# Doing Fecal Testing at Home



## elevan

Please use this thread to share your experiences, what your solution is and other must have knowledge when doing your own fecal testing at home.

This is the most referred to site (that I've found) that includes pictures of different worm eggs, along with instructions and a solution recipe:  http://www.fiascofarm.com/goats/fecals.htm#floatation


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## Egg_Newton

I just bought a microscope off ebay. I will let you know how it goes.


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## VKat

I'm just getting into this. Looked at my first try with floats and slides today.
Found this helpful too.
http://www.uaex.edu/publications/PDF/FSA-9608.pdf

Anyone have a good resource for identifying eggs?  
Like how to tell is this a barber pole worm egg, or maybe a brown stomach worm egg?

 Sorry! I know my slide has crazy bubbles! There's an egg at the end of the point though.


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## Southern by choice

Cannot really tell from the pic but that is probably a cocci egg.
What magnification setting are you on. That egg is too small to be a barberpole egg.


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## Southern by choice

Also I prefer 4 gram/26gram. 
The results are more accurate.

Also crushing it in the strainer allows for more "junk" on your slide.
Crush the pellets beforehand and add measured grams to solution, mix, strain and your sample will be cleaner and easier to read.


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## VKat

Southern by choice said:


> Cannot really tell from the pic but that is probably a cocci egg.
> What magnification setting are you on. That egg is too small to be a barberpole egg.



100X magnification there (((edit I think I may have been mistaken and this one may not be that setting)))

I see charts online reference the size of eggs- how does one measure that under the scope?
Is that another thing the lines help with on the Mcmaster slides? Now that I've messed around with this, I do really want to get a proper FEC slide.

BTW I used the link you sent me in combination with that article. They had the solution recipe for sugar   I will try to keep it cleaner next time. The strainer I used was not very fine. Ugh. Thank you so much for all of you help.


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## VKat

Okay I have a McMaster slide (yay!) and went ahead and gave it a try. Thank you for your advice, I tried that and do think I got it a lot cleaner.
These images are 100x 
I'm still having trouble with the ID.  Anyone want to take a guess as to what these are?
I do not think they look like coccidia on the charts. 
Also if anyone has any links to sites that have good images/info on how to properly ID, that would be wonderful!


 

 
Thanks!


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## Southern by choice

I still cannot see inside the egg but No it is not coccidia.


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## Southern by choice

I will see if I can get some images for you.


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## VKat

Southern by choice said:


> I still cannot see inside the egg but No it is not coccidia.



Should I turn up the backlight?



Southern by choice said:


> I will see if I can get some images for you.



Thanks! More info is always welcome!
I did email this to a vet to get his opinion too.


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## OneFineAcre

I see two eggs in each image.  They are not coccidia.  But, I do not know what they are.


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## Southern by choice

You are referring to the 2 eggs on the slide and not the air bubble your pointer is pointing to - correct?


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## VKat

Correct. I hate that pointer thing :/

Here is maybe a better, closer picture. I swear I could even see movement inside this one.
And I found coccidia! It is much smaller and was hard to get a pic of. I'm still getting the hang of trying to get these photos.


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## VKat

one more photo


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## OneFineAcre

VKat said:


> Correct. I hate that pointer thing :/
> 
> Here is maybe a better, closer picture. I swear I could even see movement inside this one.
> And I found coccidia! It is much smaller and was hard to get a pic of. I'm still getting the hang of trying to get these photos.
> View attachment 7334 View attachment 7335



That's definitely a coccidia egg in the 2nd darker photo.  They are pretty easy to tell apart due to the shape and they are smaller.  I'm no good at telling the worm eggs apart.


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## OneFineAcre

Can I upload this pdf?


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## Pearce Pastures

Nice chart!  Thanks!  I am still learning fecals too.  Cocci are easy but jeez is it tricky to tell the differences in other parasites.


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## OneFineAcre

You said you thought you saw movement in that one egg?  Thread worms (strongyloides) are the most common worm in goats and  develop rapidly and are often almost at the  embryonic state when passed. So, you may have seen movement and that does almost look like a worm in it.

To me, your eggs seemed shaped more like the threadneck worms  (Nematodirus ) kind of slightly pointed on each end? Or, maybe the Trichostrongylus (bankrupt worm) . If you read the description on the 2nd page of the chart, it says there is a lot of clear space in the egg which yours do have around the edge.  I believe it is one of these two, but I really believe yours are trichostrongylus.  The Nematodirus are larger I think and only have  2-8  blastomeres inside the egg.

Tricostrongylus is what I have most often.


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## Hens and Roos

OneFineAcre said:


> Can I upload this pdf?



thanks, I saved that into my folder! Starting to learn all this.


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## Southern by choice

That is a great chart! @OneFineAcre 

The biggest issue is scale, and unless you are accustom to running fecals it can be very hard to understand that some may look identical under the scope at 100x magnification, so understanding egg sizes are important. 
I do not see the Large American Liver Fluke or the Common Liver Fluke on the chart.
Flukes, contrary to what many vets say ARE in many regions and are often overlooked.  
Some eggs have flattened poles at the ends, that helps with identification also.

The threadneck in the chart is kind of poor quality, a thread neck  will have thickened shell at the poles. Often these are seen in the 8 cell stage. They are very large... 150-230 by 80-110 (computer doesn't have the symbol)

The threadworm and the lungworm in the embryonated stage will look like a "worm" inside... so how to tell the difference? They do look a little different but the biggest factor would be the size. Threadworm 40-60  x 20-25  Lungworm 112-138 x 69-90

We recommend to anyone first learning is to have a lab or vet run your fecal, identify for you that way you will get use to what that kind of egg looks like. When first learning it is important that you do not rely only on your findings.

Pictures posted, just like in the chart, distort the actual size that we are viewing. Cocci eggs can be much smaller than what you have in your picture that you found on your slide, so keep that in mind. Great job on finding it! 

Over time it will become easier and easier but PLEASE utilize your vet/lab until you become very familiar.


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## OneFineAcre

VKat said:


> Should I turn up the backlight?
> 
> 
> 
> Thanks! More info is always welcome!
> I did email this to a vet to get his opinion too.



Can't wait to see what your vet says
Like SBC said better to double check
We always get two independent fecals per year done by a lab
I would never rely on fecal results done by a breeder if deciding to purchase an animal so I don't expect a buyer to rely on my results either


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## VKat

Thanks! Yeah, I'm wanting to learn how to do this right, but definitely benefits from making sure I have someone to tell me the right answers so I can check my work LOL.
My vet called back and told me that those are "stomach worms" "the kind that attach to the lining and suck blood". He said nevermind the technical name, you can call them barberpole worms. 
I am not 100% if that means they ARE barberpole, or just so similar that there is not a point making a distinction. 
So now I have an answer and it's really great to know I'm on the right track. 

I am thinking if anyone else is doing their own fecals at home- lets try to share more images and definitions! 
I had a hell of a time since there's one chart online, and some images, but more examples to refer to would be useful, I think. 

I also am curious about how you figure the math for a FEC using a Mcmaster slide if you deviate from the standard 2g to 28mL
Can anyone give me some guidelines there? 
I did the 2g, but also tried the 4g sample recommended by Southern By Choice (thank you!) and it was easier to see more with a larger sample, but obviously you wouldn't multiply the same, right?


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## Southern by choice

2g fecal 28ml    x50
4g fecal  26 ml   x25
1g fecal 29ml   x100  This is the least accurate but sometime eeded for young kids that aren't pooping out 4 grams

FEC are not used for Cocci and are not used for tapes.
What was your goats count?


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## OneFineAcre

VKat said:


> Thanks! Yeah, I'm wanting to learn how to do this right, but definitely benefits from making sure I have someone to tell me the right answers so I can check my work LOL.
> My vet called back and told me that those are "stomach worms" "the kind that attach to the lining and suck blood". He said nevermind the technical name, you can call them barberpole worms.
> I am not 100% if that means they ARE barberpole, or just so similar that there is not a point making a distinction.
> So now I have an answer and it's really great to know I'm on the right track.
> 
> I am thinking if anyone else is doing their own fecals at home- lets try to share more images and definitions!
> I had a hell of a time since there's one chart online, and some images, but more examples to refer to would be useful, I think.
> 
> I also am curious about how you figure the math for a FEC using a Mcmaster slide if you deviate from the standard 2g to 28mL
> Can anyone give me some guidelines there?
> I did the 2g, but also tried the 4g sample recommended by Southern By Choice (thank you!) and it was easier to see more with a larger sample, but obviously you wouldn't multiply the same, right?



Barberpoles?  I guess that's why we get ours done at a lab. 

We do our own fecals for general management purposes, but get at least two per year outside.  Previously, we had always done this at Rollins which is the state lab for NC Dept of Ag.

Recently, got a new much better deal.  A friend of ours who currently works as a pasture and parasite specialist at the NC State University meat goat unit just finished her Phd. ( I say currently works because it appears they are going to close the meat goat unit due to budget cuts )

She lives about 5 miles from us and we can take them to her on Saturday and she will do them for a fraction of what we have paid Rollins.


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## GabysMom

Hookworm eggs...I haven't looked up anything goat wise...but this looks like a hookworm egg you would see on a dog fecal who has them.


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## GabysMom

looking at the chart I found, it looks like a barberpole worm egg. the goat hookworm egg is similar in shape but slightly different center.


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## archerobx

Newbie here

What type microscope should I get?
Thank you


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## Southern by choice

Forgot to quote... see below


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## Southern by choice

archerobx said:


> Newbie here
> 
> What type microscope should I get?
> Thank you



This article explains type of scope and slides.

http://www.backyardherds.com/resources/the-mcmasters-method-fecal-analysis.55/


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## archerobx

Thank you 
I tried to search forum but I think I did it wrong


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