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  Discussion on Wormer Causing Long Hair?
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Posted on Tuesday, Oct 26, 1999 - 8:39 pm:

I have two weanlings that I'm currently showing halter. They both have long hair that I've been unable to get off even with brushing, lights and blankets. My farrier trimmed last week and ask me what wormer I used. I said Zimecterin. He said that was the reason for the long hair. He also shows halter and said he never worms his show horses with it because it causes them to have long hair and you can't get it off. He uses other ivermect products instead. Has anyone ever heard of this before? Dr. O, is their possibly something in Zimecterin to make them have long hair?

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 26, 1999 - 9:44 pm:

I also showed horse for years and have used Zimecterin and have no problems with it. I've never heard of it causing them to have long hair.You didn't say how old your weanlings are. There is a period were they do have baby coats and it will shed out. Its not like a winter coat were the seasons affect it. Also there diet might have an effect on there coats. What breed are you showing?
Mary

Posted on Wednesday, Oct 27, 1999 - 7:57 am:

Hello All,
Theory is that it is all made at the same place and sold to different companies that market it under their own name. Though I do not know this for a fact, I really do not think this has anything to do with the brand of dewormer you use.
DrO

Posted on Wednesday, Oct 27, 1999 - 9:36 am:

Mary,

They are 7 months old. Both have shed out their baby coats and were slick until 1 1/2 months ago. They are on 14% sweet with milk additive plus corn oil and alfalfa hay twice daily. Their body condition is excellent, get daily turn out and round pen work. Both are APHA. My filly looks like a teddy bear! I live in south Georgia so I wouldn't think climate would be THAT much of a factor this early. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Posted on Wednesday, Oct 27, 1999 - 10:44 am:

Hi Dan4th - are your babies related at all? They may just be genetically programmed to grow thick coats. My friend has a pure Welsh pony that even here in northern England so far only has a fine summer type coat whereas my TBX (Welsh?) has looked like a woolly mammoth since late September despite mild weather and light rugging to try to minimize the growth. Perhaps its just a case of horses for courses.

Posted on Wednesday, Oct 27, 1999 - 7:29 pm:

Dan4th- Yes at 7 mo they should have lost there baby coats and this time of year down there they should be nice and sleek. I was thinking the same thing as helen, if they were related or not. Do you own the sire and dam? Also you might have the vet check them for cushings. I also showed paints and at this time have a tobiano mare. Its just strange that they would be nice and sleek until just a few months ago. Keep me updated.
Mary

Posted on Thursday, Oct 28, 1999 - 10:25 am:

Mary & Helen,

I own both dams, both are slick. Babies are totally unrelated. My colt isn't quite as bad, he's 50/50 color tobiano. The filly looks worse. She's a solid paint, chestnut. Both physically look great, act great, except for the hair. I looked at colt's sire last week. He is slick. Filly's sire is in SC, but I looked at him last Feb/March. Don't recall him having much hair. I haven't shown them the past month, "broke my foot", but continued to work & groom as usual. I've got a show in 2 weeks. Can I show them with long hair? I'm fairly new at showing but don't want to look like a fool. Any suggestions on how to get the hair off?

Posted on Thursday, Oct 28, 1999 - 9:32 pm:

Hi Dan4th,

just to let you know that there may be something to the story that you were told. I have a 4 year-old QH that had a some long hairs on his belly that wouldn't shed out. Someone (who's opinion I trust) said to try Quest de-wormer.Last time I used a Zimecterin. Since he was due to be dewormed I tried it and the hair was gone within a week. I asked her if she knew the mechanism that was at work and she said she didn't know.

Something to think about.


TeresaA

Posted on Friday, Oct 29, 1999 - 8:09 am:

But Teresa,
those hairs were already overdue to shed out. They were not going to stay there forever. Always be careful about temporal relationships. I can hear some moaning already, "he is not going to use that worn out saying again" but here goes: "the sun will rise even if the rooster does not crow".
DrO

Posted on Friday, Oct 29, 1999 - 10:01 am:

Oh, I do realize that Dr. O, I'm not one to pin cause-effect relationships on what is actually correlational data. Nonetheless I did find it interesting. the hairs that were on his belly were there at the end of june after everything else was gone. what I need to do is to think of how to set up a double-blind experiment on one horse :)


teresa

Posted on Monday, Nov 1, 1999 - 5:27 pm:

Hi! Just looking up some Cushings info for my horse and stumbled across your long haired babies notes!! Even in Central California with our daytime temp approaching 90 and still in the 80's. All my horses have the wooly look! Especially my Cushing's mare. The TB and Very much my Swedish Warmblood (aka the teddy bear). I think that the nighttime temps really have a large impact on hair growth. We have been mostly in the 50s for 2 months at night. What is it like in Georgia this time of year?
I also had a paint baby who got pretty fuzzy after shedding out the baby coat. I wonder how efficient weanlings are at body temperature regulation and hence the fuzz? Young (human) children are less tolerant of variations in temperatures (weather/environment, particulary cold) than older children.

Linda

Posted on Tuesday, Nov 2, 1999 - 7:14 pm:

Well, I've about decided that my "hairy" filly is going to stay that way until next spring. Her hair is actually trying to curl! No, I don't believe she has cushings. I not sure of all the symptoms, but shes just 7 mos old. As for showing halter, we were not showing for points as much as we were showing for experience, both me and the horses. The temp in south Ga. has been varying a lot lately. Anywhere from 60-80 during the day to 35-50 at night. I decided no amount of brushing, blanketing, or lights is gonna get that hair off! Thanks for all the suggestions.
Lisa D.

Posted on Monday, Jan 8, 2001 - 7:01 pm:

I had a really hairy AQHA gelding this year. I bought him last spring and he had a really short hair coat. Then this summer, he grew a really long hair coat. Like, longer than normal winter coat, more like a cushings coat. He was in excellent physical condition, although it was hard to keep weight on him.

Someone even stopped us and asked me if he was a bashkir curly! He would absolutely sweat to death out in pasture, and did, all summer long.

Finally I could stand it no more and brought the vet out. We double blasted him with strongid wormer, after checking his thyroid to be certain there wasn't anything there. Then, out of desperation, I body clipped him. This winter, he has grown a moderate winter coat, put on more weight, and looks like a million dollars.

I don't think it was the wormer that caused his hairy coat condition, but I do think it helped stop it.

Susan
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