In proper doses, this is a very safe and effective medication. However, when significantly overdosed, this medication can cause drooling, vomiting, weakness, heart arrhythmia's, and severe neurologic signs such as ataxia, seizures, blindness and potentially death.
Toxicity can occur if a dog is given an excessive dose of the medication (10 to 20 times the recommended dose). Additionally, certain dogs are genetically hypersensitive to the medication. In these dogs, ivermectin can pass directly to the brain and be toxic or even lethal.
There is no treatment for the poisoning; supportive measures are the only care available (though in cases of oral administration induction of vomiting and administration of activated charcoal often occur ). Early and aggressive supportive care allows for a good prognosis for recovery.
When infected with worms, it should be dewormed periodically, for adults and children over 2 years old should be dewormed 2 to 3 times a year, ie every 4 to 6 months.
'Under-worming can add to the resistance issue, so it's important you get the dosage right. It's very unlikely that you will overdose on a wormer – they have very safe levels and low toxicity. '
You will need to deworm all horses twice yearly (after the last frost and again in the spring) with an ivermectin or moxidectin product to kill large strongyles and bots. In addition, these dewormers should contain praziquantel to kill tapeworms which are not always found on fecal examination.
DEWORMING RECOMMENDATIONS
Most horses only need to be dewormed once or twice a year. Before deworming in the spring, we recommend having a fecal egg count (FEC) done.
Once you take the deworming medicine, the medicine starts working immediately, but it might take a few days to kill all the worms. It is advised to take a second dose after two weeks to prevent reinfection.
For other types of common worm infections (such as roundworm, hookworm), take mebendazole by mouth as directed by your doctor, usually twice a day (in the morning and in the evening) for 3 days. If necessary, a second treatment may be given in a few weeks.
Side effects of deworming treatment
There may be some mild side effects like dizziness, nausea, headache, and vomiting, all likely due to the worms being passed through the child's body. These side effects disappear after some time. Side effects are usually experienced by children with high infections.
An accidental overdose happens when a person accidentally takes more of a substance or medication than their body can handle.
It's usually considered to have a large margin of safety, but it can be highly toxic in rare circumstances.
These guidelines recommend that if regular deworming is used, animals should be treated at least 4 times a year, with no more than 3 months between each treatment. This is based on some research indicating that dropping treatment to 3-4 times per year had no effect on parasite levels.
It is often the case that oral anti-parasitics are used as a deworming method. But it is also often forgotten that a second dose must be administered 15 days after the first one; otherwise, the deworming will prove ineffective.
(Dosage is designed to provide at least 2.27 mg per pound of body weight for dogs weighing over 5 lbs., and at least 4.54 mg per pound of body weight for dogs weighing less than 5 lbs.). For dogs weighing more than 10 lbs., tablets may be broken in half to provide 1/2 tablet for each additional 5 lbs. body weight.
Fenbendazole (Panacur®) – effective against roundworms, hookworms, whipworms, some tapeworms (Taenia) and Giardia. Must be given for at least 3 consecutive days in order to effectively treat whipworms and tapeworms, and 5 days for Giardia.
The Deworming Process after a Few Days
You may be surprised to still see live worms in your dog's feces after deworming them, but this is normal. While this can be an unpleasant image, it's actually a good thing — it means the worms are no longer living inside your dog!
Dog dewormers usually start working quickly, within 2 to 6 hours after administering the dewormer to your dog. Nonetheless, it may take a few days and up to a few weeks for your dog to be completely free from worms.
prevent re-infection. To keep the likelihood of worms to a minimum we recommend that your pet is treated every 3 months.
Repeat deworming culture every three months
However, this is only recommended in special cases such as a very high risk of infection (potentially with hunting dogs) and close contact with small children or ill people.
A doctor or pharmacist may suggest you repeat the dose after 2 weeks to stop you from getting threadworms again. This is because the medicine kills the worms but not their eggs. For other worms such as whipworm, roundworm and hookworm, follow your doctor's instructions on how to take mebendazole.
Timing is important and it is recommended that you deworm every 8 weeks. If you treat too early, the worms may be too immature to be affected by the dewormer. If you treat too late, the worms may have had the opportunity to produce eggs, which will infest your horse's environment.
It's unusual but not unheard of to actually see worms passed in the horses droppings. Any that are shed after worming can't survive outside the body and are not a reinfection threat to horses grazing the pasture.
Generally, adult horses should be wormed every 12-16 weeks (depending on products, time of year and pasture management), while foals and yearlings may need more frequent worming. It's best to consult with your veterinarian to develop a worming schedule that's tailored to your horse's individual needs.
The ERP is a predictable interval where the FEC remains low after an effective deworming agent is administered and it differs slightly depending on the deworming product used. The normal ERP is 4-5 weeks for benzimidazole and pyrantel products, 6-8 weeks for ivermectin, and 12 weeks for moxidectin.