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Last winter one of my does had thinning hair on ears and muzzle. I looked closer; the skin was somewhat thickened and ridgy. She was also rubbing against the fence and scratching more than usual. After Internet research, it looked like a mild case of sarcoptic mange. It can sometimes go away on its own, I read. I kept an eye on it and tried to boost her health and immune system. The hair grew back after a few weeks, but she and the other two still had just a touch of ridgy skin on the tips of their ears.
Then I got a buck. He didn't have it at first, but within a short time, the same thing showed up on him as well. It doesn't seem to bother them at all; they aren't itchy or anything, and you can't see it unless you look close, so it doesn't bother me. But I intend to eventually sell some kids and probably the buck, and of course I can't sell a goat that carries mange.
So should I have the vet do a skin scraping to be sure? I've read scabies is hard to diagnose because the mites are deep. Can I do my own scraping? Or should I simply treat all four goats as for mange and see if it goes away?
And for those of you who have had scabies in your herd, what methods of eradication actually work?
Then I got a buck. He didn't have it at first, but within a short time, the same thing showed up on him as well. It doesn't seem to bother them at all; they aren't itchy or anything, and you can't see it unless you look close, so it doesn't bother me. But I intend to eventually sell some kids and probably the buck, and of course I can't sell a goat that carries mange.
So should I have the vet do a skin scraping to be sure? I've read scabies is hard to diagnose because the mites are deep. Can I do my own scraping? Or should I simply treat all four goats as for mange and see if it goes away?
And for those of you who have had scabies in your herd, what methods of eradication actually work?