Ivermectin rids horse of lice

Apart from internal parasites, horses are also hosts to external parasites, which among them are lice. Horses get lice occasionally and owners need to know how to get rid of them before they can bring serious problems. The two common types of lice that feed on horses are the sucking lice and the chewing lice. The sucking lice are the more damaging of the two because these parasites can cause anemia. Chewing lice on the other hand are irritating to the horse’s sensitive skin.

Lice are usually found in horses that are under stress from severe illness or injury. Meanwhile, well-fed and well-groomed horses seldom have lice as they seem to have more resistance to those parasites. Horse lice appear brown in color and are usually found on the skin. It’s difficult to spot them unless you search through the horse’s hair. If you try to observe the coat for a moment, you might see them moving around. Lice are generally host-specific; horse lice cannot dwell on cattle or vice versa.

The most common lice found in horses are sucking lice and chewing lice. Sucking lice dwell on horses and feed on their blood, eventually causing anemia, weakness, and stunted growth especially in young horses. When your horse has lice, he could look unthrifty and rough, and his hair coat may look scruffy. He will be found scratching and rubbing his skin continuously. If you see your horse rubbing, rolling over, and itching most of the time, it is suspected that he has lice.  Before giving any treatment, be certain of the cause of your horse’s itching problems.

Horse lice are passed from one horse to another through physical contact, especially if you have your horses confined together. These lice can also be transferred through sharing of grooming materials such as brushes. Therefore, sharing brushes is not recommended; this may help spread louse eggs from one horse to another. During winter, these lice are expected to have an increased population since horses are more stressed during this particular season and hair coats will be longer by then.

Lice may not be common in horses and generally, it is easy to treat them. There are various products aimed to eliminate lice from your horse’s body. Deworming with ivermectin for horses (AbIver™) can also control lice infestation; however, this treatment is only effective in targeting sucking lice. Sucking lice suck the blood from the horse and deworming agents are circulating in the horse’s blood. Chewing lice can simply be controlled using sprays, medicated shampoos, and such.

External parasites are not much of a problem for horses and horse owners. However, if they are unmanaged, serious problems may result. Keep your horses well fed, reduce stressors, and keep a clean environment for your horses to avoid lice infestation.

For problems with internal and external parasites in horses, ivermectin for horses can be your solution. Choose AbIver™ from Abler.