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New Information on Tapeworm Risks for UK Horses!

We monitored horses, pastures and the mites in three yards in the UK to look at seasonal tapeworm infection. Tapeworm lives at the junction of the small and large intestines and is known to be associated with colic—a serious and potentially life-threatening condition. Oribatid mites are a group of microscopic creatures that live in soil and on pasture that act as intermediate hosts of tapeworm – meaning that these mites are needed for the parasite to complete its life cycle. The study looked at the presence of oribatid mites on paddocks, including mites that were infected with tapeworm by detecting their DNA in the mites. 

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The mites were observed to be present all year and they were significantly less active in winter than in summer. Importantly, tapeworm DNA was most frequently detected in mites collected between March and September, which suggests that this is a period of high risk of infection for horses. 

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In the study, saliva samples were tested using the EquiSal® Tapeworm test to monitor tapeworm infections. Testing showed that horses were infected year-round on yards where recommended paddock hygiene procedures were not performed. This finding shows the importance of proper dung removal in breaking the life cycle of tapeworm to reduce re-infection after treating. 

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The take-home messages are:
1. As well as autumn, spring is an important time to test horses to decide on treatment. Targeting treatment at this time avoids infected horses contaminating paddocks with tapeworm eggs when mites are more active.
2. Grazing management such as poo picking is important to reduce the risk of reinfection after worming for tapeworm
3. Following the above guidelines helps manage tapeworm risks more precisely while preserving the effectiveness of worming drugs.

 

The full paper can be read Open Access at:
A study of the epidemiology of Anoplocephala perfoliata infection in horses and the oribatid mite vector in southern England - ScienceDirect