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Recovering from Dog attack.

806 views 24 replies 10 participants last post by  Goats Rock 
#1 ·
I apologize if this question had been asked before. I had 2 Lamanchas, lost one to a dog attack. Sugar Momma my remaining girl, is a survivor! The dog tore one of her little ears off, and left deep puncture/ tear wounds. The infection set in fast, but we are on the winning side. Penicillin, wound cleaning, and lots of attention are working, but she's not completely healed. She is also getting bored and lonely. I know the devil is in the details, so, the attack happened 7 days ago. So, finally, my question, is it okay to to get her a friend now, or should I wait until she is completely healed? I want to purchase a doe and her doeling, is that okay, or should I consider other options? Thank you.
 
#3 ·
First off welcome! Sorry it wasn't under better circumstances.

I think having a couple friends with her would help to reduce her stress level, assuming she's alone now. If it there were problems, is there a way you could separate her from the others but have it so she could still see them?

I hope she continues to stay on the mend for you.
 
#5 ·
She is alone. I can separate her from the others, and still keep them in sight of each other. I have 2 currently empty pastures, and a circle pen, all with shelters. Now to find suitable companions. I live in Western Washington, I'm not picky about the breed, but I do prefer Lamancha sized-ish goats. Any suggestions on where to locate Lamancha sized-ish goats?
 
#8 ·
Thank you Suzanne. I found a knowledgeable breeder that is willing to part with one of her does. She fortunately is not too far away from me. We will be visiting her this Tuesday. As for Sugar Momma she is doing surprisingly well. She is scratching her head on my boot right now lol. She is back to being her normal curious self, although she is still very needy. We spend a lot of time with her making sure she doesn't get lonely.
 
#14 ·
Update, we brought home a new doe yesterday. Her name is Penny. She is the sweetest thing ever. Super calm and affectionate. My Sugar Momma, the one recovering from the dog attack, is incredibly mean to her. Constantly trying to head butt and bite Penny. Right now they are in separate pastures, where they can see and hear each other so nobody gets hurt. I'm hoping Sugar quits being a brat soon. They don't like being alone. If anybody is willing, I'd love some goat wisdom. Sugar does have horns, she is sporting bright yellow tennis balls and purple duct tape. It is hilarious! At least Sugar can't stab Penny this way.
 
#16 ·
Maybe try having them share a fence line in a day or 2? Then when you put them together having hiding places can help, along with separate feeding & drinking areas. I'm sure they will work it out eventually. Sorry to hear, it sounds like you had to put your own dog down? That must have been incredibly difficult.
 
#17 ·
I can do that. Maybe I'm just being impatient. I want them to be friends. I forgot to mention Penny is expecting, she is due in May. We are being extra careful with her. I hope her kids are just as sweet and loving as she is. Yes we did have to have our dog put down. She was an older rescue, we were told she was great with all animals. Heck she ate with the chickens, acted like she was part of the flock. She did kill a stray cat, then attacked our goats. It was still a hard decision, but we didn't want to find out what was next.
 
#19 ·
The dog will not be a problem. She was put down.
I know it sounds sad but I would have done the same thing. The dog could ,someday attack another one of your goats and kill it...i know it is just instincts but I would have to get rid of her
 
#21 ·
Hello from 30min north of Seattle! Sorry to hear about your dog and goats. It might help your goats get along if there are more feeding areas than goats. I go by (number of goats) + 1 = number of water buckets and hay feeders spread out across the enclosure. It also helps to have more than 1 shelter. They'll still have a firm "discussion" about who's boss. As long as neither has the other cornered and they aren't drawing blood, you can just let them do their thing. Good luck!
 
#24 ·
Oh man! These stubborn girls! I have followed everybody's advice as best as I am able to. During daylight hours I have them in separate pastures. At night they are sharing a stall that we split into 2 stalls. They are close together but can't touch. I don't want then able to brall when I can't intervene.There's only 2 goats, I put out 4 feed and water stations. Today I'm going to open up both pastures and let them have free range. Hopefully, this will give them the space and time to work out their differences. The new girl is perfectly happy letting the old girl be the queen. The queen is absolutely relentless, she head butts, bites, and chases the new girl. It's gotten to the point where my hubby wants to buy one of the new girls herd members. He's thinking they could protect each other from our awnry old girl. Its only been a few days, I still think that with time they'll be fine. In the mean the time I can't handle any more injuries or deaths. My heart is still broken, and I still have nightmares. Forgive me for being over protective and worrisome. I need my little farm to be happy again.
 
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