Help! Watery scours in baby goats!

[Livia Stouffer]

They are not bloated anymore!
I have no idea what changed other than them walking around a bit and taking a nap. They haven't pooped in a while, but they are very tired, and as am I. So I will start tomorrow with only electrolytes for their diet and slowly try again with formula. And I'll make sure to be exact with a kitchen scale and be careful with the amount I feed.
Their teeth grinding is still happening a tiny bit, but I was wondering if any of it is from teething? Because they're trying to chew on everything. But in case it is from pain, I'm keeping them inside because of the weather and for close monitoring.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

When they are in pain they generally get still and moan. If they are moving about it may just be them trying out their teeth. They are old enough to have some hay stuffed in their mouths after a bottle. They generally will spit it back out, but eventually they get a taste for it.

 

[Livia Stouffer]

Well, they're very active this morning, but extremely upset about their electrolyte only breakfast. They each got close to 5 oz of Pedialyte. I'm going to get my sister to give them some more around 10 because I have to leave. Let me know if there's anything else we should be doing!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I would start back with some replacer if they are doing well. Just reduce the amount. They can eat a bit less for a day. Than slowly increase it.

If you see loose stools or bloating than feed a bit less. Are these dairy kids or miniatures? At 2 weeks I generally shoot for 8-10 ounces, 3 times a day but that's for the bigger dairy kids. Miniatures should get probably half that amount. I had always followed up with a bit of warm water. Not too much. Goat kids act like they are always starving. Don't let them convince you to feed too much.

 

[Livia Stouffer]

I would start back with some replacer if they are doing well. Just reduce the amount. They can eat a bit less for a day. Than slowly increase it.

If you see loose stools or bloating than feed a bit less. Are these dairy kids or miniatures? At 2 weeks I generally shoot for 8-10 ounces, 3 times a day but that's for the bigger dairy kids. Miniatures should get probably half that amount. I had always followed up with a bit of warm water. Not too much. Goat kids act like they are always starving. Don't let them convince you to feed too much.

They're an alpine mix, so they're pretty big, but not big like meat goats.

 

[Livia Stouffer]

I would start back with some replacer if they are doing well. Just reduce the amount. They can eat a bit less for a day. Than slowly increase it.

If you see loose stools or bloating than feed a bit less. Are these dairy kids or miniatures? At 2 weeks I generally shoot for 8-10 ounces, 3 times a day but that's for the bigger dairy kids. Miniatures should get probably half that amount. I had always followed up with a bit of warm water. Not too much. Goat kids act like they are always starving. Don't let them convince you to feed too much.

They were drinking close to 10 oz of formula before the scours. And they were getting it at 6:30 am, 1:00 pm, and 6-7 pm. Is this still too much?

 

[Livia Stouffer]

Here they are from a couple days ago

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

It is if they are scouring. Poops should be pasty, but not runny. So backing off for a bit may help them adjust. I would do 8 ounces for now. See how they do. If okay slowly increase it to 10 over the next week or two.

I like alpine. They are good friendly goats.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Here they are from a couple days ago

They don't look quite like 2 weeks old to me. So definitely back off on the amounts. 6-8 ounces 3 times a day looks more appropriate. See how they do. Sometimes you gotta tweak it until you get it figured out what they do best on. You want them fed, but not full.

 

[cassie]

Our vet told us to stop using whole milk. but I'll bring up the issues we've been having with the replacer and see what he says.

I cannot imagine why your vet told you not to feed whole cow milk. From experience with raising literally hundreds of baby goats I can tell you that baby goats do just fine on cow milk and that calves thrive on goat milk. When I was raising kids and had milk cows, the kids got cow milk and the calves got goat milk. I was on a CAE prevention program. CAE is carried in the milk, so if I fed goat milk I had to pasteurize it. Cows do not carry CAE so I could feed it raw.

Bear in mind that some kids do just fine on replacer and others simply cannot tolerate it. That is true even for the expensive replacers made especially for kids. Kids that cannot tolerate replacer may scour, they may not grow well, and others simply blow up and die very quickly. Kids that bloat will do so without warning and usually within about 20 minutes after being fed. If you are going to feed replacer, which from personal experience I do not recommend, keep a supply of GasX on hand. It is very effective in treating bloat both in kids and in adult goats.

I have not read the full thread but here is a formula for baby goats that a Boer breeder came up with to feed her kids. I think I saw it printed in the America Boer Goat magazine. Take a gallon jug of store milk. Pour off about a quart. Add to the jug a cup of buttermilk and a can of evaporated (not sweetened condensed) milk. Shake it up and fill the jug back up with some of the milk you poured off. Or you can just feed milk from the store. As I said, I cannot imagine why your vet told you not to feed it.