Despite any horse owner's best intentions, all horses carry internal parasites (or worms) inside of them. Unfortunately, these can never be completely eliminated as your horse takes in worm eggs all the time through his grass. However, you can keep them under control through a process called worming. If your horse isn't regularly dewormed, larvae will grow inside his stomach and intestines, causing him to lose weight and risk colic. He'll have a dull coat color and be thin, yet with a "potbelly."

Here are some guidelines:

You'll need to deworm your horse every six to eight weeks. Dewormers can be purchased from your vet or local tack shop.

Use either a paste in a syringe or powder given in the feed. Always be sure to follow the manufacturer's instructions regarding dosage.

Deworm all ponies that share a field together at the same time.

Make sure the brand of dewormer you use deals with all types of parasites.

Keep worms at bay by picking up droppings from the field every week. This will help to keep away flies as well, who also enjoy breeding in manure.

Here's a good method for deworming troublesome horses:

About one or two weeks before the scheduled deworming, thoroughly wash and dry an empty syringe. At feeding time daily, fill the syringe with applesauce and dose the horse immediately before you give him his grain. Do this until he accepts the procedure without any objections.

On deworming day, dip the tip of the actual dewormer in applesauce and administer the medication to your horse. Be sure to follow up with at least four or five days of regular applesauce dosing. The next time you deworm your horse, you can reduce the number of days with the applesauce to just three before and three after. Good luck!

— AE