[4-Hgoats]

My wether is in our barn, closed up all the time due to adverse weather conditions right now, and he had a cold for a little while. We gave him a pelleted forn of antibiotics and it seemed to help alot. He's not coughing or has a runny nose, anymore. But just this morning i went to feed, and i noticed his fur looks like it got wet, but it does not feel wet. It's the appearance of it, its all greasy looking, and stands up from his body, like when a cat puffs up its fur. I'm not sure if this has anything to do with the antibiotics or him having that cold. But ive heard of pigs getting greasy hair, then dying. I hope this os nothing serious.
- he was on antibiotics for 6 days now,the dosasage was 4 oz a day, a man who has goats from the feed store reccomemded this med. for colds.
-the barn is not drafy, but it's well ventilated
- he is housed with a pygmy goat, and it's fur is fine.
- he is fed dairy goat power grain- about a half pound twice a day
- he is fed orchard grass mix hay-twice a day.
- another thing that might or might not have something to do with this, is every once in while, i go to change out the forzen water buckets, and i find a frozen mole or mouse in the water. they must go in there then drown and freeze. im assuming if the goats drank the water with the dead animal in it it could make them sick. i can't think of much to prevent mice getting into the water buckets. i guess the mice are thirsty too! lol

 

[sweetgoatmama]

I don't know of any goatdisease that would show greasy hair and then be fatal. Most likely he's just not real healthy yet. You can try rubbing him with cornmeal to absorb some of the grease.

Mice in the water are not a good thing. Can you screen most of the bucket so they can't get in there?

 

[4-Hgoats]

I couldn't really find any diseases either. My mom suggested it might be just condensation on the fur, and then it froze to form a stiff grasy appearnce. i guess the hair isn't really greasy, just appears that way

 

[ali pearson]

I don't know about the greasy looking hair either- my dog came home with his head looking like that once, and it was grease. He had gotten into a big bag of what smelled like french fries. Maybe your goat laid under the tractor- another place there is lots of grease.

As for the mice, I always tie a short peice of rope so it hangs into the water so they can climb out.

 

[Nanno]

A string in the water bucket is a good idea. Do the goats ever pull it out and chew it?

I float a chunk of wood in the water so the mice can climb onto it. They crawl out when it floats near the edge.

If there's grease in your goat's hair, you'll notice a slick (or sticky) feel to his coat, and you'll have grease on your hands after you pet him. Otherwise he probably just got wet like your mom says. Or maybe he's simply shining with good health now that he's over his cold, and you suddenly noticed.

 

[4-Hgoats]

I never thought of putting something in the water. I have a feeling my goats would chew up whatever i put in there though. I guess i could find a big stick or something and put on the side of the bucket. I wish mice were smart enough to know not to go into a bucket of water. The goats fur is stiff and crunchy, I dont think he got wet because theres no water anywhere, unless he had fun with the water bucket! I know it's not grease, it just looks greasy. I'm not going to worry about it, because he's eating and drinking normally, and seems healthy, his cold has even got better. He still coughs though.

 

[Nanno]

If his fur is stiff and crunchy, it means he got into something yucky. It could be some kind of grease (which I suppose could turn the hair crunchy after it gets dirt rubbed in it), or something sticky like sap. He may have rolled in a pee patch or something. Goats usually keep themselves very clean, but maybe he was accidentally in the wrong place at the wrong time. Or maybe he's showing buck-like tendencies and peeing on himself. Does he smell bad? My goat used to sometimes have crusty (and sometimes coiffed or missing) hair because the horses would lick him or chew on him.

 

[idahonancy]

My experience is limited. One of my goats had dry flaky skin and his coat was fair. My vet said to put oil in his diet. The farm store said horse people use flax for thier horses. He sold it a 50lb bag. I mix it with black oil sunflower seeds (bird food) and a little bit of pumpkin seeds (squirel food). I give the boys a ration regularly. After a couple of months the dry skin went away and has not return in the 2 years I've been doing this. Thier coats are soft and and have a shine to them.
IdahoNancy