Quote: I don't have a handy image but there are makeshift devices for crippled animals that you may want to look into building. (Even if you don't think of yourself as a builder, really, all you need is a bit of commonsense and the willingness to learn).
All it needs is four castor wheels on a frame at a wide enough spacing to prevent her falling over as she moves, a frame that joins onto that wheel-base frame and goes over her back, and a sling hanging from that over-arching frame to support her body enough for her to practice exercising her legs.
(Something like a baby stroller (or whatever you guys call them in the USA --- a 'walker'?) except suited to a four legged baby).
You ought to be able to get the materials very cheaply from a variety of sources, even the dump. (Sounds pretty unforgivable to some but really the dumps in Australia are like gold mines. Rich folks will quite literally throw away all manner of unused and expensive gear, like home cinemas untouched in their packaging just because they didn't want that for Christmas, or they got two already, or whatever).
People commonly make this sort of thing out of hollow plastic tubing that slots together but anything workable is good. If it has a U-shaped bottom, with wheels on all four 'corners' of the 'u', and an arch sitting over the top of that 'u' bottom, from which to suspend the sling/harness (whatever) then it should be fine. A lot of people think building makeshift cages or structures is something best left to professionals but a lot of animals wouldn't be alive today if their owners had waited on a professional structure. There's a few simple universal designs that work for basically any creature that has four legs. What works for a four-legged predator with weak back legs will also work for a ruminant with weak back legs, for example.
The most important things are to not leave her in there when she really wants to lay down (tough love is good but only up to a point), and make sure the sling or harness or vest or whatever you put her in to help suspend her weight doesn't cut into her at any point, as in apply enough pressure to meddle with her bowels or circulation. It's hard to be too careful about a ruminant's guts when you're talking about external physical obstruction endured for lengths of time at a stretch. They're less tolerant than poultry, cats, dogs, etc. But, don't worry, she should be fine.
Before I made a sling for her, my lamb was running around on normal back legs and the knees of her locked front legs, which were stuck in the bent position, but even like that she could scale a fence over a meter tall in a few seconds. No idea how; she was only the size of a cat at that point, and only a few days past being paralyzed throughout her entire body (victim of paralysis ticks). Initially it was a struggle to make a sling that suited, as she wriggled out front or back, but I used baby T-shirts and clothes, also chopped up random bits of fabric to make it work, and she started to be so keen on her few daily stints in the sling that she would demand to be put in there and complain when taken out, even though by that point she'd be so tired she'd be sagging and sliding out the back. (They go pretty quickly from strolling to sleeping, as I'm sure you've noticed).
All the best. Hope she makes a full recovery. Sorry I didn't reply sooner, I just moved house. (Finally).
All it needs is four castor wheels on a frame at a wide enough spacing to prevent her falling over as she moves, a frame that joins onto that wheel-base frame and goes over her back, and a sling hanging from that over-arching frame to support her body enough for her to practice exercising her legs.
(Something like a baby stroller (or whatever you guys call them in the USA --- a 'walker'?) except suited to a four legged baby).
You ought to be able to get the materials very cheaply from a variety of sources, even the dump. (Sounds pretty unforgivable to some but really the dumps in Australia are like gold mines. Rich folks will quite literally throw away all manner of unused and expensive gear, like home cinemas untouched in their packaging just because they didn't want that for Christmas, or they got two already, or whatever).
People commonly make this sort of thing out of hollow plastic tubing that slots together but anything workable is good. If it has a U-shaped bottom, with wheels on all four 'corners' of the 'u', and an arch sitting over the top of that 'u' bottom, from which to suspend the sling/harness (whatever) then it should be fine. A lot of people think building makeshift cages or structures is something best left to professionals but a lot of animals wouldn't be alive today if their owners had waited on a professional structure. There's a few simple universal designs that work for basically any creature that has four legs. What works for a four-legged predator with weak back legs will also work for a ruminant with weak back legs, for example.
The most important things are to not leave her in there when she really wants to lay down (tough love is good but only up to a point), and make sure the sling or harness or vest or whatever you put her in to help suspend her weight doesn't cut into her at any point, as in apply enough pressure to meddle with her bowels or circulation. It's hard to be too careful about a ruminant's guts when you're talking about external physical obstruction endured for lengths of time at a stretch. They're less tolerant than poultry, cats, dogs, etc. But, don't worry, she should be fine.
Before I made a sling for her, my lamb was running around on normal back legs and the knees of her locked front legs, which were stuck in the bent position, but even like that she could scale a fence over a meter tall in a few seconds. No idea how; she was only the size of a cat at that point, and only a few days past being paralyzed throughout her entire body (victim of paralysis ticks). Initially it was a struggle to make a sling that suited, as she wriggled out front or back, but I used baby T-shirts and clothes, also chopped up random bits of fabric to make it work, and she started to be so keen on her few daily stints in the sling that she would demand to be put in there and complain when taken out, even though by that point she'd be so tired she'd be sagging and sliding out the back. (They go pretty quickly from strolling to sleeping, as I'm sure you've noticed).
All the best. Hope she makes a full recovery. Sorry I didn't reply sooner, I just moved house. (Finally).
I'm feeling a little blue. Seems like despite my best efforts I can't seem to make her better. Plus after half my farming family telling me this weekend that she would never get better and to put her down I'm just having a crap day. I love this little goat and am not giving up but I'm starting to second guess everything! Should I feed her more? Should I do more stretches or less? Is she warm enough too hot? Everything! Just wanted to update you guys and will let you know what the vet says.
