# precocious udder or sub.mastitis??



## mcdaid36 (Nov 12, 2010)

We are fairly new to the goat world, only had a few for the last year and a half.  I brought home a new Alpine doe yesterday to add to our herd.  She  is a yearling, just bred for the first time at the end of October.  When we picked her out a couple of months ago (they kept her until she was bred for me), she was amazing looking, already showing signs of an udder forming.  Not big, but enough to make all of us think she'd have a nice size udder and plenty of milk when she does kid. 

When I brought her home yesterday however, I noticed one side of her udder is about 3 times the size of the other side. The teat and half of the udder are both bigger.  When I squeezed the teat, I can definitely feel fluid in there (milk, I suppose!).  The other side looks just like it should for a goat who has never been in milk before. 

I emailed the woman I got her from, who said not to milk it out, just to leave it alone, and when she does come into milk, she will be evened out.  She said her twin sister has the same thing.  These were all bottle fed babies, they did not suckle on mom so I don't think anything could have gotten passed down to them that way.  

Doing internet research I get conflicting info - some say precocious udders present this way, others say they only come in evenly.  Some say to milk it out and send away a test sample, others say not to because then you're opening up the teat to infection.  Some say it's definitely subclinical mastitis and I should be treating it now.  I'm so confused!

I would have no problem asking the vet to come look at her, but that would run me $100, and the fact that I'm just outside NY city means that the vet does not have much experience with goats!  There are no farm animal vets around here that really know what they're doing. 

Any help would be greatly appreciated.  We do drink the goat milk raw, and I'm wondering if that might be an issue with this doe when she freshens.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!


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## glenolam (Nov 12, 2010)

Is there a chance she was bred prior to October?  My recollection is that Mastitis only comes _after_ a doe is in milk, not before the doe has ever been in milk.

My yearling (ob x nub)was bred beginning of September and still hasn't formed an udder, FWIW - all does, of course, are different.  I would be leaning towards precocious udder - especially if she's never kidded before and has never been bred except for a month ago.

ETA: - if you are concerned about mastitis, it may be helpful to get a test and drop a little in the test cup.  I don't _think_ it's necessary, but might ease your concerns about it a little.

And


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## mcdaid36 (Nov 12, 2010)

Thanks for the welcome!  I've been a member of BYC for a few years, but never BYH.  

There was no chance she was bred before Oct. I would be happy to test for mastitis now, except I'm nervous to strip away the wax plug and then really open her up to getting some sort of infection.  My thought was to leave it for now, keeping an eye on it to make sure it doesn't get hot or really tight, and if it doesn't then test for mastitis after she kids.  

On the internet people say to treat for mastitis before the milk comes in for real, it would be easier to do that way.  I got the impression a doe can get mastitis at any time, that it can even pass from mother to baby and the baby can get it later on in life before being bred herself.  This is all very confusing!


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## glenolam (Nov 12, 2010)

I'm not sure about when a doe can get mastitis, so you could be absolutely right regarding a doe passing it to a kid or getting it w/out kidding before.  *Luckily* I haven't dealt with it, so I'm not certain.  Hopefully someone who's had experience will chime in.

How's her temperature?  Does she seem off at all?


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## cmjust0 (Nov 12, 2010)

A picture might be helpful.


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## mcdaid36 (Nov 12, 2010)

Temp is fine, she does seem a little off, but I think that's just because she came to her new home last night and she's not sure of her new surroundings yet.  Typical stuff.  Hasn't wanted to eat any grain except for a few nibbles this morning, but i did see her eating some hay and foraging in the pasture today.

Here's a picture (hope it works for you), you can just make out the other teat that is normal size for a doe that has never been in milk before. 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/36864546@N02/5169661861/

or maybe this will work:
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/36864546@N02/5169661861/" title="IMG_2181 by mcdaid36, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1425/5169661861_03d6b53f37.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="IMG_2181" /></a>


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## cmjust0 (Nov 12, 2010)

The photo's set to private...can't see it.  

Wait, no...I got it.  Here.







I frankly don't like the way that looks.  Personally, I'd strip it and test it -- teat plug be damned.


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## mcdaid36 (Nov 12, 2010)

Test it using what?  A CMT or send it out to a lab?  I don't have any testing supplies here, so I'd have to drive an hour to the nearest TSC and hope that they have them in stock.   Maybe I should just have the vet come out and take a look and do a CAE test on everyone while she's here.  Problem is vets around here don't have much experience with animals that produce milk for human consumption.


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## cmjust0 (Nov 12, 2010)

mcdaid36 said:
			
		

> Test it using what?  A CMT or send it out to a lab?  I don't have any testing supplies here, so I'd have to drive an hour to the nearest TSC and hope that they have them in stock.   Maybe I should just have the vet come out and take a look and do a CAE test on everyone while she's here.  Problem is vets around here don't have much experience with animals that produce milk for human consumption.


You can order the CMT kit from Jeffers here.


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## mcdaid36 (Nov 12, 2010)

Thanks.  Yes, I knew I could order it, I just didn't know if this was a rush job and I should just suck it up and drive the hour to the store in order to do the test sooner.  If I order it, is it just something that can be used once or does it do multiple tests?


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## cmjust0 (Nov 12, 2010)

I've never had to do a mastitis test before, but so far as I know, the hardware in the kit is reusable and you get like a pint of the solution..  You can also buy replacement solution, so I'd certainly think it would do multiple tests.

FWIW, the thing that concerns me about that photo is the shape of the teat...  It's like a football, and I just can't think of a really good reason for it to be wider toward the center but 'pinched' at the base like that..  Plus, the fullness of the udder doesn't seem to match the fullness of the teat..  

That's why I'm saying I'd strip and test **if I were you.**


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## aggieterpkatie (Nov 12, 2010)

I'd also go ahead and strip it and test, just in case.  Wash the teat with warm soapy water first, then strip it completely out, then wash again or use a good teat dip.  

And FWIW, I've never heard of a mother passing mastitis to her baby, then the baby carrying it for a year or two before getting it.  In fact, many dairies feed their heifer calves waste milk (either treated milk or mastitic milk) with no issues.  Only when a calf (or goat) has been fed mastitic milk and then nursed on another animal's teat is their an issue of transferring.  

Is there any way this goat could have been nursed on by another goat?  I'm not thinking she has mastitis from it, just wondering if it could have brought on production or something.


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## mcdaid36 (Nov 12, 2010)

From what I saw, it looked like the pen she was kept in was only for yearlings and older.  I didn't see any that were born this spring, they were all grown up, but maybe she did have one there that I didn't see.   Thanks for the info.  I'm ordering a test and will keep an eye on it in the meantime to make sure it doesn't get full and hard.  I'm also going to call the vet and see if she can come sometime soon, I figure I can have her take everyones blood for CAE testing at the same time so it's not a waste of a visit. 

Thanks for the input!


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