is absorbed into the body's fat stores and is slowly released into the body. Because foals have very little fat stores, the medication is dumped directly into their system and can be toxic/fatal. Having an accurate weight for horses dewormed with Quest is highly recommended. It is also not recommended for skinny or debilatated horses for the same reason.

Can be hazardous to older horses, too. Friend of mine was boarding at a stable that required quest to be used in the worming cycle. No exceptions. One lady there had an older horse that she didn't want to use quest for, but they wouldn't make an exception. Her horse died

Hmmm. Very interesting about the fat storage thing. To me it would mean that Quest is contraindicated for Thoroughbreds PERIOD.