New goat owner

[Chaseb4]

Hey guys, I was looking on the web to get help with some goat questions and figured someone here could help, so here's my issue. I live on about 3 acres and me and my Fiancé have been having chickens for about 8 months and have been loving it. We'll her brother came across a goat who was a pledge pet for a fraternity at the local college. Needless to say the goat was not taken care of and I don't want to say what happens to the goat once pledging is over... Well one of the guys was keeping the goat in his backyard and his landlord said it had to go. We'll being that we have been interested in farm life her brother asked us if we wanted it, but that we would have to pick it up immediately. So the night before we built a pen in our yard and picked her up the next day. Of course when we go to pick her up, the guy tells us that she is pregnant with two babies. We don't have much information on her, all we know is that she is a type of dairy goat with a brown coat, her color is really similar to a deer. She's been really friendly and has already gotten in better shape in the week we have had her. My only issue is she is pretty skinny around her rear hips. Now I am sure part of that is because when we picked her up she had nothing but a bucket of old soggy dog food to eat, but I was also concerned about maybe some parasites. Is there anything we should be on the lookout for as far as that goes and should we just go ahead and put her on a dewormer? I'll try and posts some pics soon so y'all can tell me what y'all think. Thanks.

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Honestly, your first step needs to be to have the goat fully vetted -given her history, possible pregnancy and likely parasite load paired with you being new to the goat game you really need to have hands/eyes on expertise to help you get your footing with all of this.

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Meant to add - if the goat is bred (the vet can help with this) and in a compromised condition, the involvement of a good vet is even more important. When kidding (birth process for goats) goes well, it's great - but kidding can become complicated quickly and in those situations having someone who knows what they are doing is very important as in the midst of the emergency is not the time to be trying to sort out what to do or learn how to do your first assist.

 

[H Diamond]

A picture would be great. Deer colored, I would guess she is a Oberhasli maybe? In this situation, I might suggest a vet also. If you don't have any good goat vets around, start with taking a fecal sample into any vet to havet them check for worms, or send them into this place: http://www.midamericaagresearch.net/. You might try and figure out her age... you can check her teeth to get a half way idea. Here is how you do that: http://fiascofarm.com/goats/age.htm. Does she have any udder? Flacid at this point I'm sure, but that tells you if she has kidded before or not.
Good quality alfalfa hay, good loose goat mineral, fresh water, and a decent shelter will go a long way.
You might want to pick up some CD&T vaccine, give her 2cc subq, then 4 weeks later give her another dose.
If you don't have any other goats, I would highly recommend getting at least 1 more, either another doe or a wether for her for company. A single goat is a sad goat. I'm sure she is going to have a better life with you than with a bowl of dog food!

 

[Chaseb4]

Here she is

 

[dan26552]

do you have any shuby places that you dont want she'll eat most anything shuby i'd check her eyelids to see if she's anemic or not http://goat-link.com/content/view/110/107/#.VIJAfmTF9nQ

 

[waddles99]

She needs a second goat

 

[dan26552]

She needs a second goat

x2

 

[Chaseb4]

Yea we are in the process of looking for another goat but it has been actually hard to track one down in our area so far

 

[Stacykins]

She is a lovely looking girl! Good luck on your search for a buddy. Be sure to get a wether or another doe. A doe and a buck together spells trouble for the does health, since he will breed her endlessly.

I'd suggest looking up some youtube videos on hoof trimming. Her hooves don't look terrible, but they do need to be done. Don't be afraid, it is quick and easy once you learn how! Definitely do it with a buddy since you likely don't have a stand with a headgate.