sick goat? help!

[PuppyBantamCochin]

this morning when I went to check my goats I noticed one of my pregnant does' manure wasn't ''normal''. It's all ''clumped'' but soft...she's not acting sick at all otherwise.
any ideas what might be causing this?
she's getting 8oz of sweet feed everyday & free choice hay. she got into our compost pile yesterday...is it possible she ate something that wasn't good for her?
I checked her lower lids and she's a little pale...should I deworm her? I've got safeguard and zimecterin (ivermectin). Are they safe for pregnant goats?
She's due in 40days...I really don't want her to be getting sick!



Thank you,


F.V.

 

[Sumatra503]

Clumpy poo isn't too much of a worry. If it were runny or green it would be another story. It is possible she ate something she shouldn't have, but a small ammount should do her no harm. Unless there is something poisonous in the compost I wouldn't worry.

You may need to worm her if you haven't yet this year. Generally you should worm every 6 months. Ivermectin is safe if she is this far along in her pregnancy. You can also give vaccinations between now and 20 days til the due date. This will in turn vaccinate the kids.

 

[PuppyBantamCochin]

thank you for your reply.

Do you know how to weigh a goat properly? I'm sort of confused...
My goats are nigerians, and I have to get more or less accurate weights for them in order to deworm them well.
I measured their girths (varying between 25 and 29inches)...I compared them to 2 charts, but the weights are different...on one chart, my goat with a 29'' measurement weighs 62lbs, on the other chart she weighs 81.


thanks in advance,



F.V.

 

[heathersboers]

I would deworm her with the safeguard- with the dosage on the bottle- I wouldnt worry- as long as she is acting OK and not off her feed. You cannot overdose with safeguard- whatever they dont need passes out of their system anyway.

 

[glenolam]

Quote:
I'm going to disagree here. It's been suggested (not formally tested or proven, mind you) that goats who are vaccinated on a schedule with chemical wormers actually aid the worms in becoming resistant parasites to the wormer. I never worm my goats unless they have just kidded (I worm all my does 1-3 days after they kid then follow up again 10 days later) or they actually have a worm issue, which is either confirmed by a fecal test or using the FAMCHA chart.

I do agree with the ivomec. It's so far the only wormer I've had to use, but I've yet to have any real worm issues. Maybe I'm just lucky or have healthy goats

You can also give vaccinations between now and 20 days til the due date. This will in turn vaccinate the kids.

Agree 100%. I give my does their CD&T shot approximately 2-4 weeks prior to kidding. Then the kids get their CD&T boosters at 3 weeks and 12 weeks old.

To each his own on goat husbandry, but this is the way I do it.

You can either pick your goat up and get on a scale holding her or buy a weight tape. I believe the tapes are more meant for dairy goats, so I'm unsure if it works on meat breeds, though. But since you're talking about a nigerian a goat weight tape will work just fine.

I'm with everyone else - as long as she's eating/drinking/acting fine I wouldn't worry too much.

The only other thing I'd suggest is to get her off sweet feed and on to a lactating feed. For example, I feed all my does a mixture of lactating goat grain (unsweetened), 50% alfalfa pellets (our hay here has little alfalfa), and 25% calf manna.​

 

[adubsroit]

If you want an exact weight you are going to need to use a scale. If you have an accurate bathroom scale that should work fine. Just follow the manufactures instructions for correct use and pick up your goat and get on it. Weight tapes will get you close to the actual weight but they are inherently inaccurate as a whole.