Fluke and Lungworms in FEC

Have a group of ewe lambs that had a post worming FEC which showed they where free from worms in early August. I am led to believe Fluke and Lungworm won’t show up in this type of screening.
is there a way of testing for the presence of these two parasites ? and determining if it is worth worming.
TIA
NHF
 

neilo

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Montgomeryshire
Have a group of ewe lambs that had a post worming FEC which showed they where free from worms in early August. I am led to believe Fluke and Lungworm won’t show up in this type of screening.
is there a way of testing for the presence of these two parasites ? and determining if it is worth worming.
TIA
NHF

You can do a coproantigen test by sending a pooled poo sample off to Biobest, which detects the antibodies which indicate the presence of liver fluke. You don’t need a vet involved and it cost about £15 the last time I did it (edit: price list says £19 now).
 

hill farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
breconshire
Have a group of ewe lambs that had a post worming FEC which showed they where free from worms in early August. I am led to believe Fluke and Lungworm won’t show up in this type of screening.
is there a way of testing for the presence of these two parasites ? and determining if it is worth worming.
TIA
NHF
We have cows and calves coughing, vets sampled dung to look for lungworm couldn't find any trace so have dismissed lungworm as the cause. He seemed to think that he would see trace in the dung if it was. I'm not that sure as have treated a cow that was coughing and a bit breathless with ivermectin pour-on which seems to have improved

Could be different with sheep I guess?
 
I had that years ago with a group of store cattle, cut along storey short , some very ill, vet said it couldn’t possible be lungworm , pm proved lungworm ,and the others improved drastically after worming . Now keep a close eye for it August and September. Going to worm youngstock again next week.
 

jamesy

Member
Location
Orkney
I had that years ago with a group of store cattle, cut along storey short , some very ill, vet said it couldn’t possible be lungworm , pm proved lungworm ,and the others improved drastically after worming . Now keep a close eye for it August and September. Going to worm youngstock again next week.
For all the cost of a suitable pour on its well worth doing just to be sure. Untreated lung worm can fairly drag them down
 

sheepdip

Member
Location
SW Scotland
One or two crossed wires here. It seems to me that nothing about fluke is simple, and different vets make different recommendations (presumably based on varying experiences)
The coproantigen test is a good indicator of active fluke infection but not recommended for a bulk pooled sample, rather 10 or so individual dung samples from the at risk group.
The antibody test is ELISA, using blood samples, but again a number of individual samples from the group required. Might be useful for the ewe lambs in question, depending on their history, but once they have been exposed to fluke, you can expect the ELISA test to remain positive for life even after fluke have been treated.
Fluke eggs can be found in a dung sample if you specifically request that they look for them, but only present once there are adult fluke and not completely conclusive that the adults are still there.

Would strongly recommend taking advice from someone who knows about fluke before parting with ££
 

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