Image L to R: Rob Egerton-Warburton and Dr Lewis Kahn at the launch of WormBoss

According to Executive Officer of the WormBoss program, Dr Lewis Kahn, sheep breeders selecting better grown sheep are indirectly selecting for worm ‘resilience’ but this does not improve worm ‘resistance’ because they are separate traits.

“Resilient sheep are those that grow and perform well despite infection from parasitic worms, whereas resistant sheep have a lower level of worm infection because of a better immune response,” Dr Kahn said.

Breeding for resistance best insurance against worms (226 KB)