THE results of the 2015 National Equine Health Survey have recently been reported by Professor Josh Slater (Royal Veterinary College and BEVA). The results from the survey suggest there is still a lack of understanding about appropriate anthelminthic use and about equine intestinal parasites. According to the survey one in three British horse owners are worming incorrectly.

Small redworms are the most common worms found in British horses. These worms have the ability to hibernate within the gut wall in small cysts. Encysted small redworms are potentially fatal and the biggest problem with treating them is that they do not show up in a faecal worm egg count and they may not cause any obvious symptoms. Therefore horse owners are often unaware that their horse has them.