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Parasites & vectors2009; 2 Suppl 2(Suppl 2); S3; doi: 10.1186/1756-3305-2-S2-S3

Effects of worm control practices examined by a combined faecal egg count and questionnaire survey on horse farms in Germany, Italy and the UK.

Abstract: For the control of worm infections, the strategic use of anthelmintics, often accompanied by additional farm and/or pasture management procedures, is currently applied on most horse farms in industrialized countries. However, the particular effects of the specific worm control procedures are often unclear and have only been investigated to a limited extent. We examined faecal egg count (FEC), faecal egg count reduction (FECR) and questionnaire data on farm and pasture management procedures. The aim of this study was to determine whether specific worm control practices reported to be applied in European horse farms affect worm prevalence. Results: This study involved 20 German, 26 Italian and 16 UK horse farms for each of which FEC were performed on a minimum of 16 horses. In total, 2029 horse faecal samples were quantitatively analysed for helminth eggs, resulting in 56.3% of the faecal samples being positive for strongylid eggs. The prevalence in the 742 German horse samples (48.1%) was significantly lower than that in the 737 Italian (61.1%) and the 550 UK (60.9%) samples. As expected, a significant effect of horse age on the infection prevalence was observed, with adult horses showing lower prevalences and lower mean FEC than foals and yearlings. The majority of the participating farms were stud farms (n = 29), followed by riding stables (n = 27) and racehorse stables (n = 6). The prevalence of strongyle infection by farm type differed between countries. While in Germany, horses on riding farms were significantly less often strongyle positive, in the UK horses on stud farms showed the lowest strongyle prevalences, whereas in Italy, no significant difference between farm types were seen. On all farms, horses received routine/preventive anthelmintic treatment. An effect of treatment frequency on strongyle prevalence was only encountered with adult horses. On farms performing more than one annual treatment, faecal samples were significantly less often positive. Furthermore, by comparing the FECR results of individual horses with their pre-treatment FEC, it was found that high pre-treatment FEC were associated with a significantly higher probability for a FECR below 90%. Conclusions: Overall, age-dependent strongyle infection patterns and general worm control approaches were found to be similar on horse farms in the three countries. Also, a negative association of pre-treatment FEC and treatment efficacy was consistently found in all countries. However, mean strongyle prevalences and frequencies of anthelmintic treatments were considerably different. In addition to the age-dependent prevalence patterns, the finding of a possible negative association between high FEC and reduced FECR might argue for a focus on horses showing high pre-treatment FEC when monitoring anthelmintic treatment efficacy in the field.
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Publication Date: 2009-09-25 PubMed ID: 19778464PubMed Central: PMC2751839DOI: 10.1186/1756-3305-2-S2-S3Google Scholar: Lookup
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  • Journal Article

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

The research investigated how certain practices for controlling worm infections in horses impact worm prevalence. These practices were observed on horse farms in Germany, Italy, and the UK. The study also explored the effects of anthelmintic treatment—used to combat worm infections—across various horse ages and farm types.

Methodology

  • The research used a combination of faecal egg count (FEC), faecal egg count reduction (FECR), and data derived from questionnaires based on farm and pasture management procedures.
  • The study encompassed 20 German, 26 Italian, and 16 UK horse farms, with FEC performed on a minimum of 16 horses at each farm.
  • In total, researchers analysed 2029 horse faecal samples for helminth eggs. Helminths are parasitic worms and their eggs are indicative of worm infection.

Findings

  • More than half (56.3%) of the samples tested positive for strongylid eggs, which are indicative of a particular kind of worm infection.
  • The prevalence of strongylid eggs varied across countries, amounting to 48.1% in German horse samples, 61.1% in Italian samples, and 60.9% in UK samples.
  • There was a significant variation in infection prevalence across different horse age groups. Adult horses displayed lower strongylid egg prevalences and mean FECs compared to foals and yearlings.
  • A survey of the types of horse farms revealed that the majority were stud farms, followed by riding stables and racehorse stables. The study found country specific variations in the prevalence of strongyle infection across these farm types.
  • All horse populations observed during the study received routine or preventive anthelmintic treatment. This treatment frequency mattered only for adult horses, where higher treatment frequency correlated with significantly fewer positive faecal samples.
  • A significant pattern emerged when comparing the FECR results of horses with their pre-treatment FECs. Horses with higher pre-treatment FECs were more likely to have a FECR below 90%.

Conclusions

  • The general patterns of age-dependent strongyle infections and worm control approaches were similar across the horse farms in Germany, Italy, and the UK.
  • A consistent negative association was identified across all countries between pre-treatment FEC and treatment efficiency.
  • The strongyle infection prevalence and anthelmintic treatment frequencies, however, varied substantially across the countries.
  • The researchers suggest a possible focus on horses that show high pre-treatment FEC when monitoring anthelmintic treatment efficiency.

Cite This Article

APA
von Samson-Himmelstjerna G, Traversa D, Demeler J, Rohn K, Milillo P, Schurmann S, Lia R, Perrucci S, di Regalbono AF, Beraldo P, Barnes H, Cobb R, Boeckh A. (2009). Effects of worm control practices examined by a combined faecal egg count and questionnaire survey on horse farms in Germany, Italy and the UK. Parasit Vectors, 2 Suppl 2(Suppl 2), S3. https://doi.org/10.1186/1756-3305-2-S2-S3

Publication

Parasites & vectors
ISSN: 1756-3305
NlmUniqueID: 101462774
Country: England
Language: English
Volume: 2 Suppl 2
Issue: Suppl 2
Pages: S3

Researcher Affiliations

von Samson-Himmelstjerna, Georg
  • University of Veterinary Medicine, Hannover, Germany. gvsamson@tiho-hannover.de.
Traversa, Donato
    Demeler, Janina
      Rohn, Karl
        Milillo, Piermarino
          Schurmann, Sandra
            Lia, Riccardo
              Perrucci, Stefania
                di Regalbono, Antonio Frangipane
                  Beraldo, Paola
                    Barnes, Helen
                      Cobb, Rami
                        Boeckh, Albert

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                          Citations

                          This article has been cited 9 times.
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