# My goats just annihilated my rhubarb patch.



## wannacow (Aug 11, 2011)

They left the stems but ate the leaves.  It's not a huge patch, but the leaves are poisonous.  What should I do?  I don't think the 4yo was involved.  I think it was the yearling, the 7mo old and the 4mo old.


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## 20kidsonhill (Aug 11, 2011)

I am not that experienced with it.

But activited charcoal is always suggested for a poisoning. 

Mineral oil and baking soda as a drench for upset stomachs.


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## Pearce Pastures (Aug 11, 2011)

The leaves are toxic but they would have to eat quite a bit before you'd have a really bad outcome so I guess it depends on how much each consumed-like say just one of them did the majority of the eating and one just nibbled a bit,  how many leaves would you guess could have been eaten?  If you want to make sure, the activated charcoal needs to be used quickly to bind with the toxins before they start doing any damage.  Keep an eye out for signs like weakness, stumbling, shaking, scours, or changes in their eating/drinking/breathing.  Hope everything goes okay


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## wannacow (Aug 11, 2011)

I called the vet.  He wasn't worried.  (He's not my regular).  They are acting fine.  Eating etc. normally.  I just moved them to a new pasture.  They are happily munching away.  My patch isn't big.  It's just getting started.  They maybe ate 15 leaves.  Probably few of them were full sized.


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## elevan (Aug 11, 2011)

wannacow said:
			
		

> I called the vet.  He wasn't worried.  (He's not my regular).  They are acting fine.  Eating etc. normally.  I just moved them to a new pasture.  They are happily munching away.  My patch isn't big.  It's just getting started.  They maybe ate 15 leaves.  Probably few of them were full sized.


If they are acting normally 5 hours or so later, then I would say they're not likely to suffer any problems.


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## kstaven (Aug 12, 2011)

That is one of the problems with poisonous plant lists. Many of the items require huge quantities to reach toxic levels.


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## Roll farms (Aug 12, 2011)

I'd probably keep some baking soda and probiotic on hand for treatment if any get the poops or bloated.


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## elevan (Aug 12, 2011)

kstaven said:
			
		

> That is one of the problems with poisonous plant lists. Many of the items require huge quantities to reach toxic levels.


And some are only toxic at certain life stages of the plant...or certain parts of the plant...


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## 77Herford (Aug 12, 2011)

Yes, that list isn't clear enough.  I almost didn't get goats because of it.


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## wannacow (Aug 12, 2011)

Well, all my goats are fine.  One has scours, but she had that before.  I've been battling her scours off and on for about 3 weeks.    Not sure what's going on with her.  Thanks for all your advice.


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## elevan (Aug 12, 2011)

wannacow said:
			
		

> Well, all my goats are fine.  One has scours, but she had that before.  I've been battling her scours off and on for about 3 weeks.    Not sure what's going on with her.  Thanks for all your advice.


Might be coccidia or certain other parasites.  I would be getting a fecal to find out what you're dealing with and treat it.  If you can't get a fecal done I would go ahead and treat for coccidia.
Here's a thread for you to check out for coccidia treatments:  http://www.backyardherds.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=10922


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## wannacow (Aug 12, 2011)

I've had a fecal done along w/ coccidia.  All negative.  I've been treating her with sulfadimethoxine.  She usually clears up after a dose or 2.  This time is taking longer.  However, I don't know how much I actually get into her.  I always end up wearing some of it.  I also try to give her probios, but she is the picky one and won't eat ANYTHING out of my hand.  This last bout started when she ate a couple of kohlrabi leaves along with all the other goats.  She ate her usual pasture yesterday except for grain.  She wouldn't eat that yesterday, then she had rhubarb...    She ate grain this am and she is drinking.  Hopefully she's clearing up.  I haven't had any trouble with her until I added the saanens to the flock.  They LOVE the smart weed.  Now, she eats the smart weed too.  That possibly could be her problem.  However, I can't keep her away from it because it is EVERYWHERE.  I don't know what else to do.  The vet wants to put her on corrid, but the woman I bought her from really is advising me against it.


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## elevan (Aug 12, 2011)

Do your research on the CoRid and make a decision for yourself.  If your vet is advising you to put her on it, there must be a reason...ask him some more questions.

Do you have a drenching syringe?  That might be helpful for you to get the medicines into her instead of you wearing them.


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## wannacow (Aug 12, 2011)

My vet hasn't done much with goats since vet school.  He's learning though.  The problem with corid is that it is hard on the rumen and can also give the goat "polio like" symptoms.  I'm watching her now.  She eating and drinking and is alert and active.


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## elevan (Aug 12, 2011)

CoRid imo is best used for prevention of coccidia...you said you're treating with a sulfa but your fecal was negative??


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## wannacow (Aug 12, 2011)

Yes, it was negative.  I'm treating like her former owner treats her goats.  I'm new to all of this and her former owner is the person I go to with questions.  She's had dairy goats for may years.  I trust her experience.


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## elevan (Aug 12, 2011)

Ok, well then it sounds like you're running preventative on coccidia.  I started doing that myself after a bad bout of coccidia (first time on my farm), but have since changed my mind after attending a seminar from my county extension (you can read about it in the parasite management link in my signature)...I don't want to breed drug resistance parasites.

The poo issue could be dietary.  You may want to offer baking soda free choice for a little while (couple of weeks) for her.  I'd also be giving her probios to help settle her rumen and balance the flora in it.


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## wannacow (Aug 12, 2011)

I've got soda out for her.  I think she nibbled it a little last night when I stuck it under her nose.  Probios is another story.  I cannot seem to get her to take it.  She is my "picky child."    I have even tried to wipe it on her muzzle hoping she would lick it off.  It supposedly tastes good. (haven't tried it myself,  :/) but all she does is snort and wipes her muzzle on anything she can find.  My daughter has been gone all week.  She's my livestock helper.  Hopefully she can help me tomorrow when she gets home.

I think this problem is dietary.  The problem is, I can't really give her anything that a human would take by way of food to dry her up.  e.g. BRAT diet.  The other goats love bananas, but she won't touch them...  Yep, she's the problem child...  She's also my favorite...


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## elevan (Aug 12, 2011)

Any medication that you want to give (including probios) needs to be given onto the back of the tongue or drenched down the throat in order for it to get where it needs to go.  Or else you end up wearing it...as you've already experienced


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## wannacow (Aug 12, 2011)

Looked for a drenching tip today, but was unable to find one.  I'll check the other feed store tomorrow.  DH will help me try to med her tonight.


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## Beekissed (Aug 13, 2011)

You could drench with unpastuerized apple cider vinegar.  It seems to really settle a rumen and help with absorption of nutrients thereafter.  It can't hurt anything and just might surprise you.  I always mix the ACV/raw honey/garlic juice or powder/water in a 20cc dose and drench with this.  I've seen remarkable results from using this drench on a quarterly basis but most who use it recommend a monthly dosage~especially in the summer months.  

I had bought a Jersey cow with scours and a very poor condition and within a few weeks of using this treatment, she started to gloss out and her stool started firming up. 

The day I bought her:







Three weeks later and one week after the birth of her calf:


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## wannacow (Aug 13, 2011)

I was thinking about ACV, in fact I just mentioned it to DH, but was afraid it would mess with her rumen balance.  We got a good dose of med in her last night and also probios.  This a.m. also but not probios.  I was by myself again and couldn't hold her after giving the sulfamethoxine (sp).  She's grazing and drinking, but not eating grain.  She just nibbles at it.  Took the baking soda out to the pasture today instead of just in the barn.  She'll have access to it all the time now.  If this is a food reaction, will she out grow it?


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## Pearce Pastures (Aug 13, 2011)

We had some rough patches in the last month with scours in our smallest doeling and the vet was out several times (he is wonderful but also works more with cattle than goats).  Our other two got a bit sick too but bounced back with antibiotics while she just kept rebounding.  We did several trials of her getting better, starting up again, antibiotics, Di-Methox, CoRid, and etcetera (fecal was clean but vet said the sample was really runny and wanted to treat just in case-I don't usually do that but I was so worried we would lose her). Then I talked to another goat owner (he has a different kind but has a lot more experience than I do).  He said Petunia was very dainty, littler than the other two, and maybe her issue was that her rumen wasn't developed much yet and she was eating more milk/feed than she could handle.  We cut back a bit and she is sooooo much better (we finished the meds though too to be safe).  Normal poop, acting like a happy silly kid again.

So will she grow out of it---I really don't know for sure but I think older goats are less susceptible to scouring agents for a multitude of reasons.

Glad to hear that all is well on the rhubarb bit though.


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## wannacow (Aug 13, 2011)

She seemed happier tonight.  Still yukky rear end, but maybe not as much.  I didn't see any tonight, so we'll see what happens in the am.  I put some raw ACV in the water.  Can't hurt.  I am a believer in raw ACV...  I'll keep you posted.  Oh, I tried to buy a drenching tip today, but the other feed store didn't have any syringes it would fit on.  Not sure why, but...  I picked up a luer-lock syringe, so will take it in on Mon. and see if the tip works on that.


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## wannacow (Aug 15, 2011)

Good News!  The "poops" are gone!  Thank you all for your help.  I'm not sure what fixed her, med, vinegar, baking soda, time and/or prayer.    I certainly hope she grows out of all this "sensitivity".    I appreciate the wealth of information and experience you share.  It is such a great help.    Thanks again.


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## Pearce Pastures (Aug 15, 2011)

Good to hear!


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## elevan (Aug 15, 2011)

wannacow said:
			
		

> Good News!  The "poops" are gone!  Thank you all for your help.  I'm not sure what fixed her, med, vinegar, baking soda, time and/or prayer.    I certainly hope she grows out of all this "sensitivity".    I appreciate the wealth of information and experience you share.  It is such a great help.    Thanks again.


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