# Bladder infection



## gibbygoats (Sep 14, 2009)

My 1 1/2 year old pygmy doe has a bladder infection.  She was straining to pee when I let her out this morning and it was only twickling out.  I called the vet and he told me to give her 4cc of penicilin 2x day for 10 days SubQ.

My question is does anyone know what I can do to prevent this in the future?  What about cranberry juice?


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## cmjust0 (Sep 14, 2009)

Are you absolutely sure it's a bladder infection?  Trickling and straining to pee are also signs of urinary calculi, which I'll grant you are pretty rare in females...but it _does_ happen.

Is she running a fever?


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## gibbygoats (Sep 14, 2009)

I haven't taken her temperature,  But in talking to the vet he said that since I saw her pee in a stream for about 4-5 seconds, but then continue to stain he didn't think she was blocked.


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## kimmyh (Sep 14, 2009)

Does will attempt to urinate to show subservience and to show they are in heat. My guess is, your doe does not have an infection, but rather she is showing you that you are the herd boss.


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## gibbygoats (Sep 14, 2009)

My vet did ask me if she was more vocal than usual,signaling she may be in heat, since she has'nt been vocal, he thought it was a bladder infection. 

I am a little worried though, I just read that it is not ok for goats to eat chicken food.  Although they eat mostly hay and goat pellets.  I do have a chicken that lives with the goats and her food is always in with them.

  Do you think the peeing problem could be related to the chicken food???


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## cmjust0 (Sep 14, 2009)

Constant exposure to feeds not formulated for goats (specifically the potential for <2:1 Ca, high magnesium, etc) could potentially be another strike in the UC column.

That it's a doe makes it significantly less likely, but it's not like females don't form urinary calculi just like bucks and wethers..  They do, indeed, and under the same circumstances as males.  The difference is that the owner usually never knows it on account of a doe's urethra being shorter and wider and without all the crooks and turns and strictures and processes common to males which tend to trap the calculi on the way out..  

If, however, a stone managed to become large enough in the bladder, it could still catch in a doe's urethra.  Like I said, it's rare, but it happens.  

Something else that occurs to me is that we're talking about a pygmy doe here...maybe I'm wrong, as I have practically zero knowledge of the anatomy of pygmy breeds, but I'd hazard a guess that a pygmy doe's urethra is probably smaller in diameter than that of a full-size breed doe..  But, again, I could be wrong.

Personally, I'd get a temperature on this doe.  If she's got a bladder infection bad enough to cause her to strain and carry on, I would _think_ she'd probably have at least a low-grade fever as well...if she didn't, I'd call the vet and let him know she didn't...see if that changes the picture at all.  

As for the chicken feed situation....

It really shouldn't be that difficult to seperate the chicken feed from the goats, given that a chicken is much smaller than even a pygmy goat....just "creep feed" it.  Put the chicken's feeder on the other side of a chicken-sized hole in a fence or stall door or wall or whatever and voila, the goats can't get into the chicken feed anymore.


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## gibbygoats (Sep 14, 2009)

Thanks for all the great info, I'm relativly new to goats so I appriciate it.  

If it is UC, would she have a fever?

Also do I need a special thermometor?  I have a few that I use on my kids(humankids that is), can I use one of those or should I buy a special goat one?


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## ksalvagno (Sep 14, 2009)

The "human" thermometer is fine. That is what I get for my animals.


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## cmjust0 (Sep 14, 2009)

gibbygoats said:
			
		

> Thanks for all the great info, I'm relativly new to goats so I appriciate it.
> 
> If it is UC, would she have a fever?
> 
> Also do I need a special thermometor?  I have a few that I use on my kids(humankids that is), can I use one of those or should I buy a special goat one?


The one we have is an old glass type...which makes me a little nervous, frankly, but I'm not sure what else I'd use.  Obviously, it does NOT go under the tongue, so whatever you use should probably remain a "special goat one" from that point on.   

Urinary calculi would *not* present with a fever, to my knowledge.  That's why I thought it might be of some value to run it by the vet if she did *not* have a fever because, again, I would think that a UTI *would* present with at least a low-grade fever (as most infections do)..  

The penicillin is a good move, either way.  I'd also consider some banamine -- or even good ol' ibuprofen -- for the pain and inflammation that's likely present in either case.  

If it's UC...and I'm certainly not saying that it is!!  I really hope it's not, in fact!!...but if it is, demand that dexamethasone be part of the treatment.  Shoot for 100ml bottle if you can get it, but if not, get several correctly-dosed syringes and give it every few days.  Treating the inflammation is crucial to any chance for success with UC.

Keep us posted!


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## lilhill (Sep 14, 2009)

gibbygoats said:
			
		

> Also do I need a special thermometor?  I have a few that I use on my kids(humankids that is), can I use one of those or should I buy a special goat one?


Go to Walmart and get the digital thermometer.  The cheap ones work well.  Just make sure you keep it with your GOAT supplies.


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## trestlecreek (Sep 14, 2009)

Yes, for bladder infections, cranberry juice can be given "just to help". I'm not sure at all though that it does any good.
Penicillin typically is not one the best for a bladder infection,.. SMZ-TMP would be one of the drugs of choice....
Pygmy does have large tract and usually are not subject to stones, although I'm sure it is possible.
Yep, I would take her temp for sure and look for any other signs that she may not be feeling well... they sometimes will cry as the urinate or will have some pain(rolling, and or biting at back),....if it is a bladder infection and she is not treated appropriately it can travel to the kidney,..so be careful...
What does her urine look like?


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## gibbygoats (Sep 14, 2009)

My vet thought that Penicillin would be the best choice because it is excreted though the urine???

I'm not sure what SMZ-TMP is.  Why would that be better than Penicillin?

I did check her pee and it looked normal, no blood or anything.  

About the cranberry juice, how much do you think I should give her?


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## trestlecreek (Sep 14, 2009)

Penicillin is not bad(very good drug for other things), just thought to be resistant to these sorts of bacteria,...SMZ-TMP is given orally and reaches the area quicker and hits some of the bacteria that penicillin won't; SMZ also is very easy to administer,..with cystitis and kidney infection, anti-biotic treatments are long(2 weeks +), so often a drug will be prescribed for efficiency and ease of administration. A Shot of penicillin 2 times a day for 2-3 weeks could be stressful....so most would avoid it...
SMZ-TMP is a prescription anti-biotic.
Back when I treated a doe for kidney infection, I gave her around 30cc every 3 days or so of the cranberry juice.... she was 60lbs. I honestly can't say it helped, but  I felt better doing it...I bought a pure grade cranberry juice...

I would certainly treat your doe as your vet prescribed,.. if the pen does not work, maybe he would go with a different drug such as SMZ.

Just watch her very closely,...rolling, crying when urinating, blood tinged urine and biting at the back would indicate the infection(if it is cystitis) has traveled...


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