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  Discussion on Imidocarb for importing horse from central america
Author Message
New Member:
Chlobro

Posted on Monday, Jan 8, 2007 - 2:51 pm:

I am planning to bring my mare back to US from Honduras. My vet in Honduras says I should giver her Imidocarb 90 days before the trip to lower titers of endemic parasite in this region. What is correct dose ( the horse is not sick) Does this drug have dangerous side effects? The horse is quite healthy and has not had any tick born illness. How can I pretest blood? How do I find out all the diseases to test for and where do I send the samples? Holly
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Monday, Jan 8, 2007 - 7:08 pm:

Hmm...Holly you are a bit out of my personal knowledge base here. What a odd recommendation if there is no infection.... The most common use for this drug in horses is to treat Babesia (Piroplasmosis), and you can find a little bit about this including dosages at Diseases of Horses » Cardiovascular, Blood, and Immune System » Piroplasmosis In Horses. There have also been past discussions so run a search. Other than that I suggest you pump this vet about possible concerns and take careful notes. Post them here and we will see what we can do.
DrO
Member:
chlobro

Posted on Friday, Mar 16, 2007 - 9:40 am:

I spoke with vet he says he wants to administer 4mg/ kg . From your article this sounds like a lot and a little dangerous. The mare has never been ill. Can I draw blood first to see if mare is a carrier? If so what kind of blood tubes do I use ? Do I send blood or serum and where do I send it? Can I send it to a private lab? If it comes back positive can I treat her and then resend blood. Holly
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Saturday, Mar 17, 2007 - 10:14 am:

Hello Holly,
By all means draw blood first. The last I read the standard for admittance to the US has become the cELISA test however I do not have any sources for where the test is performed. I would start with the officials who will be approving your horse for transport, they may have a specific lab and protocol that needs to be followed.

Since the test detects antibodies, I would guess they would want serum sent to them but you will need to talk with the lab about their specific needs.

The question about retesting after treatment is tough. In the past the CFT was used with a negative finding within three months (avg time 39 days) following treatment being used as a standard for "cured". I cannot find any similar work with the cELISA which is a far more sensitive test. I suggest you take this one step at a time, if negative great all this becomes moot.
DrO
Member:
chlobro

Posted on Tuesday, Apr 10, 2007 - 10:51 am:

I sent the mares prescreen to usda ames iowa and her ELISA was positive for babesia equi. If I treat her with Imidocarb can that produce a negative ELISA? The ELISA recognizes antibodies right? Won't she always have the antibodies against babesia equi? Thanks for your thoughts Holly
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Wednesday, Apr 11, 2007 - 8:56 am:

I am sorry to hear that holly, as you have probably read in our article and is consistent with the most recent research, B. equi is usually resistant to most treatment attempts. Concerning seronegativity, "always" is a funny term holly. Once animals have cleared an infection there antibody titers go down over time and may eventually become unreadable. When and how long depends on the particular animal and how sensitive your test is.
DrO
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