{"id":67435,"date":"2020-01-06T07:00:24","date_gmt":"2020-01-06T12:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/?p=67435"},"modified":"2020-11-03T02:31:40","modified_gmt":"2020-11-03T07:31:40","slug":"control-barbers-pole-worm-with-famacha","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/control-barbers-pole-worm-with-famacha\/","title":{"rendered":"Control Barber\u2019s Pole Worms With FAMACHA"},"content":{"rendered":"

B<\/span>arber\u2019s pole worms are a major problem for keepers of sheep<\/a> and goats<\/a> throughout the world. Bloodsucking gut-dwellers, barber\u2019s pole worms (Haemonchus contortus<\/i>) cause serious anemia and death if not aggressively treated. Females are prolific egg-layers, laying as many as 10,000 eggs per day, so large worm loads develop rapidly. Unfortunately, because of the overuse of dewormers that control this worm, resistance is a major problem. <\/span><\/p>\n

The FAMACHA system (it stands for FAffa MAlan CHArt) was developed by three scientists in South Africa and introduced to North America by the American Consortium for Small Ruminant Parasite Control<\/a> (ACSRPC)<\/span>. It helps producers single out individuals for treatment by matching the color of an animal\u2019s eye mucous membranes to a chart showing five color categories indicating level of anemia. The colors go from category 1 (cherry red; not anemic) to category 5 (white; severely anemic).<\/p>\n

Deworming only those animals that require treatment greatly decreases the development of resistance, because eggs produced by the few resistant worms that survive treatment will be greatly outnumbered by eggs shed by animals that weren\u2019t dewormed. When all the animals in a flock or herd are dewormed and moved to clean pastures, only resistant worms that survive treatment will produce eggs to produce the next generation of worms.<\/p>\n

Producers who wish to use FAMACHA should ideally seek training in its use. Contact your veterinarian, your cooperative extension agent, or the <\/span>ACSRPC for information about workshops near you. The video below from the University of Rhode Island is another way to learn the basics.<\/span><\/p>\n