Hooves,hound and herd

11/04/2026

This is why carrying out Faecal egg counts four times a year is important

22/03/2026

With this warmer weather it’s tempting for farmers and landowners to harrow the fields .
Harrowing unfortunately spreads the worm eggs and larvae increasing the risk of infection. Best practice is to remove the droppings (equine) from the field every 1-3 days
If you must harrow , it is best done during hot dry weather and this kills the larvae , followed by leaving the field empty or cross grazing with another species

17/03/2026

With this weather Spring is on its way and along with it are worms .
This winter has been difficult for everyone to poo pick but with dryer conditions it’s important to poo pick twice weekly. A
Targeted worming programme is essential for your equines to keep them fit and healthy,
In Spring we focus on FEC testing for Redworm and ascarids . We also perform a saliva test for tapeworm.
Redworms are very common in foals and youngstock.
They are group as
Small redworm
Large redworm
Encysted small redworm .
Small redworm have a very short lifecycle (5-6weeks) and reproduce in large numbers
Encysted small redworm can stay encapsulated for months/years within the gut wall waiting for the right conditions such as spring and then emerging enmass from the gut wall causing serious damage.

13/03/2026

Spring is here and lambs are bouncing around with this warmer weather worm eggs are starting to hatch.
Nematodirus Battus is a species of roundworm but its lifecycle means it has the unique ability to stay in the soil over winter and then hatch en masse in the spring.
This is the only worm for which FEC is not appropriate,as by the time eggs are seen in the faeces lambs could be mortally ill.
Guidelines are to follow the SCOPS forecast and worm with a white wormer eg Albenazole a week after a hatch.
Lambs that are at risk are
Between 6-8 weeks
Grazing on same lambing paddocks as previous years
Multiples ,fosters weaker and smaller lambs Hooves,hound and herd
https://www.scops.org.uk/

13/03/2026

How To Collect a FEC Sample
Equine- collect a fresh handful of droppings from each horse and label individually.
Pinworm test- using the tape provided, press tape in the skin around the a**s, fold in half (collect before 9am)

Sheep- collect at least 10 pellets , must be fresh droppings

Canine/Feline- collect a small sample of faeces over 3 days .
Any sample can be kept in the fridge for 24hrs.

13/03/2026

Why do we FEC?
Worm egg counts are a reliable tool to detect adult egg laying stages. They should be used regularly.
For equine every three months throughout the year.
Sheep- for lambs Fec every month
Adults , pretupping and pre lambing
Canine/feline Fec every three months .
No animal should be completely worm free, but by using just wormers when needed decreases worm resistance.

07/03/2026

22/02/2026

Hi my name is Dessa ,
I have been a Registered Veterinary Nurse for over 10 years and a horse and dog owner for over 20 years. Prior to vet nursing I worked within the agricultural sector.
About 5 years ago we bought a few sheep 🐑 to run along side with the horses to keep the equine worm burden down
This has since become a flock of over 40 sheep with 3 pedigree breeds .
My hobbies include showing all three species which we have so much fun in doing.

And I am a SQP RAMA certified in Small animal and Equine .

I am currently furthering my SQP into large animal .
The reason I am offering this service is the increase in resistance to wormers and having lost one of my favourite sheep to worms, I know just how important it is to do a worm count to keep worms under control.

15/02/2026

From the 1st April I will be offering Fec for
Equine , canine , feline and ruminants