# think my baby goats neck is broken (not broken but died just now)



## nifftiness (Jun 16, 2010)

Im so upset. My doe has triplets yesterday and everyone was healthy. I had a runt who was doing amazing eating and everything. This afternoon he was fine and eating and running around. I went out at 11:30, and came home at 2 and he was crying but cant lift his head. I can feel him try every so often but its like he is weak. I held a bottle and hes not sucking, but can cry and move his feet, though after moving he lays limp. I am new to this, i dont know if this is a broken neck or possibly floppy kids syndrom.  Im waiting for the vet to call but if its a broken neck Is their anything that can even be done without  spending alot.  Hes laying in my lap right now and every so often works up the energy to cry, 

The other two are doing fine though one has bright orange poopl I just notices as well.


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## Ariel301 (Jun 16, 2010)

If it is not nursing, you need to get milk into it somehow, or it will die pretty quickly. You can use a big syringe and try to squirt it into the back of the mouth for the kid to swallow. If that won't work, it may need to be stomach tubed to feed. It sounds scary, but it's a fairly simple procedure you can learn to do yourself. If you do a search for how to tube feed a kid, you should find some good instructions. 

I'm not sure why a newborn kid would have a broken neck, even if it was especially rambunctious. Was there something high it could have climbed and fallen off of? If it's broken, there's probably nothing really that can be done, at least nothing not extremely expensive. 

I hope your baby turns out ok.


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## cmjust0 (Jun 16, 2010)

Ariel301 said:
			
		

> I'm not sure why a newborn kid would have a broken neck, even if it was especially rambunctious.


Stepped-on, possibly..  That would be my first guess if it is, indeed, a neck injury.

What position is the neck in now?  I've heard people say they think their kids necks are broken because they have their head curled back into their bodies and it seems impossible to straighten them back out...is that what he looks like, or is he just laying flat out with his neck extended?


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## tiffanyh (Jun 16, 2010)

Are you sure it is neck injury and not just weakness? Is he vigorously moving his legs, or does that seem weak too? 

Tube feeding is not hard with the right equipment, but if you syringe feed, be sure to do it slow so he does not aspirate it.

Hope all ends up well, keep us posted.


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## nifftiness (Jun 16, 2010)

Well his neck is not broken. Thankfully. I  started force feeding him by squeezing a bottle and squrting it in the back of his mouth. He can lift his head and stand but shakes while doing it. I talked to the vet earlier and he got me to give him a vitamine e shot and some suger stuff (cant remember the name) that i am giving orally every hour. It doesnt seem to be making a big difference yet but we will see. The doctor said since I seen him eating so much earlier the only thing he can think is that he doesnt have enough glucose in his system from having no fat because he is the runt and is soooo skinny. Its crazy if thats what it is that it happened so fast. He went from totaly fine at 11 to crashed at 2. Im  Im not sure how much to be force feeding him? Im just giving him just under a once every hour of the moms milk, plus 6cc of the suger stuff. Thanks for the kind words, Im so excited it wasnt a broken neck but still kinda stumped on if the suger thing is the problem.   Mabe he wasnt actualy getting any milk when I thought he was earlier. Can goats not latch on properly like human babys?  

Should I be up doing the suger thing every hour at night. I totaly didnt thing to ask the vet that.


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## chicken fruit (Jun 16, 2010)

I've heard of this before but cant think of what its called- weak kid syndrome, or maybe its what CAE looks like in newborns... I really cant remember. I have a few friends that are goat farmers, have been for decades, and this is exactly what they have told me to watch for. 

Unfortunately they told me to watch for it so I'd know to dispatch the kid and not try to nurse it as the suffering never ends. 

Wish I knew something more. i wanna watch the thread and hear what others call it so I can log it away though.

So sorry! Blech. Poor bebe.


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## Roll farms (Jun 16, 2010)

Here is a link to some info on Floppy Kid Syndrome

http://www.goatworld.com/articles/fks/fksrw.shtml

A link to info on white muscle disease (selenium  / E deficiency)

http://www.sheepandgoat.com/articles/WMD.html

I don't think it's WMD, based on his symptoms, I'm more likely to think it's FKS...but it doesn't exactly sound like that, either....

But...the BoSe (Vitamin E shot) won't hurt if it's not WMD and may well help.

If he were here, I'd give him 1 tsp of baking soda dissolved in as little warm water as it takes to dissolve it.  Add 1TBS of propylene glycol (I'm assuming that's the glucose the vet is having you give...?)
I'd let that 'sit' for a while on his stomach (30 minutes) and then tube feed him 3-6 oz (depending on his size) of milk w/ 1 oz of prop. gly.

I'd also give him 3cc of B vitamin ASAP.

Once you get the milk in his belly, I'd leave him be for 4-6 hours and NOT feed him.  Overfeeding / no time to digest can lead to FKS...the milk just sits in the stomach and bacteria grow.

I feed healthy kids every 8 hours, weak ones every 4....and then *only* if I'm sure they're digesting properly.

I'd be very tempted to start giving him Neomycin Sulfate or Scour Halt starting tomorrow as well....if he didn't get enough colostrum from mom, he'll be a sitting duck for e coli w/ his weakened system.

And, I'd give him some probiotics asap, too...ProBios or Kid Paste.
http://www.enasco.com/product/C24482N

Best of luck to you!

ETA:  All this may well give him the poos, but better an energetic kid w/ the poos, than a weak one who's not pooping at all....as soon as he's eating well, switch to an 'all milk' diet.  That and the probios should help straighten things out.


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## nifftiness (Jun 16, 2010)

Im leaning towards the floppy kids syndrom. He deffinitly wasnt into any dirt and it was all fresh hay on the ground.   
Im going to try the baking soda. I dont have anything open around here till tomorow so its all i can try really. He hasnt gone to the bathroom, at all. He will walk to be with the others when i put him down but shakes the whole time walking and then lays down with them and goes to sleep, still not eating at all so iv been feeding him with a medicine dropper.  My husband told he to try to get him miving as much as possible to  keep his heart going and keep him motivated. Should I let him sleep, or try to get him moving every so often. I have him in the house with me now because I think he will get cold being so weak overnight  out in the goat house


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## nifftiness (Jun 17, 2010)

Well i deffinitly tried, did the baking soda thing and all. But he passed just now. I wanted to thank everyone who gave advice. If i have another kidding I think Ill keep the things that are suggested for fks on hand just in case.  Thanks again


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## Lil-patch-of-heaven (Jun 17, 2010)

Sorry to hear of that. 

It sounds like you did everything you could but I know how badly I feel when an animal doesn't make it. I didn't post earlier because I had no experience to offer but I was watching the thread, hoping for the best. So sorry about your losing him. 

Hope the others are doing great.


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## Roll farms (Jun 17, 2010)

I'm sorry you lost him, and DO NOT feel bad...it happens to everyone sooner or later and you tried harder than a lot would have.


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## tiffanyh (Jun 17, 2010)

Sorry for your loss, harder we try, more painful it can be because disappointment and guilt mounts on top of the sadness.

Glucose can cause a change like that that quickly, but getting glucose orally pops them RIGHT BACK Up, then they go low again and then the glucose pops them up again. It doesnt sound like that.

Something was wrong, take comfort in knowing you did what you can do and it woul dhave only been worse for him had you not gotten involved.


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## glenolam (Jun 17, 2010)

I'm sorry you lost him, but it does sound like you tried really hard to keep him comfortable and make him better.  Good luck with the rest.


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## chicken fruit (Jun 17, 2010)

Floppy kid syndrome, thats the name I was trying to remember.

Thats a shame. Its not fun to lose babies.


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## ducks4you (Jun 17, 2010)

Roll farms said:
			
		

> I'm sorry you lost him, and DO NOT feel bad...it happens to everyone sooner or later and you tried harder than a lot would have.


SO SORRY!!


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## tabetha (Jun 24, 2010)

I'm so sorry, that's terrible...

I just wanted to add though... you should NEVER force feed a goat, perhaps if you are very experienced and know the anatomy of a goats throat... otherwise, you need to only tube feed a kid that wont eat, or you'll drown it


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## Henrietta23 (Jun 25, 2010)

I'm so sorry.


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