Resistance to worming chemicals is one of the biggest threats facing the equine community; a problem that is challenging our ability to keep horses healthy and rendering our grazing land unusable. It’s a silent threat that is creeping up on us, yet experts say that if we don’t change our behaviour, it will be within years, not decades that untreatable parasite burdens become a reality at our equestrian centres and livery yards. A frightening trajectory of of death and disease that’s bad for business and could see yards forced to reduce stocking densities to levels that make them economically unviable.
The good news is there are some simple steps we can all take to head off this threat and buy us time. To support the equestrian community in taking these measures, a new pan industry working group, CANTER (Controlling ANTiparasitic resistance in Equines Responsibly) has been formed to unite the industry, further knowledge in this area and promote the change that needs to happen. Join us to celebrate the launch of this important new resource and to find out more about what wormer resistance means for you and your horses as we lift the lid on a literal can of worms!
Claire Shand, Communications Sub Group lead from CANTER and Director at Westgate Labs commented: “Wormer resistance is one of the biggest threats to horse health in the UK so we are thrilled to be launching CANTER at The National Equine Show and to highlight these important messages to horse owners. There has historically been a lot of mixed messaging about worming advice which has made it difficult for horse owners to know what to do for the best. To have all these specialists around the table who have set aside their differences and come together under the CANTER banner for the good of the horse is a giant step forward. Our aim is that CANTER will become a single source of truth on equine parasite control for our community to help us tackle this major issue.”
CANTER representatives will be presenting at 15:20 on the Skills Stage at The National Equine Show, Saturday 4th March 2023, as part of the Yard Supplement Connect session, hosted by The Equestrian Index.
Claire Shand, experienced SQP from Westgate Labs, will introduce the challenges of wormer resistance and the implications this has for yard managers and horse owners. She will then be joined on stage by Dr Claire Stratford from the Veterinary Medicines Directorate and Claire Williams from the British Equestrian Trade Association to introduce CANTER (Controlling ANTiparasitic resistance in Equines Responsibly).
All members of the CANTER Core Steering group, the three Claires will share the aims of CANTER, discuss what the group is going to deliver and the benefits this will bring to the equestrian community to support the quest to slow wormer resistance. Claire Williams will then present some easy-to-use tools that have been developed for horse owners to assess the parasite risk of the horses in their care.
Find out more at http://canterforhorses.org.uk/