7-month old kid with bleeding horn, please help, goat experts.!

[Granolamom]

We just got home, to find our little Pygmy mix girl, Princess Peach, with blood all over her face, and one bleeding horn (her previous owner used that infamous disbudding paste on her, and the result is one little, misshapen nub on one side, and a somewhat smallish, curved horn on the other. The curved horn is the one that's bleeding, and she seems to be in considerable pain (I tried to clean it up, but the blood is all tried up already, and very hard to get off her horn and face, plus she wriggles and screams like I'm trying to kill her).
What could have possibly happened here, and what do I do about it now? It does not look like the horn is detached, but it's also very hard to tell, because there's so much blood. I think the tip could possibly be broken off, since it looks shorter than it did.
My instinct is to soak it and disinfect it, but since I have no experience with it, I'm open for suggestions.
thanks!

 

[Lizzy_Lane_Farm]

Oh' so sorry to hear this. First let me say that I AM NOT an expert on animal first-aid!

If it were mine, I would grab a buddy to help me hold the goat down. Wrap it in something, anything...Get some clean rags and some soap and a couple of buckets of warm water. Wash the area clean so you CAN SEE what the problem is. The little goat is going to yell alot but try to not let it get to you. A bit of pain is unavoidable, and it's probably more mad your holding it than in pain.

It may just be a cut and a bit of pressure will stop the bleeding, or a bit of the blood clotting powder will work.

Most important is to get the injury clean and keep it clean while it heals.

If it looks to be injured beyone your comfort level of care, call the vet.

 

[ksacres]

1st, get some Tetanus ANTITOXIN (not toxiod) into your goat. Do you best to trim and clean the area, there's really no need to soak it. Lastly, find someone with an elastrator (for castrating baby goats) and band those scurs so it doesn't happen again.

 

[Chatychick]

Mine did this the other day and I sprayed it with Furall to keep the flies off. If its really bad I cauterize it and if the horn is still there the more it moves the more they bleed. Best to get it off and either use blood stop powder or Wonder dust as its basically the same thing. Some bleed and it seems like alot but it really isnt...After removal spray with some type of fly repellant as its getting fly season. Wonder dust has fly repellant in it also. You can get it at TSC or any farm store. Dont by any means wrap it up as this keeps in germs and then you will have a problem.

 

[Granolamom]

Okay, the vet will swing by on his way home and give her a Tetanus shot. From what I can tell, the horn is still attached, just the tip is broken off, and the bleeding, though profuse, has stopped. I really don't want to remove it, unless it's cracked at the base, because then I'll have to remove both of them, and she'll be up against her mom, who has horns (not really fair, is it?)

 

[username taken]

I'm sorry I missed this ...

LEAVE IT ALONE!!!

Broken horns hurt like hell as you discovered when you tried to clean it. Best thing to do is leave it alone for now ... you can spray it with something if the flies are annoying her. And an antibiotic shot as a precautionary wouldnt hurt.

For now, monitor it and watch it. Depending on the severity of the break (it would help if you posted a picture), many many many breaks are fine to be left alone, and heal up by themselves.

Now, if she continues to bump it on things (you'll know because she'll scream blue murder and you will be seeing fresh blood every day) it needs removal. The way we do it, is to sedate the goat with rompun/xylaxine so they arent completely under but just dopey. We remove the horn at the base with embryotome wire (also known as wire saw) and there is moderate bleeding which we attend to with blood stop powder. Spray the area with something to keep the flies away. The goat 'wakes up' and is back to normal munching food in about half an hour, the horn will eventually grow back although never reach the same length as the other one.

 

[Lizzy_Lane_Farm]

Glad to hear this the vet will take good care of the baby.

 

[Blooming chicks]

How's Princess Peach this morning? What did the Vet say?

 

[Granolamom]

He's my regualar vet who takes care of our cats, and not a goat person at all (he just happens to live in our neighborhood, and so he could swing by on his way home). He gave her the Tetanus shot, but told me that I'd have to see someone else, if she developed any issues.
She seems okay so far, not crying, eating and drinking fine. She's careful not to bump into anything, and so I'm hoping it will just heal. Funny thing is, that she now has 2 horns of the same exact size (before, one was substancially longer, due to her previous owner messing around with that nasty disbudding paste).
So far, so good.

 

[Lizzy_Lane_Farm]

This is good news! Thanks for the update.

Have a wonderful day

~Karyn