Annual Equine Vaccinations & Prevention in San Angelo

Core Equine Vaccinations

Core vaccines are essential for protecting the health of all horses against common equine diseases.

The five core diseases that all have significant fatality rates in equine animals are:

• Eastern and Western Equine Encephalomyelitis
• West Nile Virus
• Tetanus
• Rabies

All horses can be exposed to these potentially fatal diseases and need to be vaccinated annually according to the American Association of Equine Practitioners. 

Risk-Based Equine Vaccinations

The following vaccinations are given if your horse's lifestyle puts them at increased risk:

• Equine influenza virus
• Herpesvirus 
• Strangles
• Equine viral arteritis
• Rotaviral diarrhea
• Leptospirosis
• Potomac horse fever
• Botulism
• Anthrax
• Snake bites

The Importance of Dewormers for Herd Health

Internal parasites are silent killers, causing extensive internal damage without you realizing your horses are infected. They lower horses’ resistance to infection, rob horses of valuable nutrients, and can cause damage to your animals' internal organs.

The most useful tool in our deworming programs is the fecal egg count, an exam of feces for parasite eggs. This test allows us to determine which parasites are present and whether your horse is shedding eggs. Our vets use this information to develop a deworming program specifically for your horse and to monitor its effectiveness.

While most horses shed very few worm eggs, some will shed high numbers of eggs and are more likely to infect other members of the herd. Internal parasites can cause numerous health issues in horses, such as colic, anemia, ill-thrift, and diarrhea.

Types of Dewormers in Equines

Based on the results of your horse's fecal exam, our vets will recommend whether you need to deworm your horse.

The common types of equine dewormers are:

• Fenbendazole

  Targets roundworms, bloodworms, and pinworms.

• Ivermectin

  Targets all parasites except tapeworms. However, resistance to ivermectin is high in roundworms.

• Ivermectin and Praziquantel

  Targets all parasites. However, resistance to ivermectin is high in roundworms.

• Moxidectin

  Targets all parasites except tapeworms. However, resistance to moxidectin is high in roundworms.

• Moxidectin and Praziquantel

  Targets all parasites. However, resistance to moxidectin is high in roundworms.

• Pyrantel

  Targets bloodworms, pinworms, and roundworms.

Common Parasites in Equines

Several common parasites can cause health problems for horses. 

The following are both internal and external parasites that our San Angelo vets recommend deworming against.

• Roundworms

  Most common in horses less than one-year-old and very old animals due to decreased immunity. They migrate through the trachea and live in the small intestine

  In younger horses, roundworms may cause poor growth and development as well as respiratory issues. Young animals that have bad cases of roundworms can have intestinal obstructions leading to colic or even death.

  Older affected horses may have a poor hair coat, weight loss, or decreased performance

• Bloodworms

  These worms can migrate through the arteries around the large intestines and cause colic. Bloodworms used to be a major problem in horses, but their occurrence and significance has decreased with appropriate deworming

• Cyathostomins

  This type of parasite lives in the large intestine and migrates into the wall of the intestine. Cyathostomins cause severe gastrointestinal signs such as decreased appetite and diarrhea.

  Resistance to dewormers is increasing in these worms, so targeted deworming is especially important

• Pinworms

  Pinworms are most common in horses younger than two years old or horses with poor management. These worms live in their large intestine and deposit their eggs around the horse's anus, causing them to have an itchy hind. 

  It’s difficult to treat and control pinworms so good horse and pasture management is important.

• Tapeworms

  Horses become infected with tapeworms by eating small pasture mites during grazing. These worms attach to areas of the bowel lining causing thickening, inflammation, and ulceration of the intestinal wall. Since these worms spend part of their life living on mites, they are difficult to control.

  Tapeworms don’t seem to cause many diseases in horses. While colic is considered a risk with this type of worm, the incidence is quite low.

• Bots Flies

  Bots flies lay their eggs on the horse’s coat in late summer and early fall. The eggs show up as small yellow specks, mainly on the horses’ legs. Horses ingest bot eggs while licking or scratching their legs, then the eggs develop into larvae in the equine stomach and small intestine.

  Bots fly larvae are passed out through feces and will hatch in the spring. Botflies will rarely cause clinical signs in horses, but they may cause gastric ulcers.