HOW TO DEAL WITH INTERNAL INTERNAL PARASITES

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ANTHELMINTIC CAUTIONS

All right, you've taken care of your animal's pastureland, stall, and general well-being, and you've also taken your manure tidbits down to a vet and had that doctor analyze your worms. At last the two of you are equipped to pick out a real parasite-walloping vermicide.

(NOTE: This article will give you general information that can help you understand what you and your vet are doing ... it will not teach you how to choose your own anthelmintic. However, if you do unsuccessfully try a do-it-yourself treatment anyway—and then end up consulting a "heifer healer"—PLEASE be kind enough to tell the doctor what medication you used. It may help him or her save your critter's life.)

The type of anthelmintic that you and your doc should choose is one that is safe, economical, easy-to-use, and eliminates many kinds of parasites (a broad-spectrum anthelmintic). Most of the newer "scattershot" wormers satisfy these characteristics.

But, before you administer a ny anthelmintic, please—for the sake of your beasts' (and your own) health—take the following precautions:

KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING ... READ AND REREAD THE DIRECTIONS ON THE MEDICINE'S LABEL UNTIL YOU THOROUGHLY UNDERSTAND THEM.

USE THE CORRECT DOSAGE— It Is possible to actually kill an animal if you use too much parasiticide or give the medicine too often. Twice as much is NOT twice as good.

BE PARTICULARLY CAUTIOUS ABOUT USING ANTHELMINTICS ON SICK ANIMALS, YOUNG ANIMALS, PREGNANT ANIMALS, OR LACTATING ANIMALS (critters giving milk).

DON'T DRINK ANY MILK FROM A PARASITICIDE-TREATED ANIMAL UNTIL ALL TRACES OF THE DRUG ARE GONE FROM THE BEAST'S MILK. Your vet can tell you the "withdrawal time" for a specific anthelmintic.

DON'T ADMINISTER ANTHELMINTICS IN YOUR LIVESTOCK'S FEED UNLESS YOU CAN BE ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN THAT EACH AND EVERY ANIMAL EATS ITS "CHOW" AND GETS ITS FAIR SHARE—AND ONLY ITS SHARE—OF THE MEDICINE.

Once you've absorbed all those precautionary words, you'll be ready to help your animals absorb something ... namely, a good, broad-spectrum worm medication. Because this whole disease and treatment topic can get pretty danged complicated, I've worked up an easy-to-read anthelmintics chart to accompany this article. The table lists some common parasites, appropriate vermicides, and sound treatment programs for the standard homestead livestock and pets.

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