When should I worm my horse for tapeworms
Dylan Hughes
Published Apr 11, 2026
Horses only need treating for tapeworm twice a year as the lifecycle takes six months to complete. This should be done in March and September. This can be done using a praziquantel or a pyrantel based wormer.
When should you deworm a horse for tapeworms?
FALL DEWORMING — Tapeworm treatment is recommended once a year, in the late fall or early winter after tapeworm transmission ends due to cold weather. QUEST® PLUS is the ideal deworming choice for late fall as it contains an additional active ingredient – praziquantel – that specifically targets tapeworms.
What months do you worm horses?
All horses should be wormed in the late autumn with a combined round/tape wormer to remove bots, tapeworms and any adult roundworms. 4. For many horses once a year worming will be sufficient. Horses identified with higher worm burdens will need to be wormed more frequently.
When should I start deworming my horse?
As a consequence, it is strongly recommended that all foals be dewormed initially at 1 to 2 months of age. Treatment should be repeated every 30 to 60 days until one year of age, at which time the now-yearling can be placed on the same deworming schedule as other horses on the farm.What is the best horse worming schedule?
- SPRING (March) – Ivermectin (Equell®, Zimectrin®, Rotectin®, IverCare, etc), moxidectin (Quest®)
- LATE SUMMER (July) – ivermectin.
- FALL (OCTOBER) – ivermectin w/praziquantel (Equimax®, Zimectrin Gold®) or moxidectin with praziquantel (Quest Plus®)
How do you know if a horse has tapeworms?
Signs include diminished performance, pain and discomfort, increased flatulence, pawing, trying to lie down, malaise, lethargy, nipping at sides, refusal to eat, weight loss, nutritional deficiency, bloating, dull coat, and lack of shedding in warmer weather.
What is the best wormer for tapeworms in horses?
There are two types of dewormers available for treating equine tapeworms. One is praziquantel, which can be found in several products. It is most often combined with ivermectin or moxidectin, but manufacturers also produce it in a standalone formulation in some countries.
When should you worm horses in spring?
Here are the basics: You will need to deworm all horses twice yearly (after the first frost and again in the spring) with an ivermectin or moxidectin product to kill large strongyles and bots.What horse wormer should I use in May?
If your horse needs worming for roundworm too, then a combination wormer is ideal. Summer (May-Aug): carry out FEC and worm if necessary with Fenbendazole, Ivermectin or Pyrantel.
When should I worm my mare after foaling?The mare should not be wormed until at least two weeks after foaling unless under veterinary supervision – this is because metabolites from the wormer can be passed through the mare’s milk to affect the foal.
Article first time published onHow common is tapeworm in horses?
Horses of any age can become infected with tapeworms, with prevalence rates of up to 62% reported in some parts of Australia. Horses less than two years of age and aged horses usually have the heaviest tapeworm infections. Foals can become infected as young as 4-5 months of age.
How do you get rid of tapeworms in horses?
These particular parasites can be treated with one of two drugs — praziquantel and pyrantel. The latter must be used at a double dose. Fortunately, both drugs are very effective and cause death and detachment of the tapeworms from the gut wall within 24-48hr following treatment.
Which horse wormer should I use in spring?
Spring. TAPEWORM With treatment for tapeworm recommended every six months, treatment should be repeated in the spring. Treatment Single dose of praziquantel-based wormer or double dose of pyrantel-based wormer. Suggested treatment time March, April or May.
What is praziquantel horse?
Praziquantel is an antiparasitic drug typically used to control tapeworms (Anoplocephala perfoliata) in horses.
How long does it take to get rid of a tapeworm?
When an infection is passed from an animal to a human, it is called zoonosis. Anyone who has a tapeworm will need treatment to get rid of it. Treatment is 95 percent effective and can be completed in a few days.
What is a high tapeworm count in horses?
The worm egg count is not a direct correlation of the number of worms the horse has but does give us an indication to the level of infection and amount of egg shedding. We classify horses as one of three types of shedders; low (0-200 eggs per gram), medium (200-500 eggs per gram) and high (over 500 eggs per gram).
Does ivermectin treat tapeworm?
Ivermectin is effective against most common intestinal worms (except tapeworms), most mites, and some lice.
What is the pathogenic significance of tapeworms in horses?
Tapeworm Damage The tapeworm can cause severe damage inside the horse’s intestinal tract. Its presence can lead to decreased intestinal motility and colic.
What horse wormer should I use in April?
Horses should be treated for bots after the first frost of the winter with an ivermectin or moxidectin based product. During the grazing season (April to October) faecal worm egg counts should be performed regularly to determine whether horses need worming and if so with which wormer.
How often should you worm foals?
Worming your foal Foals are particularly vulnerable to the effects of worms and need a special worming regime. This should be continued every four to eight weeks, depending on the type of wormer: Ivermectin-based wormers such as Eqvalan should be used every eight weeks.
Is it safe to deworm pregnant mares?
Worming: Worm throughout pregnancy as usual, but it it important to check the wormer is licenced for broodmares. We would also recommend worming during the foaling period, either in the week before or after. Wormers that are safe to use are: Equest, Eqvalan, Strongid P, Panacur, Panacur guard and Equimax.
Should you worm a pregnant mare?
Pregnant mares It is important to maintain a worm free status in the pregnant mare as she can pass on worm larvae to the foal soon after birth. We therefore recommend monitoring worm egg levels (WEC) as for adults horses (above) and giving a moxidectin or ivermectin wormer within the last month of pregnancy.
Can tapeworm cause colic in horses?
Tapeworm-associated colic occurs when a large number of A perfoliata attach to the cecal and ileal walls. This can lead to a mechanical obstruction as well as mucosal damage, ranging from hyperemia to areas with multiple confluent necrotic ulcers at the attachment sites.
Does Equimax treat tapeworm?
Equimax is licensed for the treatment of large and small strongyles, pinworm, Ascarids, tapeworms, lungworm and bots, and is suitable for spring and autumn worming.
Can horses get worms from hay?
Since hay takes a good while to grow any larve or eggs that have been on the pasture should be well dead by the time is cut and baled. So in theory even though their may be dead worms within the hay, these should cause no problems and shouldn’t affect the horse or cause a worm burden.
Which horse wormers contain praziquantel?
Equimax contains ivermectin for routine worm control and praziquantel one of the world’s most effective tapeworm treatments.
Can you get praziquantel over the counter?
Praziquantel requires a prescription to be dispensed by a pharmacy in the United States. For this reason, praziquantel OTC is not available and, in order to buy praziquantel online, one must first obtain a praziquantel prescription after consulting a licensed medical provider.
What horse wormers have praziquantel?
Equitape is the only licenced product for horses containing praziquantel as a single active ingredient. From October, praziquantel will be available only in ‘combination wormers’ also containing either ivermectin or moxidectin, the drugs most commonly used to treat small and large redworm (strongyles).