[jennlewis]

On Sept. 6, 2013, we took my son's show goat to the vet because of UC problems. She ended up having to go into his bladder and clean out all of the crystals and he had a catheter in for a week to assist with the healing process. While he was at the he was placed on hay and water only for 3 days, then given a small amount of his show feed after that, increasing a little each day. We brought him home from the vet on Sept. 14; and he seemed to be doing good. He was eating and drinking OK for a couple of days (meaning he would eat his entire ration for the day, but it would take him all day to finish his feedings - 3x a day); however, we were still increasing his feed to get him back to where he was at before surgery. For the last couple of days, he is taking all day and into the night to finish his morning feeding. I have tried to put a different feed in front of him, but he doesn't seem to be interested in that either. We have been drenching him since Monday. He is getting OG's egg drench and a drench that my breeder gave me (she won't tell me what it is); but at this point, I don't think the drench alone is enough. Today we are 25 days from show. Does anyone have any suggestions that would get him interested in feed again? He is drinking about a gallon of water a day and seems to be urinating OK, considering what he's been through. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

 

[loggyacreslivestock]

Most of the time, there are more stones and they become lodged again. Watch his urination carefully.
He also may be very full from the drench depending on what is in it and how much you are giving him. There even may be an appetitie suppressant in it.

 

[ksalvagno]

Are you giving him B Complex shots? That helps to stimulate appetite.

What type of hay are you feeding him? Have you been giving him Probios?

 

[jennlewis]

He is getting B12 on Wednesdays and B Complex on Sundays. And I did start giving him Probios yesterday.

And loggyacreslivestock, I did wonder if he might be getting full on the drench.

 

[ksalvagno]

I don't know that I would be doing all these drenches. Especially if you don't know what is in it. You could be harming him more than good. Now it is critical that his diet is properly balanced so he doesn't get UC again.

I would give him his feed and add alfalfa pellets.

 

[happybleats]

I agee. I would never feed my goat something secret . I would stop the drenching which is stressful. Give daily b complex make sure his feed is balanced to prevent uc. Daily probios Keep water and hay in front of him. Is he chewing a cud? Any temp?

 

[jennlewis]

I haven't noticed that he is chewing cud. I have been giving him a handful of coastal hay daily and a handful of alfalfa hay every other day.

 

[Little-Bits-N-Pieces]

A rumen needs forage to work properly, they need leaves and stems. Try giving him more hay, a handful isn't enough.

 

[happybleats]

If he is not chewing a cud...listen carefully to his rumen...you should hear and feel movment..gasses...if he is not cudding up or you dont hear anything then he Needs C D Antitoxin ..no feed.... hay and leaves only, he should have access to hay free choice for proper rumen function...plenty of fluids and probios..a bit of Baking soda in enough water to drench..maybe 1/2 teaspoon BS
be sure to take his temp...

 

[wildegoats0426]

Not sure if this will help or if there is more problems going on but when my show wethers stopped eating or slowed down on eating. I wouldn't feed them for a day. I know it sounds harsh and was hard for me to do but after that day he started eating real good again.

 

[loggyacreslivestock]

I agree with everything said. However, boer meat show wether goats don't get fed as much hay as your does or bucks because they get "hay bellies" which are unattractive in the show ring. That being said, if he is having belly issues, he should get more hay and less or no grain until he is well again. Just like Happy Bleats said.

 

[goatgirlzCA]

I agree with stopping the drenches and increasing the B12/Complex. Its ok to increase the hay some - we show boers too, so I know how its drummed in to give very little hay. Ours only get a handful of alfalfa stems each twice a day, but when they are out running around sometimes they get into the forage hay, and then they belly out, but it tends to go down within a day anyway. You need to keep him eating and healthy, and worry about hay belly the week before fair.

Are you giving him any AC?

 

[Dani-1995]

I would discontinue the drench as well. Find out what it is first and btw, the egg drench is very filling for them. I would stop that as well until he starts eating his grain and hay... he needs that more than liquid right now.

 

[Dani-1995]

I feed my wethers hay everyday except show days.... It is good for them. They are ruminants and without roughage their digestive doesn't work right. That can equate to poor feed utilazation.

 

[happybleats]

Goats are herbivores....I would not feed any meat product, including eggs to the goats...Its simply not good for them..you can add protien and fat using flax, BOSS, calf manna..IMO: there is no need to feed egg in any form...

 

[Little-Bits-N-Pieces]

An egg mix is normally given to market sheep. It is safe, but I'd rather feed manna as well.

 

[Tenacross]

Not sure if this will help or if there is more problems going on but when my show wethers stopped eating or slowed down on eating. I wouldn't feed them for a day. I know it sounds harsh and was hard for me to do but after that day he started eating real good again.

I agree. I don't think it's harsh at all. You have to get them hungry. My primary experience is with race horses where we pretty much try and get them to eat as much grain as we can. There is an amount they will easily consume and at a certain point of trying to get them to eat more, they will slow down and sometimes even quit you. There are many factors to appetite, but for all animals, there is a point of diminishing returns. In my only three years of experience with goats it seems to be exactly the same when I am trying to get show kids to gain weight by pushing more feed. It's old school animal husbandry to only feed what they will clean up in a timely manner. The opposite of this is free choice feeding where you always keep it in front of them. With this method the animal chooses it's own level of consumption. With horses and goats at *my farm* I actually think they will eat more feed when fed several times a day and only what they will clean up. With the OP's Son's wether, obviously the surgery has thrown him off his feed a little. If he was my goat, I would skip one feeding altogether, then only feed him about 25% of his usual feeding on the next feeding. I would give him about 10 minutes to clean it up and take it away if he didn't. I would keep him at 25% for at least one day and then increase him to 50%, *IF* he is cleaning everything up. Then I would *slowly* hope to increase him to his previous level. At my farm goats eat better if they have at least one other goat to compete with at feed time. Just something else to consider.

 

[ThreeHavens]

I agree with what's been posted -- work on getting his tummy right first, before he's back to his full grain. A bit more hay would be good for his tummy, if you have too much of a hay belly I'd just cut the hay down a few days before the show.

 

[happybleats]

I think show people should request and insist that the hay belly as an attractive asset instead of undesirable lol..its a more natural look....healthy

 

[ThreeHavens]

I agree, Cathy!