Hookworms

Does anyone have any experience with hookworms?  One young wether and one of my does had fecals done showing hookworms.  Checked the eyes of the rest of the herd and 3 other does have pink (not red) eyelids.  What is the best dewormer for hookworms?  Vet said to use Ivermectin which we did but I'm not sure that's the best choice.  Treat the other 3 also?  Separate them from the herd? 

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  • I closed the parasite course at the end of July because my new book is coming out now, so I wanted to put all of my energy towards promoting it. Since you're an existing student, I can let you sign up for  it if you want. Just send an email to me (deborah) at thrifty homesteader dot com.

  • Thanks Deborah.  First off, I would never do the whole herd "just in case."  I was only referring to the 3 does who are a little more suspect based on FAMACHA (I do have the certification).   You confirmed my research that hookworms were not the culprit...everything I read says no hookworms in goats...and that Ivermectin would not have been the treatment of choice if it had been hookworms.   Although I did not do the 2-3 classes of dewormers at once, I do feel good about the Ivermectin choice and will just continue to monitor the two I have treated.   It has always worked in the past with the very few incidences that we have had.  The most disturbing thing about the situation is that the first vet diagnosed them with hookworms in the first place and then further told us that Ivermectin would fix it...makes me question the vet's judgement....and makes me even more grateful for this forum and Raising Goats Naturally.  I have taken the Goats 101 and Just Kidding courses.  Looks like it's time for the Parasites course!   Oops - just went to the Thrifty Homesteader Academy site and it doesn't show the Parasites course.  Is it still available?

  • I have not heard of goats being diagnosed with hookworms. Ivermectin is not labeled for hookworms. Almost all of the intestinal worms that bother goats fall into the roundworm family -- barber pole, bankrupt, black scour worm, etc. -- and they are all killed by ivermectin. Tapeworms are killed by the white dewormers (Safeguard and Valbazen), which are labeled to kill hookworms in cattle.

    I'd just assume they are some type of roundworm, which will be killed by ivermectin, assuming they are not resistant to it. However, a lot of parasitologists are now recommending that you treat with 2-3 different classes of dewormer at once, so you could do ivermectin AND either Safeguard or Valbazen at the same time.

    The only worm that causes anemia is the barber pole worm. The others cause weight loss, diarrhea, bottle jaw, etc. All goats have worms, but they don't usually bother healthy goats unless they are stressed. If the goats don't have any real symptoms of a worm overload, it is not recommended that you deworm them. You should NEVER treat all goats in a herd for worms at the same time -- although that was common practice 20 years ago. Unfortunately old habits die hard. That's a big step towards dewormer resistance with the barber pole worm, which is the worst worm for goats in the US.

    Here is some really important info about preventing dewormer resistance:

    https://thriftyhomesteader.com/dewormer-resistance-in-goats/

  • Edit: The fecals were done yesterday and the goats were treated with Ivermectin per the vet's suggestion.  Decided to do a little research on hookworms and discovered that they are not on the list of worms that Ivermectin treats hence my question here (knowing that Deborah who knows all things would know plus there are so many others here more knowledgeable than I)  :)  Before I went out to find a different dewormer I decided to call the vet back to 1) verify they were actually hookworms and 2) discuss a better treatment if Ivermectin wasn't it.  Well, the new vet in the office said hookworms yesterday, but today the primary vet said no they are not and that Ivermectin will treat them.  So....no hookworms....worms....but not hookworms.   Hopefully, all will be well here soon.

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