Healthier alternatives to chemical paste wormers

Many internal parasites are building up resistance to chemical paste wormers, so how can you control parasites naturally?

Remember, the paste wormers available on the market are poison! There are other ways to keep the horse healthy so they do not pick up parasites in the first place.

I prefer the daily add to feed de-wormer, such as Dynamite Excel, which is a digestive aid but also has diatomaceous earth in it to control parasites without the poison.

Dynamite also has an immune booster. We noticed that copper-deficient horses tend to have more parasites. In this episode of Holistic Horseworks Talks, I talk about how to tell if your horse is copper-deficient. I feed the Dynamite liquid trace minerals to correct the copper deficiency along with other essential minerals.

Oregano oil is also a natural way to control parasites, but that does burn the lip lining of the horse’s mouth so you have to mix it with something else, like molasses to syringe it to them.

For tapeworms, you still need to use an Ivermectin Gold paste or similar product. However, you may not need to give one horse the whole tube for a 1,400lb horse. I do fecal counts to determine how much parasite infestation they have and then judge how much wormer they actually need. I was able to do three horses with one tube, based on their actual parasite load.

If I have to use a chemical wormer, then I will detox the horse afterward. I will also give him a probiotic for a few days since the gut flora has been destroyed by the chemical poisons. A few times a year I do a fecal based on the schedule of the full moon as more eggs hatch on a full moon cycle. Did you know that? And that the full moon is the best time to worm to be more effective?