Deworming Frequency

All of the goats were dewormed with Cydectin® when they were put on test. According to FAMACHA© and body condition scores, none required deworming. The purpose of the initial deworming was to establish a base for collecting fecals and determining genetic differences in parasite resistance among the bucks, as measured by fecal worm egg counts.

During the 112-day test, the 31 goats that finished the test required 51 anthelmintic treatments for an average of 1.65 treatments per goat. During last year's 112-day lamb study, 111 anthelmintic treatments were administered to 84 lambs for an average of 1.25 treatments per lamb. Only one goat was observed to have bottle jaw during the test. No goats died from worms or anything else during the test.

Anthelmintic treatments per goat varied from 0 to 4, excluding the initial dworming. Four (13%) of the goats required no treatment for worms during the test. Thirteen (42%) goats required only one anthelmintic treatment. Seven (23%) goats needed to be dewormed twice during the test. Only seven goats (23%) required 3 or more anthelmintic treatments. The goats that required additional treatments did not necessary have the lowest rates-of-gain.

Body condition scoring was done every 2 weeks. Scores were used in conjunction with FAMACHA© scores to make individual deworming decisions.

Download Report (ADG by number of anthelmintic treatments) [PDF]