Anthelmintic resistance is a growing crisis in equine parasite management. Strategic deworming based on faecal egg counts protects horse welfare while preserving treatment efficacy.
Equine parasite welfare operates on two levels: the welfare of individual horses with significant parasite burdens causing poor condition, colic, and potentially fatal larval cyathostominosis; and the long-term welfare of the equine population if anthelmintic resistance renders treatments ineffective. Strategic deworming — treating only horses with FEC counts above therapeutic thresholds — prevents welfare harm from parasites while preserving the treatment efficacy that future welfare depends on. The transition from interval-based to strategic deworming represents both individual and population welfare progress: fewer horses treated unnecessarily, and treatments remaining effective when genuinely needed.