Nursing goat suddenly blind

[littlekatzz]

Went out for a smoke and heard one of my month old baby goat screaming his head off. He is suddenly blind? Can't find any injuries or anything that could have caused it. His brother and sister are fine. But he is just looking at the sky not blinking. I gave him two of my b vit mixed in water and syringed into his mouth in case of polio. Polio is the only thing I can find that matches his symptoms. He is currently curled with me in my living room. Should I give him probiotics as well?

 

[H Diamond]

Polio is what first comes to mind for me also. You need to go out and get thiamine from your vet. If you can't do that tonight, go find a farm store that sells fortified b comple, you need to get him on a 20 mg/kg every three hours dose.

Blindness can also be caused by things like vit a deficiency, cae, etc, but sudden onset without injury or consumption of toxins. .. dunno what else it would be.

 

[H Diamond]

Any updates?

 

[littlekatzz]

He passed away this morning

 

[H Diamond]

I'm so sorry! Did he ever exhibit any more/different symptoms?

 

[cassie]

The screaming makes me think this kid had entero. Entero comes on suddenly without warning. It is not unususal for a goat with entero to also have polio.

Went out for a smoke and heard one of my month old baby goat screaming his head off. He is suddenly blind? Can't find any injuries or anything that could have caused it. His brother and sister are fine. But he is just looking at the sky not blinking. I gave him two of my b vit mixed in water and syringed into his mouth in case of polio. Polio is the only thing I can find that matches his symptoms. He is currently curled with me in my living room. Should I give him probiotics as well?

The screaming makes me think this kid had entero. Entero comes on suddenly and unless the animal gets a shot of antitoxin it will probably die fairly quickly. It is not unusual at all for a goat with entero to also have polio.The fact that the onset was so rapid makes me think that was the case here.

 

[littlekatzz]

Sorry for the delay last few days have been hectic. He had seizures, coma, fever, random screaming, blindness, and towards the end his head twisted yo the side permantly. This was one of the most heartbreaking thing I've ever seen. I was giving him penicillin, lg doses of vit b, and probiotics .

 

[cassie]

This REALLY sounds like entero combined with polio. If you haven't yet vaccinated your goats and kids for entero with clostridium perfingens toxoid do so at once. It is also a good idea to keep clostridium perfingens antitoxin on hand at all times. While vaccination greatly reduces the incidence of entero, it doesn't completely eliminate it. Entero stikes suddenly and without warning. It is a true emergency.