Sherwood Miniature Horse Stud

03/08/2024

Offered for your consideration. Our last Rocky baby for the season. He is the image of his sire and out of our 34" black pinto 50% AS mare. He is tiny, has perfect conformation and movement to burn. Contact me now if you are looking for a super special boy. Can be delivered as far south as Oamaru this month. Priced to meet the market.

18/07/2024

Can help but ❤❤ this Puddin filly. Abagails Delight is by our Gorgeous11.1hh Purebred Gypsy Cob (Exp UK Imp Aust) Lynlee's The Joker and a daughter of one of our favourite mares - Westridge Pony Stud and Performance Horses Westridge Storm Ina Teacup (Goldie) who we bred to the Lovely Wynn - Sherwood's Abbey Road was shown very successfully inhand before we bought her back to breed with. Goldie and Wynn have certainly left their stamp on this beautiful 50% Gypsy Cob. We expect her to mature around 11hh.

23/06/2024

It has been another busy week with horses heading to their new homes. As we continue to downsize the stud, we will be looking at offering some of our top broodmares, some infoal and others that were not bred last season. If you are looking for a top broodmare or showhorse, please do not hesitate to contact me. Priced to meet the market

24/05/2024

We are really impressed with this baby. When the foals are born you know whether you have a good foal or an exceptional foal and this boy is certainly the exception. He has always had that presence right from birth, but then being Mary's daughter - SwS Rockin The Universe, you would expect no more. Pictured below at a couple of days old and taken today - boy can this kid move. Available as a stud c**t with a pedigree that would be hard to beat. Message me for more details.

29/04/2024

*** WORMING PART 3 - REDWORM ***

I first posted this in 2019, but after reading a LOT of worrying comments recently about how people don’t worm their horses at all, as they do worm egg counts, I thought it was time to do a little encysted redworm refresher!

1. Redworm can kill your horse.

2. Encysted small redworm are NOT DETECTABLE in worm egg counts.

3. The larvae of small redworm, “encyst” or burrow into the gut wall. These can cause fatal consequences when they re-emerge.

4. Redworm appear as tiny pieces of thread in your horse’s droppings. They are very short and thin, and can be hard to see. They are white if they haven’t yet fed, and red if they have fed.

5. A horse can appear completely normal and healthy whilst carrying a large redworm burden. However, weight loss and diarrhoea may be early indicators; don’t ignore these signs.

6. Most wormers DO NOT target encysted redworm. Only TWO do: Fenbendazole and Moxidectin.

7. Lots of combination wormers contain IVERMectin. This WILL NOT have any effect on encysted redworm. The only wormer that contains MOXIDectin, is EQUEST. The Pramox (blue) version will treat tapeworm at the same time. Don’t use Pramox if you have treated separately for tapeworm, or used a saliva or blood test for tapeworm. Use the normal Equest (green) if this is the case.

8. Redworm are eaten by the horse during grazing. The larvae start to burrow into the gut wall as temperatures drop. Treating for encysted redworm whilst temperatures are warm, is not the optimal time, as the larvae may well not have started to encyst. Treating after a few hard frosts, also reduces the level of reinfection from larvae already on the fields.

9. The larvae stay in the gut wall during the winter, and are then triggered to emerge from the gut wall as the temperatures warm up in the Spring. If the horse has not been treated for redworm during this redworm “hibernation” stage, he/she is at risk of developing CYATHOSTOMINOSIS.

10. Cyathostominosis has a mortality (death) rate of up to 50%. It presents as colitis; profuse diarrhoea and colic. Contact your vet immediately if you see these symptoms in your horse at any time of year, but it is more likely to be due to redworm if this occurs in the Spring.

11. Ensure you have treated for encysted redworm before temperatures start to increase as Spring arrives, incase of a large encysted redworm burden that may suddenly emerge.

12. There is a very new blood test for all stages of redworm, including encysted. I have not yet used this, but worth discussing with your vet. I would not be recommending this route for high risk redworm horses ie horses in herds with no poo picking, or rescue cases.

13. 5 day Panacur Guard (Fenbendazole) is the only other wormer that can treat the encysted stage of redworm. There was widespread resistance to this wormer, and a huge move towards everyone using Moxidectin for encysted redworm. It is my wormer of choice for very sick or poor horses, due to its milder action over 5 days. However, there is some evidence that it may cause more damage to the gut than Moxidectin, so more research is definitely required!

14. Poo picking daily is perfect pasture management, but does not mean that your horse is worm free! You still need to egg count/blood test for all worms and/or worm.

15. Herbal wormers do not work.

16. Worm egg counts do not detect encysted redworms (or tapeworm/bots/pinworm). I realise I am repeating myself, but this is something that lots of people still do not realise.

17. Do not UNDERDOSE when worming, as this will aid resistance. If in doubt, add 50kg to the weigh tape weight of your horse. Wormers are very safe with regards to toxic doses.

This is not an exhaustive review of redworm, and I may add to the list if I think of anything else, but I hope this is of some use! Worming regimes and what worm egg counts detect, seems to cause lots of confusion amongst horse owners, and even yard owners.

Blood tests currently used for tapeworm, and just being introduced for redworm, measure antibody levels to the worm. The saliva test also measures antibodies. The concern here would be false positives. This means the test coming back as positive when your horse has been clear of the worm in question for months. Antibody levels remain high for months following successful treatment for the worm being tested for. However, a negative obviously means the horse has been clear for a good few months. Still a lot of research to go I think!

EDIT: obviously the blood test for encysted redworm is not new now, but I still haven’t used it, as we know how inaccurate ELISAs can be, and redworm can, and will, kill.

Happy reading!

Feel free to share, as this is really something that all horse owners should know!

And it’s a good time to worm for encysted redworm, around about NOW!

29/04/2024

Very informative reading

*** WORMING PART 3 - REDWORM ***

I first posted this in 2019, but after reading a LOT of worrying comments recently about how people don’t worm their horses at all, as they do worm egg counts, I thought it was time to do a little encysted redworm refresher!

1. Redworm can kill your horse.

2. Encysted small redworm are NOT DETECTABLE in worm egg counts.

3. The larvae of small redworm, “encyst” or burrow into the gut wall. These can cause fatal consequences when they re-emerge.

4. Redworm appear as tiny pieces of thread in your horse’s droppings. They are very short and thin, and can be hard to see. They are white if they haven’t yet fed, and red if they have fed.

5. A horse can appear completely normal and healthy whilst carrying a large redworm burden. However, weight loss and diarrhoea may be early indicators; don’t ignore these signs.

6. Most wormers DO NOT target encysted redworm. Only TWO do: Fenbendazole and Moxidectin.

7. Lots of combination wormers contain IVERMectin. This WILL NOT have any effect on encysted redworm. The only wormer that contains MOXIDectin, is EQUEST. The Pramox (blue) version will treat tapeworm at the same time. Don’t use Pramox if you have treated separately for tapeworm, or used a saliva or blood test for tapeworm. Use the normal Equest (green) if this is the case.

8. Redworm are eaten by the horse during grazing. The larvae start to burrow into the gut wall as temperatures drop. Treating for encysted redworm whilst temperatures are warm, is not the optimal time, as the larvae may well not have started to encyst. Treating after a few hard frosts, also reduces the level of reinfection from larvae already on the fields.

9. The larvae stay in the gut wall during the winter, and are then triggered to emerge from the gut wall as the temperatures warm up in the Spring. If the horse has not been treated for redworm during this redworm “hibernation” stage, he/she is at risk of developing CYATHOSTOMINOSIS.

10. Cyathostominosis has a mortality (death) rate of up to 50%. It presents as colitis; profuse diarrhoea and colic. Contact your vet immediately if you see these symptoms in your horse at any time of year, but it is more likely to be due to redworm if this occurs in the Spring.

11. Ensure you have treated for encysted redworm before temperatures start to increase as Spring arrives, incase of a large encysted redworm burden that may suddenly emerge.

12. There is a very new blood test for all stages of redworm, including encysted. I have not yet used this, but worth discussing with your vet. I would not be recommending this route for high risk redworm horses ie horses in herds with no poo picking, or rescue cases.

13. 5 day Panacur Guard (Fenbendazole) is the only other wormer that can treat the encysted stage of redworm. There was widespread resistance to this wormer, and a huge move towards everyone using Moxidectin for encysted redworm. It is my wormer of choice for very sick or poor horses, due to its milder action over 5 days. However, there is some evidence that it may cause more damage to the gut than Moxidectin, so more research is definitely required!

14. Poo picking daily is perfect pasture management, but does not mean that your horse is worm free! You still need to egg count/blood test for all worms and/or worm.

15. Herbal wormers do not work.

16. Worm egg counts do not detect encysted redworms (or tapeworm/bots/pinworm). I realise I am repeating myself, but this is something that lots of people still do not realise.

17. Do not UNDERDOSE when worming, as this will aid resistance. If in doubt, add 50kg to the weigh tape weight of your horse. Wormers are very safe with regards to toxic doses.

This is not an exhaustive review of redworm, and I may add to the list if I think of anything else, but I hope this is of some use! Worming regimes and what worm egg counts detect, seems to cause lots of confusion amongst horse owners, and even yard owners.

Blood tests currently used for tapeworm, and just being introduced for redworm, measure antibody levels to the worm. The saliva test also measures antibodies. The concern here would be false positives. This means the test coming back as positive when your horse has been clear of the worm in question for months. Antibody levels remain high for months following successful treatment for the worm being tested for. However, a negative obviously means the horse has been clear for a good few months. Still a lot of research to go I think!

EDIT: obviously the blood test for encysted redworm is not new now, but I still haven’t used it, as we know how inaccurate ELISAs can be, and redworm can, and will, kill.

Happy reading!

Feel free to share, as this is really something that all horse owners should know!

And it’s a good time to worm for encysted redworm, around about NOW!

29/04/2024

For the past few years, we have been slowly downsizing our Miniature Stud we started some 35 years ago. Soon we will be putting some top quality mares on the market - some infoal and some with their current foals. I have tossed around for a few months now as to what to do with our Senior Stallion and although this puts a lump in my throat, we are going to offer Summerlea Rockin Ya Soxz Off (IIUD Aust) for sale - yes the beloved Rocky. We don't plan on breeding many mares next season and after 2 seasons of him breeding only a couple of mares, he is going to waste in our paddock, although he is an amazing paddock ornament. So if you can offer him top home, then please message me and we can discuss further.

28/04/2024

What a fabulous day out for this little Cherub - Sherwood's LTJ's Sweet Susannah - our Gypsy Cob Welsh Cross winning all her classes, including Movement and Handler, plus Reserve Champion Pleasure Pony. A huge achievement for a freshly weaned baby. She is going to be the perfect Children's Pony and will be available to a Special Home. PM for more information. Will be registered PB Gypsy Cob, Welsh and Golden Horse.

07/04/2024

Weaning has started with the Gypsy Cob foals. They are all by our imported boy - Lynlee's the Joker (Exp UK/Imp Aust) and we couldn't be more happy with them. They are boning up very quickly with feather to match. Can't wait to get these kids out. Most will be available to new homes. PM for details.