Neck Threadworms?????

[here to stay]

My old mare has been battling itching and crusty sores along her mid line for over a year. The vet was out again yesterday because my treatments only are marginally effective.

She gets slathered with NuStock every other day, which is the only thing that helps. She wears a fly sheet with belly protection, a fly mask even though flies here are not so bad. Applying fly spray has not been effective. She gets allergy shots with the maximum number of allergens.

Yesterday the vet mentioned she has had two clients who had a good response to the internet protocols for treating neck threadworms. Never heard of that. All her sores so far are on her underline with a new one showing up between the bars of her jaw this week.

I'm starting weekly double doses of ivermectin. To seek if it works.

Any experience with this?

[horseyrider]

Oh gosh, that's a real pain! Is your vet certain that there are threadworms? I knew a pony years ago that had them in the nuchal ligament. That runs from the top of the poll, along the topline, all the way to the tip of the tailbone. This guy had it in the crest of the neck and it looked like it had a football under it's skin. Ivermectin had not yet been invented, so the poor little guy just had to live with it.

Did you discuss your deworming program with your vet? If you don't worm frequently with either ivermectin or moxidectin, your horse could have a bunch of small strongyles encysted in the walls of the intestines. If you suddenly go to such an aggressive deworming protocol, the dying encysted small strongyles can cause a pretty rough colic. Some people prefer to treat first for the gut, and then get tough with the threadworms.

Also, it'd be a kindness to support the gut flora with a high quality prebiotic and probiotic. Remember that the seat of the immune system is actually in the intestines, and keeping the population of gut bacteria optimal will help your horse withstand the constant deworming.

Ya know, with horses, if it isn't one thing it's another. Go figure why this parasite is making such a comeback. It was nearly eradicated when ivermectin came out.

[here to stay]

I had pretty much stopped worming. Well maybe once a year or so due to feeling anxious. That was because I clean up all poop every day and had a lot of fecals done showing no counts of anything and my retired girls never left home anymore.

No the vet does not know this is her problem. She had done a couple of biopsies of lumps that appeared at the edges of the sores but they showed nothing but a general inflamation. I do live in an area of few flies but lots of biting midges. They certainly take a nip at me on occasion. So it is more of a "what can I do now?" sort of action.

If this worming protocol works, it's a life long thing I guess. It's supposed to be a 3 month course of double ivermectin every rwo weeks, followed by a double dose once a month continuing.

I can certainly give her a probiotic. I don't know what a prebiotic is but will look it up.

[horseyrider]

Okay, I'm wondering now if your horse has culicoides. These are tiny little biting gnats who have a saliva that can make a horse just about lose their mind. They bite in areas where they can get in past the hair easily and take a tiny sip of blood; and then their saliva gets mixed in. They can get secondary infections from scratching, but usually the primary problem is the maddening itch. It can cause them to secrete serum that forms a fine clear to yellow to rusty crust, and sometimes they lose hair too. Culicoides are extremely likely to bite on the ventral line, along the sheath or udders, in the ears, and in the whirls of the chest. Most horses are allergic to them; but some are driven absolutely crazy by them. When you scratch at their ventral line, they just about want to sit on you! And then your fingernails are gross, too. The loosened crust reveals raw flesh and weepy sores.

Culicoides are usually more of a late spring/early summer thing in my area, but depending on where you live, YMMV. Deworming has no effect on these.

The best preventative for culicoides that I've found is a mask with an ear net, and a thin film of Swat on the ventral line. Another helper is using a dog hot spot treatment called Veterinarian's Best. It's heavy in tea tree oil and really repels the bugs; but it doesn't persist for more than half a day or so. I put it in a spray bottle and used it for a fly spray for one gelding I had a few years back. He was allergic to everything, and most of his allergies were manifest in his skin. He. Itched. So. BAD! Of course with any topical, test in a small area because go figure horses with allergies, some things that make sense actually make things worse.

Do they have access to a run-in shelter during the day? Sometimes getting inside can help. Of course, if your horse likes to stick their head out and survey the day, it might not do any good.

Your manure sanitation plan sounds really good. Horses are often dewormed way too aggressively, and then we end up with parasites with resistances. You're doing it the hard way, but the way that makes the most sense for health and well-being over the long term.

BTW, prebiotics are a food source for the probiotic bacteria so they can begin to get established in the gut. It's included in all the best brands of probiotics.

[mollymckee]

Has your vet ruled out pigeon fever?

[gracielagata]

horseyrider, So that is the specific fly causing issues on my poor mare's belly button?! They don't bother the geldings at all, aside from the ears I suppose, but her poor belly gets swollen from those bites! And the weepiness and crust is so accurate.

I have found baby butt cream- the heavier thick stuff in the jar- works really well, lasts a long time, and is super cheap. Plus I don't think it is very allergenic. Sometimes I mix a tad bit of Swat in it. But it can last for days.

[here to stay]

www.thehorse.com/articles/34522/what-is-a-neck-threadworm-and-can-it-hurt-my-horse

I read that the same insect can carry the threadworm parasite. Constant fly repellent application, along with the fly sheet with belly band has not stopped up the problem. So as I said, this is a trial to see if it makes a difference.

[horseyrider]

gracielagata, I would suspect so. Belly buttons have no hair, so they're a great target. It's good you've found a way to deal with it.

here to stay, I've never heard of culicoides carrying neck threadworms! Criminy. What a craptastic problem to have! I hope this works for you. Please keep us updated, okay? And watch carefully for colic, just in case there are encysted small strongyles.

[gracielagata]

horseyrider, Yeah, that stuff makes lots of horse fly stuff go pretty far. Plus my daughter's horse looks like the best giant white 4 legged lifeguard when I have to slather his poor face in it for sunscreen, since he is a greyed-to-solid-white appy with pink skin.