Diatomaceous Earth

Hey all,

I am a natural horsekeepin advocate - a horseworld hippie - and was wondering if anyone has had any luck with this used as a dewormer. I don't think it would be very effective for a horse with a current infestation, but would help as a preventative measure.

Can anyone tell me recommended feeding instructions/directions for this stuff. Is it 1 cup per horse, 1 tablespoon, etc. What other uses would there be around the farm for this.

Thanks everyone! Look forward to seeing the responses!

First I would want a fecal done to know what I'm dealing with. If the horse had a load of parasites I would start with a traditional dewormer.

From what I've read the dose is 1TBSP twice a day for every 1000 pounds.

I have nothing to offer as to whether this works or not, for the sake of $20 every two months I will continue with my current schedule of commercial dewormers.

My old vet had very sage advise, you can skimp on a lot of things but you never skip on the following:

1) buy the best hay you can afford
2) do a tetanus
3) have a good deworming schedule

We have used that before, I will have to get back to you about the amount per feeding but it seemed to have served its purpose as a maintenance dewormer, but I agree with G & K that if there are a lot of worms to be disposed of, use Ivermectin of some sort and then use the DE kind of like you would use the daily wormer, Strongid.
I'm glad to see other natural horse-care practitioners!!

A preliminary study done at A&M showed no effect from using DE for horses.

Since up to 50% of adult horses in a herd will control GI parasites on their own and pasture management practices will also greatly reduce parasite reinfection rates, you are better off to focus on pasture management and strategic deworming to minimize parasite loads in your horses. Lots of horses only need deworming twice yearly----6 times a year is overkill in any situation.

Assess your horse's natural resistance to parasites by running fecal egg counts 3-4 months after their last deworming and during the season when parasite reinfection rates are highest for your area which is going to be the summer months. Once you know which of your horses have a good natural resistance to parasites and which tend to carry higher loads, you can set up a deworming program with between 2-4 dewormings per year during the spring-fall to control parasite recontamination of your pastures. You shouldn't need to deworm during the winter months just due to the weather conditions.

Take the time to watch the webinar that was just aired recently on TheHorse.com. It will help you see how to control parasites with as little chemical intervention as possible.
The Horse: Videos