Sick goat help

[patchouligirl]

Hello! i am pretty new to goats. We have two, a wether and doe that we have had since Dec. They are fed orchard grass, and a small amount of goat pellets. i also give them loose minerals.

On monday, i noticed my wether was not himself. He was very quiet and laying down. Very unusual for him. So i called the vet and got him in immediately. The vet diagnosed him with pneumonia, gave him a fever reducer and antibiotic injection and said to call back on Tue. if he wasn't eating.

On Tues. he seemed back to normal. Eating, drinking, playing and vocalizing.

Wed. morning i went out to check them and he was laying down again, and not himself. He was still eating and drinking...but seemed to not feel good. He wasn't as assertive as he usually is, and was very quiet. Called the vet, and they gave him another round of antibiotics.

Today his tail is down and he still seems sick. He's acting depressed, very quiet and slow moving. i let him free range on our back hill and he did eat some...but is still not himself.

How long before he should be fully recovered from the pneumonia? Should i be really concerned, or give him time to get better? i'm so worried, but i can't afford to run him to the vet every day.

Anyone have experience with this sort of thing? Any suggestions for helping him get back on track? Any idea on what could be wrong?

thanks for any help you can offer.

[Chicky2]

Are they dairy goats? If so, then fiascofarms.com is a great site. I'm sorry I don't have any other advice, as I'm fairly new to goats myself.

[missythemom3]

ditto on the fiasco site really good info there. I have little experience with bucks minus the two months we boarded one when we were breeding our does. The first thing that comes to mind when I think of a sick buck is urinary calculi. I don't know the specific symptoms of it but I would look it up just in case. Poor guy I hope he feels better soon.

[1jooj]

My understanding is that there are some antibiotic-resistant strains of pneumonia. You may want to ask the vet about this. I'd also maybe suspect hardware. Good luck, mama.

[patchouligirl]

i've actually been all over the fiasco farms site looking for info. It is a great site i keep it bookmarked.

i watched him urinate today, and there was no straining and it was a normal flow. So i don't think it's urinary calculi.

i'm starting to suspect goat polio (vitamin b-deficiency). Anyone have experience with it?

We had just switch grain from a dry pellet to the Purina one, that is coated in molasses. i don't give him much, but he always finds a way to steal some from our doe.
i just read that feeding molasses-based grains which are prone to mold and the usage of antibiotics destroys flora in the rumen and can cause thiamine deficiency (goat polio).
i gave him some yogurt and crushed baby vitamin this evening. i really hope he shows some improvement tomorrow.

He was up walking around and eating this evening, but he still looks weak and his tail is down.

[1jooj]

Our feed/farm stores also sell probiotic gels and pastes in syringe-type dosing things. They also make vitamin-enhanced electrolye solutions, which can be helpful bringing them back.

Hope he's getting better day by day.

[1jooj]

How is Mr. Goat feeling?

[patchouligirl]

Thanks for asking. He seems back to himself now. i gave him something that was like goat pedyalite plus probiotics and he is back to himself now.

i think the antibiotics just really messed up his guts, and he may have been a bit dehydrated from not eating/drinking when he first got sick.

thanks for the suggestions.

[Berty]

Happy to hear he's feeling better Another great place to ask goat questions is homesteadingtoday.com They have a goat forum with lots of goat people. I've posted a lot of questions and I usually get many responses very quickly.