I really need advice here (again all goat owners)

[adorable]

Hi
I am getting 3 pregnant pygmy does .I am picking them up on saturday. The advice i need here is. THe guy told me that he once had sore mouth. Make a long story short. He got rid of all his herd .He waited 6 months and tilt his land. Then he got about 6 more to start is herd again. Now he decided to start into sheep. He said that these goats dont have it. Never did. He bought them from somone else that didnt have sore mouth. Now i do have goats. I am going to keep them seperate from the rest of my herd. but they can smell each other their the fence. Two of them is bagging up pretty good. Do you think i am taking a chance here or is going to be ok. I do know adding more to your herd you are always taking a chance at anything. But i thought he was being with me up front . SO i was happy about that . I just want to remind you . He dosnt have sore mouth now. This happened last winter. He wait 6 months. Just looking for advice. thanks

 

[SheriM]

This is just my opinion, but to me, sore mouth isn't all that big a deal. Yeah, it would be nice to never have to deal with it, but if it does show up, you can work with it. It's not fatal (well, I suppose there could be rare exceptions, but generally speaking) and once they've had it, they're not likely to get it again. Anyway, if you really are concerned about it, you should definitely pen the new goats away from your existing herd, but then, you should do that with new goats every time anyhow. I always quarantine incoming animals for at least a month...and that means a full quarantine, where they cannot touch each other and feces, etc, can't mingle. Not everyone has that option, of course, but if you do, that's definitely best.

I have heard, but have no scientific data, that orf (sore mouth) can live in the soil for years, and winter temps have no effect on it, so if he had it before, chances are it's still in his soil. Now, that's not to say the new goats he got will have picked it up, but there is a chance.

 

[Chatychick]

I agree with SheriM as I had it this year and now that my girls had it they wont get it again...They should be fine if they do get it and they dont look good when they do have it but once its over they will be back to normal...

 

[B. Saffles Farms]

Yep I agree with sheri and chattychick.

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

It's unanimous. sore mouth is seldom a real problem, and once they have a mild case, they will be immune.

Once in a great while will it be severe enough to cause serious problems