i have another dumb new horse owner question

Ok so today when I put my horse away he started rubbing him self on the wall and pawing he is shedding so tommoz (my day off) im going to brush him very well. But the owner of the barn said I should worm him. So here is my question. How do I worm? And what type of wormer should I get im looking at bimectin from greenhawk and exodua wormer also from greenhawl

The best way to know what wormer you need is have vet do a fecal exam to see what worms your horse has, if any.

Are you thinking the horse rubbing himself is related? It could just be that he's shedding and itchy .. but if the vet comes out, you can have him see if there is another issue!

Congrats on being a new horse owner! Prepare for lots of advice ..

:} I like advise but feel dumb asking questions

Questions are how you learn! Not asking questions when you've got a ton of horse people here willing to help would be dumb! So ask away!

Here in the US, many vets are recommending that rather than doing routine wormings, horses be wormed only after fecal checks and for the specific worms they have. Over the years, some parasites have developed resistance to the wormers (much like germs and antibiotics) and they don't want this trend to continue. We used to worm routinely on a schedule, but fecal checks every 6 months for the last two years have shown no worms so we haven't wormed. Why feed poison to the horses if they don't need it???

I have no idea what the situation is where you live. If you haven't had the horse long, and you don't know what his worming history is, worming can sometimes be dangerous without a fecal check. Too many worms dying all at once can cause problems. Your best bet is to get a vet to do a fecal count and then advise you about worming. Here, I can get a sampling of fresh manure, put it in a ziplock bag and leave it at my vets office. It's like $10 and he calls me back with the results. I don't know what procedure your area uses. Your barn owner may know or think the horse is wormy, or it may just be time to worm where you are. Some barns like to worm all their horses at the same time. You might want to explore the subject with her and ask why she suggested worming.

There are general wormers that handle most everything, or special wormers for specific problems (another reason to get a fecal check.) Most of the time it's a paste that you squeeze into the horse's mouth. Some people use a wormer that is added to their food daily all year round. I'm not familiar with the brands you mention and it's probably just that you are in Britain and I'm in the US. One of the most common ingredients here is Ivermectin. You really need to find out what parasites you are targeting before you choose a wormer. Parasites vary from location to location and the time of year can make a difference also. You want to target some of them in a specific point in their life cycle. This makes routine worming different in one area than it is in another.

This time of year ALL horses are itchy as they lose their winter coats.

I hope this helps. Please don't stop asking. Talking "horse" is why we're here! LOL

I'm in full agreement with HagaNog! Ask, ask, and ask some more. I've learned alot just by reading through alot of these threads, and I've gotten some really good advice in here. We rotate different types of wormers on our horses. We use four different kinds, and rotate them through the course of the year on a regular schedule. We always use the paste. We normally rotate between Zymecterin, pyrantel, and benzimidazole. You can buy all three of these in an annual package for relatively cheap. We buy ours on line from ValleyVet. I think we pay about 40 dollars for both horses. As far as the scratching, again, it's that time of year and once the winter coat is shed it'll stop, or atleast slow down. It could be a dry skin issue as well.

Hey Western Rider good to see another local (to me anyways) on here

Where abouts in Surrey are you? Go to Vander Veens on Highway 10 they are cheaper than greenhawk.

Hunter

Hunter: I'm in the Clayton heights area but I board my horse on 184. Lol I'm like down 184th hill from vanderveens what types do they have? An how do I use them?
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Ps to everyone srry about all my newbie questions!!!!
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I used to board at 184th and 16th. There are instructions in the box on how to use them but if you don't know what sort of schedule your horse has been on you are best to get a fecal count. Maybe go there and talk to the person in the store.

OOPS! My bad. I saw Surrey and thought Britain, not British Columbia. Apologies!