I'd like to get a microscope and do my own fecal tests on my NGs. How can I get more information on how to do this? Is there a procedure written up somewhere? Any references? what power microscope is needed? Any slide prep? Is there any place I can pick up a used microscope?
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This tutorial is great if you have a McMaster slide (I bought one on ebay):
http://www.uaex.edu/publications/pdf/FSA-9608.pdf
Otherwise these instructions are great for using a regular cheap slide: http://fiascofarm.com/goats/fecals.htm
Also I bought a fairly inexpensive microscope at a camera supply store.
I can't remember where I bought the supplies, but if you search for "fecals" on here, you will find some old discussions on this exact topic. We originally "made do" with a syringe holder for flotation and made saline flotation fluid, but eventually I bought fecalizers and fecal flotation fluid.
If you go to fiascofarm.com -she has some good instructions. I learned from that and my vet said I was doing a pretty good job of it. Also -I got my microscope from costco.com It came with the slides and the glass cover for the test tubes, I use the top of the syringes from I guess -a 3cc syringe. A piece of the foam packing material with a couple of indents to fit the tubes you use and you have it made. My vet said with a centrifuge it is more accurate but I think mushing up the pellets and putting them thru a sieve works pretty good - good enough for home use. I found worm egg pictures in several spots -just search the web. I weighed the first few samples but found that about a tsp. of pellets worked out to be the right amout. Good luck - I use this all the time.
I have seen a couple of people say they did the sample and took a sample to the vet to compare how they were doing. That sounds like a good idea. My vet looked at pictures of the eggs I email to him the first few times. We just held a camera up to the microscope and got a good picture.