please tell me what is wrong with my goat....

[Mrs. Turbo]

Quote:
I guess I keep taking the wrong advice.....A friend of ours that raises boar goats came out and said my goats looked thin and we needed to start feeding them 2 times a day....Ok, i thought they looked fine but he must know more than I do. So we have been feeding them 2 times a day and buy good hay when there is no grass. We were using mineral blocks, but now have loose minerals......and they get fresh water daily.

We do spend the money to try and keep our animals healty, looking at my vet bill this month anyways, and our monthly feed bill.....I would like more advice on what I am doing wrong, that is why I am here and will not get offended, trust me. I am sure others would like the advice also.

 

[MissPrissy]

I am glad you go t him the help he needed. I am very sorry it had to turn out this way.

Don't kick yourself too hard. WE all have things to learn. I have never had a wether and this is my first year raising bucks from babies to breeding seasoned.

This weeks c-sect sent me through the wringer and I don't want to ever have to do that again.

 

[PineBurrowPeeps]

It's true, everyone makes mistakes and has to learn.
You live, you learn.

 

[Mrs. Turbo]

Quote:
He got antibiotics....the guy we usually see wasn't there today, he will be in tomorrow. They said the needle for numbing would hurt worse than one snip......

They are the only vet in town that will see goats and they usually do a good job. I have not had any problems with the goats in the last 2 years....they just hit me all at once, and we just got that billy 7 months ago.

 

[Mrs. Turbo]

Quote:
MissPrissy, sorry to hear about your goat......I did read the story.

This billy is intact. They are more prone to the UC, right?

 

[fernandez0067]

Hi I was just reading your story! I HAD 4 pygmy goats and now Im down to 3....

We lost our first one within a month of getting him because of the goat feed!!! He had the SAME problem as yours had ... except ours didnt make it

They dont need that goat feed, theyre too little to be able to process it. Just give them hay and turn them out.

I've had mine for over a year now and havent given them one bit of the feed and I never will again.

 

[kinnip]

I'm sure Kate will give you a plan worth following. Cutting back on feed is a good start. I feed my men about 1/2 lb of alfalfa pellet and 1/2 lb goat feed laced with dolomite and yeast once a day. That entire amount--1 lb-- is split between 4 goats. It's really just a vehicle for the supplements. They have hay and whatever they can scrounge in their pen, free choice minerals, AC and Thorvin kelp. I still fret over UC, so I make sure their water is spiked with ACV. It's kept them all healthy for a year now.

 

[Chickerdoodle13]

I guess we were always lucky with our two whethers. They were big old nubians that we had had for about ten years. We fed them twice a day about a 1/2 lb of feed each. I think it was dairy goat feed and they got one flake of hay twice a day.

We never had an issue with UC but when I worked at the small animal vet for about a year, we saw a fair share of goats with UCs and this wasn't evne a vet specializing in goats! They usually jumped right to re-routing the urethra though and I never really liked that. It was funny though. The goats we saw usually always belonged to the same people, so I assumed it had something to do with feed. Also, the goats we got in were usually tiny pygmies or other small breeds.

I hope your guy does better! Always seems that when it rains, it just pours!

 

[Mrs. Turbo]

thanks everyone.....It is a live and learn situation, but it shouldn't be because the animal is the one that suffers. The vet said the stones were small and gritty so hopefully we caught it in time.

So, the baby goats......we feed them goat feed and leave it out in a creep feeder. Just plain old goat feed?

 

[cariboujaguar]

Quote:
AC doesn't help, it doesn't even work as a preventative unless you're trying to prevent scum in your water buckets LOL. surgery is the only fix and I haven't heard enough to think it is UC although that sounds like what it is, she said he was peeing all over in one post... amonium chloride is what he needs in his feed for prevention, although most wethers/bucks don't even need grain... I hope the vet can help at this point...