SOS have a hurt baby goat!!!

[kentuckychicks]

Thanks enola! I sure I will have sooooooo many more questions! it just helps to know someone is listening to me freak out lol

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

Here's a good site with lots of goat info:
Quote:
http://fiascofarm.com/goats/feeding.htm

You'll need to do your fencing and shelter soon since having him in the house will get old in a hurry.
I imagnine the man you got him from has a banding tool for castrating

 

[chooks4life]

Everyone's got their own opinions and experiences, and I don't intend to try to contradict anyone else's advice, which may well be the right advice for your circumstance --- what works for one individual may not work for another, speaking of both humans and animals. It's best to get as many opinions as possible. All will have something relevant in them, if my experiences of talking with different farmers, and my own farming experiences, have taught me anything.

Here's some info from my experiences on goat rearing (sheep get mixed in too because they're a lot more alike than different in many ways).

It's worth bearing in mind that some breeds and even some strains of some breeds have very particular needs. Not all goats/ sheep/ horses/ dogs/ cats/ chickens (etc, etc, etc) are the same as others of their species. There are vast variances with some (i.e. sensitivities), and even within a given family there can be major differences. Dairy goat breeds from intensively farmed ancestry may do well with less often feeds than feral goatlings who drink small amounts very often (as a generalized example). So you need to watch how he responds to things, and remember that sometimes what is generally considered the best, most widely followed advice can be the wrong advice for your situation.

In my experiences with goats and sheep, milk replacer can give good results. I wonder if the stuff in your country is as good as the stuff in Australia though, because I do hear a lot of negative results quoted from other places. I've reared many neglected, sick, injured, (etc --- special needs) orphans on milk replacer/formula with great results. Raw cow's milk is fine, but raw goat's milk is better. There are those who play it safer by pasteurizing all milk they drink, but you need to ensure they obtain enzymes from somewhere if you do that. But this case is a moot point because he's already had raw milk, I assume, from his mother.

I think the feed table advice from Bearfoot Farms is a good guideline. There can be massive discrepancies between different but equally successful feed plans, so watch the kid and see how he does. For the best health, baby animals should always be left a little hungry. A full glut is not something natural to most species as a rule and their systems don't cope well if enabled to consume all they want. A glut is a seasonal exception to most species, or a rare occurrence, not the dietary rule. Overfeeding kills far more often than underfeeding.

I'd leave hay and other feeds available to him because in a natural state he can start tasting/consuming natural fodder immediately; as soon as he's interested is the right time, in my experience. Sometimes you see a newborn already checking out what mother's eating. Some lambs and kids are grazing regularly by the end of their first or second week, others take up to six months or more to fully rely on pasture... His genetics will determine what he needs and when. It would help to identify his breed and target info for that breed. Also, there may be genetic diseases you need to be aware of for his type.

I'd watch him with the green grass because bloating is common (more with sheep than goats) when going straight from milk to grass or from grass to milk. With my current orphan lamb I had to enforce a 30-minute wait time between milk and green grass. Letting her eat lucerne hay, dried plants etc was fine.

If diarrhea (scouring) does occur, having fresh/raw or dried raspberry leaf or berries on hand can stop it. Sounds overly simple but it can be a lifesaver. Leaves especially are good for scouring. You can feed them as-is, or make a tea.

But I'd get hold of charcoal powder too, if you don't already have it, anything from well burnt charcoal from untreated wood fires to store-bought activated charcoal in powder or pill form, because being a goat he's going to eat everything poisonous he sees and is able to get at, and charcoal can save them even when they're prostrate and convulsing, frothing at the mouth. This can be a lifesaver for everything from humans to chickens and all other pet and livestock animals. I'd strongly advise you to keep some always available at home, because for some overdoses of medications, toxins, etc you may waste vital time going to a hospital or vet just for them to administer the charcoal you could have administered at home.

(Of course, I'm not saying skip a hospital or vet trip in an emergency, or take guesses as to what the cause of the emergency is instead of getting professional help if necessary --- I'm just saying that if they ask you on the phone if you've got it, then it's a lifesaving "convenience". Brain and vital organ damage, especially of the liver, occurs under toxicity as a general rule, being among the most common results of severe poisoning, and time is of the essence).

Another thing you should do is cast a very critical, perhaps almost paranoid eye around the place, trying to spot any and every thing he may be able to consume. Just because you don't think he can eat it, or wouldn't want to, doesn't mean he can't or won't. Glass, metal, plastic, string, wire, paint, wood, fabrics, etc. --- some goats (and some sheep) are like mobile mincing machines with conveyor belt mouths. Some just don't learn. Also, those very sharp teeth are able to do your fingers some nasty damage if you try to retrieve something inedible while he's enthusiastically chomping away, so best to make sure it doesn't get in there in the first place. Since he's not pika'd, we can assume he's probably less likely to bite hands that smell like food.

While we always raised our goats and sheep around little children, we stopped disbudding them after the first two, and didn't find any injuries occurred, but, having said that, being your first goat and your kids being inexperienced, I would disbud him to ensure the safety of all involved. A horn in an eyesocket is a bad situation. No matter how many times you warn kids, they're kids, and reality may not yet have intruded into their mindset.

As for castrating... I don't do it as a rule, but it's a very personal choice. Not being desexed won't guarantee bad behavior just like being desexed won't guarantee good behavior. I've met nasty wethers and wonderful bucks. One particular buck had full horns and was as friendly as any kid. But, yes, he stank, of ammonia... Nastily so.

I believe the individual is more a result of genetics, family experiences, environment, and so forth than they are of gender/hormones alone. That's always been my experience with males (and females) of all species I've dealt with, wild or domesticated. Having said that, since he's your first goat, it may well be wiser to desex, and the sooner the kinder trauma-wise though he won't quite grow as well as an undesexed one... But that's not relevant here.

I would watch him closely with the children, (sorry for advising what you no doubt would already do... I know it's saying the obvious, but, just in case)... Because sometimes they react to whatever makes him react, so if they do something that looks like a play-fight challenge to him, and he engages, they may unintentionally teach him to tackle humans. We had to repeatedly remind the littlest to not push against their horn buds, not get down on all fours and shake their heads at them.

Goats are in general wonderful characters though, and physically tough, so they make an ideal children's pet. They can learn other games than the ones they play with fellow goats. Some animals are inclined to be bullies, so if he shows signs of that, I wouldn't let him get too large before I got rid of him. Bullies in all species tend to show their proclivities at a young age, picking on much smaller animals, or only engaging in unfair situations, and most don't really grow out of it. If that happens, don't blame yourself, chances are it's nothing you did that made him go that way. But, again, that's an abstract possibility. Nothing to worry about.

I would seek the advice of as many people as you can, and do a good few web searches, and I hope it all goes well for you. Best wishes.

 

[kentuckychicks]

Thanks again for all the advice! We are going to pick him up this afternoon! My five year old has vetoed my idea to name all food source animals after well food. She has named him Buckley the buck.

I have found three "goat people" in this area so that actually makes me feel better! None of them disbud their goats though so that due of lack of options he will have horns.

We are getting him castrated today or tomorrow just because I don't think it's a great idea for us to start off with a buck. We had planned on raising Kinder goats so we are looking around for two Nubian does for him to pal around with for now and later he go keep a Pygmy buck company.

I do have another question though? On this website there is a chicken first aid kit list for common chicken ailments. Does anyone have a list for putting together a first aid kit for goats ? When to worm ect.

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

Quote: The site I linked to can tell you most of what you need to know about goats
http://fiascofarm.com/

Controlling Goat Parasites:

http://www.sheepandgoat.com/articles/controlgoatparasites.html

http://www.goatwisdom.com/

 

[kentuckychicks]

Ok this is our goat

The goat is not a buck but a doe. They had her in a small hamster cage only getting her out to feed. She is six days old today. When I got there I could not leave her she wasn't moving her back legs at all so sad. I put her in a huge dog kennel and brought her home. Felt over her back legs and can't feel anything broken and she doesn't cry. So we took her out and put her in the floor. She can now stand on her own but with trouble. She is now moving her left rear leg but not her right but she wasn't moving her rear legs at all last night. She seems to be in no pain and only crys if I leave her sight. Any suggestions she is the sweetest little thing and we want to help her so badly

 

[kentuckychicks]

This is her standing she stood up by herself

She's having trouble moving that right leg so her hips kind of twist and...

She gets her legs twisted and spins around to land on her rear

She wags her tail the whole time so no pain

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

Quote:
She may have White Muscle Disease
http://www.sheepandgoat.com/articles/WMD.html
Quote: Quote:

 

[jorey]

Try sister site back yard herds.com. lots of great goat info on there. Helped me when I first got my goats. Good luck. She's adorable.

 

[MoodyBroody622]

This is me and my baby goat Bullwinkle. I bought him around Easter this spring with his brother, They were inseperable little Rocky and Bullwinkle. About a month after we got them Rocky got sick and quickly passed away within 24 hours, of unknown causes. Just two weeks ago his brother and my adopted child Bullwinkle (I'm a teenager and no human children dont worry!) died of unknown causes as well. We think something was wrong with their intestines because Rocky bloated really bad BEFORE he died. So everytime I hear dairy goat I think about my babies! Good luck, keep me updated!