accident with goat update: I think she is going into labor

[cassie]

A wise old vet once told me that the big difference between sheep and goats was that sheep blunder into trouble but goats seek it out. In the 40 plus years I raised goats I have thought of that man often.

 

[animalgirl2010]

Thanks for all your advice it has really helped, I have almost a full bottle of penicillin on hand so if she needs more that is no problem at all, but this feed store doesnt have the probios

He didnt give any pain meds she doesnt act like she is in a lot of pain still has an appetite she of course hasnt eaten as much as she normally would but I took her some grain and some cereal that I give them for a treat every now and then and she ate all the cereal and some of the grain. As far as the shot he gave her one last night and said to do it in the side neck area but im a little nervous about that because I read that if you accidently hit a vein it would kill them he gave her the shot yesterday evening so I thought I would wait a little later in the day to give it to her even though it probably doesnt matter. And yes I knew it was going to be expensive when the vet asked how much we wanted to spend when we got there. She is just a mixed breed goat and we could have easily just gotten another one for 50 bucks or less... but she is our pet and means more to us than $200 or whatever its gonna cost to fix her.

 

[bonnylass79]

If you stay centered on the neck, you shouldn't hit a vein. If you're really worried, pull back slightly on the plunger to see if you draw blood. If you do, you've hit a vein. If not then you're in the muscle.

It sounds like you're doing everything right. If you have a Tractor Supply nearby, they usually have probios. Keeping the injury clean is the most important thing. You can also put some triple antibiotic ointment on it to help prevent bacteria from growing in there. I also think it helps it heal faster.

 

[M To The Maxx]

I hope your goat gets better soon!

 

[cmjust0]

Quote:
A good appetite is a really positive sign.. It really doesn't take much to put most goats off their feed which, in most cases, leads to bigger badder compounding problems.

As far as the shot he gave her one last night and said to do it in the side neck area but im a little nervous about that because I read that if you accidently hit a vein it would kill them

Yep...dead as a doornail.

he gave her the shot yesterday evening so I thought I would wait a little later in the day to give it to her even though it probably doesnt matter.

When you do it, I'd suggest SQ'ing it.. I got $100 (...I actually don't, but...) that says if you call him up and ask if it's OK to SQ, he'll be like "Uhhh, sure."

I've seen this before.. Most vets have long since forgotten how nerve racking IM shots can be, especially with something tricky like Pen.. So they just say "IM it" without thinking of you.. What's worse is that IMing vs. SQing meds makes very little difference in a goat save for a very select few medications (lutalyse comes to mind...), especially in a situation like this where it's not absolutely vital to get the blood levels of Pen up ASAP..

I IM stuff when necessary or if I think it'll be beneficial.. A feverish goat or a goat in acute pain gets Banamine IM, for instance.. Lutalyse has to be given IM.. Otherwise, I SQ everything -- and Pen G is top of the list of things I never, ever IM under any circumstances. It's simply not worth the risk of jabbing and pushing blindly, and I certainly don't wanna have to hold one still long enough to jab it in the neck with an 18-20ga needle, then pull back on the plunger to make absolutely sure I don't get a rush of blood....and then push it.

This is precisely why I asked, btw...I just knew you'd been instructed to IM it, and if so, I figured you were probably freaking out a lil bit.

If you doubt me...and you should, 'cuz I'm just some dude on the intarwebs...call your vet and ask if it's OK to SQ it. Betcha diamonds to doughnuts he's ultimately ambivalent about it.

And yes I knew it was going to be expensive when the vet asked how much we wanted to spend when we got there. She is just a mixed breed goat and we could have easily just gotten another one for 50 bucks or less... but she is our pet and means more to us than $200 or whatever its gonna cost to fix her.

If every goat owner thought this way, "total goat replacement" wouldn't be so cheap as $40-$50, which means the barrier to entry into goat ownership would be higher, plus goats would fetch more at market, plus vets would have more experience....basically everyone involved -- goat and human alike -- would be better off for it.

So, thanks.

 

[Skyesrocket]

Wow! What a frightening experience! I'm usually the calm one in bad situations, but that would have thrown me for a loop. You don't have a nearby Tractor Suppy store? They carry the powdered probiotics and the tube with B and probiotics. I prefer the powdered. Like someone said, it will take a few days for the antibiotics to affect her digestion. Jeffers online is a good place to order them. Your vet probably has some too.
Plain yogurt could work too. It just takes a little longer so maybe if you start her on it now? She must be a tough gal, she might be fine without the probios. I do use them anytime they get antibiotics though just in case.
Much luck to you. Please keep us updated!

 

[animalgirl2010]

I check on her just about every hour she is still standing up I took some more cereal down there but she only ate one bite hasnt eaten anymore grain since this morning. We dont have a tsc just a small feed store which mainly has food and dewormer not a whole lot else. I took her some warm water with molasses added to it thought that might give her a boost she seemed to enjoy it. I can get some activia yogurt and start on that tonight if that would help I guess I could order some probios and give her yogurt for now but dont know how soon it would actually get here probably would be good to have on hand anyway though.

 

[cmjust0]

Most of the online/catalog shops like Jeffers and Valley Vet have quick shipping.. Either one would almost certainly have it to your door by Thursday -- Friday at the LATEST -- if you ordered this evening.

Here...I'll make you a wish list of things from Jeffers that I'd probably be using to get through this.

PN-P1 -- 60gm tube of Probios ($6.25)
49-V5 -- 100ml Fortified B-Complex ($4.45, pick-me-up/appetite stimulant)
NE-F1 -- Furi-Sept ($6.15, nitrofurazone antibacterial topical dressing)
A2-CT -- Chlorhexadine disinfectant solution ($4.49, really good wound wash basically.)
XQ-CN -- 6ml luer lock syringes ($0.18/ea)
XQ-C1 -- 3/4" x 22ga polyhub disposable syringes ($0.10/ea)
XQ-AM -- 1"x18ga polyhub disp. syringes ($0.10/ea)
XQ-AQ -- 1"x20ga polyhub disp. syringes ($0.10/ea)
C8-TC -- Essential 3 + T ($3.79x2...I'm guessing the vet gave Tetanus anti-toxin, which means she'll need to be revaccinated and boostered in a couple weeks.)

A little bit of chlorhex to sorta clean her up as she heals, maybe some furazone, probios, a little b-complex, plenty of needles and 6ml luer locks, plus a couple vials of C/D-T for when she's healing up...I think that would about do it. That's all I can think of for now, anyway.

But see, I'd have to throw a few more things on there just to hit the $60 "free shipping" threshold.. Actually, this is when I'd probably say to heck with the 60gm tube of Probios and go for the 300gm tube and the fancy $15 applicator I keep meaning to buy.

 

[animalgirl2010]

Quote:
Thanks so much for that list I am going to order it later tonight. I am also going to walmart to pick up the yogurt untill the order gets here. But I couldnt find the $60 free shipping ... but I found one for $89 and above so looks like im gonna order some more stuff I been wanting from there. I checked on her again just now when I took some apple and carrot to the other goats and she ate a little bit of both still no more grain though. I washed her wound and ended up giving her the injection in the neck where he showed it went very smoothly she stood still for the most part and I was able to make sure it wasnt in the vein. thanks again and I will update in the morning hopefully she will be eating more then

 

[Skyesrocket]

I hope I'm not too late to tell you. While your shopping at jeffers, go to the colum on the left that lists the products. Look for promotions. And you can get free samples of different products! I love free samples!