[cwatkin]

I have a Saanen doe goat that I am going to be giving away in a week or two once her kid is weaned. She has a very friendly disposition but seems to have one health issue after another. After talking with several others, all have suggested that this one be removed from my herd. All my other goats are healthy and besides routine wormings and vaccines, never have any issues.

This doe is probably about 2 years old. Her first issue was a strange discharge that appears to have been a miscarriage or similar. None of my other does have had this except right before and after giving birth to normal kids.

Her next issue was a bump right under her right ear. I was new to goats at the time but researched and became concerned about CL. I took her to the vet and had it tested and it was CL. This was lanced and cleaned but has since returned.

She gave birth but it was a very hard and difficult birth where I had to pull the kid. The kid was also much smaller than any of my others, even the twins, but appears to be plenty energetic and healthy. The CL bump returned and became obvious just a few days before birth.... Talk about bad timing!

I quarantined her and she gave birth a day or two later. It was a difficult birth and although the kid came out in the normal position, I had to pull it. It was sticking out and she was contracting but it wasn't moving and she seemed to be in a lot more pain than the other goats when they gave birth. The baby was up in no time and nursing faster than any of my others but was smaller as stated.

Everything went fine for a few days until one of her teats became infected while I was out of town and a neighbor was caring for my animals. She lanced the area and a nasty smelly pus came out so I guess it was mastitis? It was scabbed over and healing by the time I got home.

This teat has dried up completely while the other remains full of milk and looks normal. Her udder is very lopsided in appearance because of this but the baby is able to nurse fine off the one side.

The CL lump continued to grow in size and took on the form of two distinct nodules. I was able to obtain some formalin for possible injection into the lump. The hair began to fall off the outer nodule of the bump a couple days after I got the formalin so I used some diabetic needles from a friend that were like 31 gage to inject it. The outer nodule turned dark and scabbed over just as explained on websites on how to inject formalin to treat CL so that is good.

The lower, larger lump continues to grow in size but no hair has fallen off it yet.

My plan is to keep her and try to find her a good home as soon as I feel the baby is ready to eat on her own which should be in a week or two. This is a nice goat with a sweet and friendly personality so I hate to just put her down. I just do not have the time to properly treat and take care of this goat but am willing to give her away to someone who understands all the issues and is willing to give it a go.

E-mail me here and I will let you know when she is ready if you are interested. I am located just south of Rolla, MO.

Thanks,

Conor

 

[Goats Rock]

It almost sounds as if maybe you should consider putting her down, as she has so many health problems. The CL abscesses are so very contagious when they drain that very few people are willing to take on a goat with it.
I know that it must be very hard on you to have to even entertain such an idea (as putting her down), but, chances are, she is full of abscesses internally. That may have been the discharge that you
attributed to a miscarriage. I certainly hope that maybe you can find someone to take care of her. All goats deserve the best life they can have in the time they have to live it!

 

[cwatkin]

Yeah, I would rather not put her town but have had no interested takers either... I was pretty honest about all the health problems that seem to go on all the time. If I put her down, how I should I dispose of the carcass? Cut down and pile up all the cedar trees I want to get rid of and light them on fire with her in the pile? I do not want this on my property and know that fire/heat kills it.

The discharge I thought was a miscarriage was a clear stringy substance like they emit right before birth. It had no resemblance to the cottage cheese goo that comes from the CL but maybe it looks different internally.

All my other goats have been healthy with no major issues and I want to keep it this way so I think getting rid of her is definitely best.

Her kid is happy, bouncy, and seems healthy. I vaccinated the sickly mother like 3 times while she was pregnant so maybe the antibodies have passed along. I also gave her a shot of the vaccine at 3 weeks. I know this is too young for much effect but figure it is better than nothing.

Conor