Worming my horse?

Question

Is there a way I can estimate the weight of my horse without actually weighing it?

Shes a 15'2 thick set Thoroughbred. If I accidently give her too much will it hurt her? The tube will worm a horse up to 700kg, can I just give her the whole tube?

Answer 1

yes but to be on the safe side I would go to the vet it will probably only cost about $12

Answer 2

You have been such a help to me I wanted to return the favor so I called my vet (Crossroads in Anderson, CA). Its just a repeat of the answers you've already gotten. The weight tape is available in feed stores and around here they are like $4.99. She said the paste you have is perfectly safe to give a horse of your description (meaning the whole tube is safe). My mare is smaller than yours and I give her the whole tube (course I'm usually lucky if she's not spittin some of it out! but the vet said that particular paste you are using is very safe). Also, I'm an avid reader of Horse Illustrated and the May Issue has a Bonus deworming guide. After reading it I am getting an FECRT test done (I'm going to repeat info you probably already know but I didn't so I'm repeating what I've been told) Anyway you bring in (she said semi-fresh manure but I'd go with as fresh as I could get) put it in a baggy and make sure its stuff from off the ground. Here the test cost $17.00 (my vets a little pricier than some around here but WELL worth the couple extra bucks). The article is GREAT! We may be worming way more than we need to. It all depends on your horse and of course environment. I'm going to check for you and see if you can read it on line. I'll be back.

I just went to www.horseillustrated.com and the issue I'm talking about popped up first thing! I hope you check it out. Its worth the time.

Answer 3

One thing to keep in mind with wormer tubes is that the active ingredient isn't always distrubuted evenly throughout the syringe. (I didn't know that either until I was informed by a vet. the listed amount of the ingedient is the average for the tube). So you might be giving more in either the front or rear portion of the syringe anyway. Also  most wormer is tested safe at around 25 times the maximum recomended dose.

A well muscled 15.2h horse should weight around 1100-1200lbs (500-550kg) so you should be fine giving her the whole tube.

One question though....700kg converts to roughly 1540lbs. I've never saw a wormer in that amount before as it's not a very common horse weight. What brand is it and what area of the world are you in? Just curious.....

EDITED TO ADD...Ahh Guess that explains it. Maybe they use different amounts for different countries. Thanks :-)

Answer 4

Remind to never ask any of the other responders to worm any of my horses!  I only have one horse that we give the whole tube to and that is because he weighs 1300 lbs and most tubes go up to 1250 lbs.  I can understand giving an extra 50 lbs worth if your horse is difficult and gets more on you then in him.  Take into consideration all the chemicals that you are putting in your horse when you worm them!  Do you not go by your medicine recommendations when you take cold medicine or any other medications.  I also don't worm before or after feeding or riding.  And, yes giving her too much can hurt her.

Answer 5

well, i also have a 15'2 qh type TB, and he just get a whole tube.. (no matter what it is.)

the way i see it, if you give them the whole tube, they have about 100 pounds to spit out, rub off, or whatever else they do.

everyone in my barn follows the same concept and we all have happy healthy worm free horses.

Answer 6

weight her

Answer 7

My vet recommends using the whole tube since there is usually waste anyway; she assures me it won't hurt, and I trust her judgement. My horses weigh about a thousand pounds each.

Answer 8

Well, you could get a weight tape , you put it around the horse and it gives you a rough idea how much it weighs. But really, for an average sized horse, I just give the whole tube. It won't hurt her.

Answer 9

You can use a horse height and weight tape measure. Also too much wormer will not hurt your horse. I used a product called Durvet Apple Flavored Ivermectin and gave too much and found out that the mfg has actually tested at levels up to 3 times or more the suggested dosage without problems. Of course it is best to give only the amount the recommend but you are safe. I really liked this wormer for it was apple flavored and the horses loved it which made my job a lot easier. I found info on it at www.Durvet.com

Answer 10

Yeah,just give her the whole thing.You can also buy a weight tape.....

http://www.horse.com/Horse-Health-First-...

Answer 11

One of our horses is about the same size. The weight tape said he was about 1000lb. All our big horses get a whole tube...iand they're fine!