The Way Of Horses
Count Your Eggs!

By Eleanor Blazer
© Copyright 2009

Ever had a colonoscopy?

It is a test doctors advise we have regularly after age 50 to detect polyps and cancer within the colon. Preparation for the test is not pleasant.

There is a test horses should have twice a year - the FEC. It's not unpleasant, for the horse.

Horses are lucky - all they have to do is donate one or two lumps of manure for the fecal egg count (FEC) test. They don't have to fast, drink laxatives, run to the bathroom every few minutes and then have someone stick a probe up their bottom. They do need their owners to collect the specimen and take it to the vet for the test.

At the lab, a technician mixes the manure with solution. The worm eggs float to the top. A gram of the specimen is examined under a strong microscope and the eggs per gram are counted.

Most labs just count small strongyles. Large stronglyles, in all stages, are easily controlled. If the small strongyle population is controlled then so goes the large. If a horse has a high population of small strongyles, he generally also has ascarids.

Using the FEC to detect tapeworms is not reliable. Tapeworms infrequently shed segments which may contain eggs (needed for detection). In comparison, other intestinal worms shed eggs almost continuously.

The lab will report the small strongyle egg count as eggs per gram. The FEC scale is: less than 150 eggs per gram - low; 151-399 eggs per gram - medium; 400 plus - high.

Horses with a FEC of 200 or more are candidates for colic, unthriftiness and anemia. These horses are also contaminating the pasture and keeping the parasite growth cycle active.

Conducting a second fecal egg count 14 days after a dewormer has been administered will tell you if the product worked. A low fecal egg count reduction (FECR) can indicate parasite resistance to the active ingredients in the product. A low count may also indicate the product was old or not enough administered. The horse should be dewormed with a product that uses a different chemical class as the active ingredient. Then another FEC conducted within 10 - 14 days.

Horses with a steady fecal egg count of less than 150 eggs per gram may only need to be dewormed twice a year. Deworming horses that do not need to be aggressively dewormed is expensive and can create resistance to dewormer ingredients.

Many vet clinics will do a fecal test to detect worms, but not count the eggs per gram. In order for the test to be beneficial you must request a count.

Equine Studies Institute recently purchased a project horse from auction. His initial FEC result was 650 eggs per gram. Watch "Red's" progress at http://equinestudiesinstitute.blogspot.com/ His follow up test can be seen on the blog.

Drop off a sample of your horse's manure at the vet clinic - it's easy. A lot easier than a colonoscopy!

Eleanor Richards was raised training and caring for horses. She learned to ride and care for the horses her family bought and sold. Many of these horses required improved nutrition when they arrived for training. Eleanor's experience and research has benefited both horses and horse lovers in the field of equine nutrition.

The equine nutrition consultant for Western Reserve Farm Cooperative, located in northeast Ohio, she keeps busy doing equine nutrition consultations, conducting seminars, and speaking to youth groups about horse care and nutrition. Eleanor is the author of the syndicated column The Way of Horses. She has more than 20 years experience helping and being a mentor to those wanting to know how to provide the very best care and nutrition for our special friend - the horse. Richards is also the author and instructor of the online course "Nutrition for Maximum Performance". This course is offered by Breyer State University as part of the Bachelor of Science in Equine Studies program, New Mexico State University, Paradise Valley Community College, Allegany College of Maryland, Scottsdale Community College, Iyuptala University, and Success is Easy's certified Professional Horse Trainer program. Visit Eleanor's web site at www.thewayofhorses.com or contact her at (440) 554-3714