Worms-Egg per gram amounts???

[JanetM]

I had a fecal done on all my goats and was told the eggs per gram amounts...per the vet all of my goats are good and no need to deworm right now.

My question...does anyone have a chart listing eggs per gram amounts? like what is acceptable, low-high?

I have googled and I have found alot of information on how to read fecals and general statements here & there like 0-150 is considered low, up to 500 is moderate but acceptable, 750 requires treatment but nothing consistent.

Hope I posted this in the correct place.

 

[HappyMamaAcre]

Great question and I too would love some guidance on this!

 

[jodief100]

Research done at Maryland and Tennessee say up to 2000 EPG is fine. Over that and you want to treat them. Less than that you weigh other factors such as coat condition, fecal consistency, weight and overall health. At some level it is a judgment call.

 

[elevan]

As Jodief100 stated, each animal is going to be affected differently by the same level of EPG. So, you need to judge other factors and make a call based on knowing your goat.

 

[JanetM]

Thank you for your responses. I was just curious and couldnt find any chart on it. I trust my vet and have no issues there

 

[WhiteMountainsRanch]

I'd like a chart/ info too!

 

[Southern by choice]

Jodie is right. Many vets however will tell you to watch at 1000 EPG.

Some goats may start to have real issues at 1000EPG so it is best to look at overall condition.

A while back my farm partners Buck had the highest count he has ever had... 950 EPG... with a perfect FAMACHA score all factors great... no de-worming necessary. Some time later 2 months I think the same buck had 5 eggs- which is 125 EPG... no changes just normal transition of spring browse and tree foliage etc the counts went way down.

There is one vet that we work with that wants people to start de-worming at 450 - 500 EPG. He is a good vet but I strongly disagree and do not know of a singlr vet that follows those practices.

When you have an animal that has consistant higher counts and the rest are low counts then it is a good indicator that the animal may be a cull. Having the ability to do your own fecals really allows you to monitor and isolate problem animals, and make better choices of when to de-worm and with which product.

 

[OneFineAcre]

Jodie is right. Many vets however will tell you to watch at 1000 EPG.

Some goats may start to have real issues at 1000EPG so it is best to look at overall condition.

A while back my farm partners Buck had the highest count he has ever had... 950 EPG... with a perfect FAMACHA score all factors great... no de-worming necessary. Some time later 2 months I think the same buck had 5 eggs- which is 125 EPG... no changes just normal transition of spring browse and tree foliage etc the counts went way down.

There is one vet that we work with that wants people to start de-worming at 450 - 500 EPG. He is a good vet but I strongly disagree and do not know of a singlr vet that follows those practices.

When you have an animal that has consistant higher counts and the rest are low counts then it is a good indicator that the animal may be a cull. Having the ability to do your own fecals really allows you to monitor and isolate problem animals, and make better choices of when to de-worm and with which product.

I know at the meat goat unit at NCSU the threshold is 1000 EPG, but they are culling heavily because of an issue with drug resistant worms.

What kind of worms were you seeing on the 950 EPG count and the perfect FAMACHA score? You mention the FAMACHA score so I'm thinking Barberpoles or else the FAMACHA score would not be relevant.

As far as the vet recommending worming at 500 EPG, doesn't it make a difference as to what type of worms and farm circumstances? Everything I've read indicates you worm at a lower threshold with some types of round worms.

It definitely is not one size fits all.

And, all farms are not the same.

I wish I had a nickel for every time I've read on this forum that "Safeguard is ineffective" Half of my herd has never had anything but Safeguard and half of my herd has 0 EPG. Highest I've ever had is 750 EPG with a doe in her last month of gestation. I've had 2 with 400 EPG. Problem is people using Safeguard for horses and "doubling the dose" because of the different stomach construction. Or, not following instructions and giving for 3 days. 3 days in a row. Not one day, skip a day then 2 days.

I've also never seen a barberpole (knock on wood)

 

[OneFineAcre]

I had a fecal done on all my goats and was told the eggs per gram amounts...per the vet all of my goats are good and no need to deworm right now.

My question...does anyone have a chart listing eggs per gram amounts? like what is acceptable, low-high?

I have googled and I have found alot of information on how to read fecals and general statements here & there like 0-150 is considered low, up to 500 is moderate but acceptable, 750 requires treatment but nothing consistent.

Hope I posted this in the correct place.

What were your counts, and what type of worms were observed?

 

[Southern by choice]

Jodie is right. Many vets however will tell you to watch at 1000 EPG.

Some goats may start to have real issues at 1000EPG so it is best to look at overall condition.

A while back my farm partners Buck had the highest count he has ever had... 950 EPG... with a perfect FAMACHA score all factors great... no de-worming necessary. Some time later 2 months I think the same buck had 5 eggs- which is 125 EPG... no changes just normal transition of spring browse and tree foliage etc the counts went way down.

There is one vet that we work with that wants people to start de-worming at 450 - 500 EPG. He is a good vet but I strongly disagree and do not know of a singlr vet that follows those practices.

When you have an animal that has consistant higher counts and the rest are low counts then it is a good indicator that the animal may be a cull. Having the ability to do your own fecals really allows you to monitor and isolate problem animals, and make better choices of when to de-worm and with which product.

I know at the meat goat unit at NCSU the threshold is 1000 EPG, but they are culling heavily because of an issue with drug resistant worms.

What kind of worms were you seeing on the 950 EPG count and the perfect FAMACHA score? You mention the FAMACHA score so I'm thinking Barberpoles or else the FAMACHA score would not be relevant.

As far as the vet recommending worming at 500 EPG, doesn't it make a difference as to what type of worms and farm circumstances? Everything I've read indicates you worm at a lower threshold with some types of round worms.

It definitely is not one size fits all.

And, all farms are not the same.

I wish I had a nickel for every time I've read on this forum that "Safeguard is ineffective" Half of my herd has never had anything but Safeguard and half of my herd has 0 EPG. Highest I've ever had is 750 EPG with a doe in her last month of gestation. I've had 2 with 400 EPG. Problem is people using Safeguard for horses and "doubling the dose" because of the different stomach construction. Or, not following instructions and giving for 3 days. 3 days in a row. Not one day, skip a day then 2 days.

I've also never seen a barberpole (knock on wood)

One Fine- You know the vet I am referring to. He's great but I cannot agree with de-worming at 450- 500 for Barberpole.
I agree... most do not really know what is "ineffective" in their area and not all farms/herds are the same.
Using the de-wormer properly is important.

Depending on who you talk to at NCSU you will still get different answers from different folks.

My herd is consistantly 0-2 eggs... this year my highest counts were a 14 eggs= 350 EPG after a doe kidded and the other high count for me was another due to kid was 19 eggs= 475.
They are not dry lot but ground and foraged based. These counts were from early June. After a horrible wet winter and spring.
We monitor our herd based on many factors. We are carefully watching for cocci because of the extreme flooding and swamp... conditions are prime this year. Many people in our immediate area are having issues.

I don't think there is a one size fits all chart.