Ordering Generic Dewormer

Online/Catalog Ordering of Cheap Dewormer
Pour-On Dewormer
Syringe Bits
Tube Deworming Desensitization

Many of us follow a deworming plan as laid out by our vet. The vet knows what worms are likely to be in our area, the best season to attack those worms, and also knows the likely worm risk to our horses. A closed herd has much less risk than a horse at a boarding barn with a frequently-changing clientele, or a horse who does a lot of traveling.

Ordering Dewormer Cheap

Once we have a good deworming plan in place, the obvious next step is to acquire the dewormer. The most expensive source of dewormer will be your vet, followed by local feed and tack stores. However, ordering dewormer through a catalog or online can be downright CHEAP. If you buy the generic instead of the brand name, it's tremendously inexpensive--sometimes the brand names go on sale, too.

Prices do fluctuate, but as of this posting, Country Supply (horse.com) has:
* Fenbendazole (Panacur, Safegard) for $5.98/tube
* Ivermectin (Zimectrin, Equell) for $2.29/tube
* Moxidectin (Quest) for $8.59/tube (there's no generic for Moxidectin yet; I can't wait until they can put out a generic!)
* Oxibendazole (Anthelcide) for $5.79/tube
* Pyrantel (Strongid, Exodus) for $2.99/tube

I can sometimes stock up on really cheap dewormer, and dose my horses for less than $3 each time, year round.

Short Dates

Cheap dewormer may not always be the best option, though. Sometimes dewormer on sale is short-dated: it's going to expire soon. So you can't stock up and have enough for the whole year, you should only buy enough to give right away. Before ordering, check to see if they say the dewormer is short-dated, or call and ask.

Pour-On Dewormer

Depending on the horse and the owner, you may find it worth the price to give pelleted/pour-on dewormer, instead. There are daily dewormers (such as Strongid C) and there are also "regular" dewormers, given like paste, that you can mix in with your horse's feed. They're typically flavored with alfalfa, so horses will eat them much more readily than they will take a paste in a tube. These pour-on dewormers are 2 or 3 times the cost of paste...but the convenience can be worth the cost, especially if you have a horse who doesn't tube easily.

Deworming bit

If you have a horse who doesn't tube easily, it may be worth buying a deworming "bit" such as the "Easy Horse Wormer" to make tubing easier. These aren't expensive, and over time will cost less than continuing to buy pour-on dewormer. The convenience of the pour-on dewormer, though, really can be worth the cost!

Desensitization

You can also desensitise the horse to tubes, to make it easier to give him paste dewormer. Take a clean deworming tube or a new large syringe, and fill it with a tasty thick liquid, like watered-down applesauce or alfalfa slush. Squeeze a little bit out so it's sitting on the outside of the tip. Offer it to your horse, trying to get him to taste what's on the tube. If he gets a taste or two, eventually he should be much more cooperative about taking that tube.

If you bring him a tube of something tasty every day, he'll get into a habit of sucking down the tube of tasty stuff and swallowing without hesitation. You can eventually sneak a dewormer tube in among the treat tubes--it may help to give him a tube of good stuff just before and after the dewormer tube.