# 4 week old indoor baby goat with lice. How do I treat?



## chicks & ducks (Apr 26, 2018)

Hi all,
I've recently inherited a 3(now 4 week as of today) old baby dwarf pygmy that was rejected by his mama at birth. His previous owner had him inside, but is no longer able to keep up with the feedings because of work, so now he lives here.

BUT today...I found what looks like eggs....and then a bug among them.  Google searches tell me it's goat lice. Keep in mind, he lives IN the house! GAH.

I've just dusted him with food grade diatomaceous earth, but I really don't want to mess around with bugs in the house! I've read that a couple people use fly spray for horses and dogs(and I do have a great dane that lives inside as well and, incidentally, did not benefit at ALL from the very expensive frontline we bought for him all last summer-if I found something I could use on both of them that'd be a bonus.

Anyway, little man is 4 weeks, has lice, lives inside, sleeps in blankets and towels. 
How do I treat the towels and blankets?
I've washed them in hot water twice now, but I don't think that will do much(other than make  me feel like I'm doing SOMETHING).


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## mysunwolf (Apr 26, 2018)

If it's truly lice, I would use injectable ivermectin, and with my dogs I use oral ivermectin. 

Cute baby goat


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## Hens and Roos (Apr 26, 2018)

not sure what would be good to use given he is 4 weeks old but will tag others

@babsbag @OneFineAcre @Southern by choice @Goat Whisperer @Wehner Homestead


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## Southern by choice (Apr 26, 2018)

There are many brands but you want Permethrin 10% concentrate.
*Dilute according to directions.*

Typically when we get in a goat this is what we do...

Because he is indoors its even easier.  
Use your tub and a sprayer (sink if you don't have sprayer in bath)
Take some dawn dishsoap and mix with warm water, about 16 oz add to that you made up gallon of "dip" 
wet goat
with wash cloth (wear gloves) wash goat from head to toe with mixture.
rinse all soap
take remaining dip and pour over goat, getting all the nooks and crannies 
On baby goats we do a light rinse and then towel dry
blow dry the rest of the way

Repeat in 10 days

This is on label for goats and kills lice and mites


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## chicks & ducks (Apr 26, 2018)

Southern by choice said:


> There are many brands but you want Permethrin 10% concentrate.
> *Dilute according to directions.*
> 
> Typically when we get in a goat this is what we do...
> ...


Excellent! Thank you! How about his bedding? Can I wash it in this? Will a hot wash in the washer be enough?


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## Southern by choice (Apr 26, 2018)

Just wash it ( bedding) normal wash in your washer.


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## Mrs1885 (Aug 8, 2018)

This is a great post! I found them on one of our babies last night but thought they were black. I looked at pictures of goat lice on line but they were brown or reddish. Apparently my eyes are showing my age because when I used my camera to zoom in on them tonight.....yeh. ugh. 

Heading to the store for Iver tomorrow and will be bathing all three in the house. Should I do the adults outside too? The adults and babies are together during the day.


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## Southern by choice (Aug 8, 2018)

Mrs1885 said:


> This is a great post! I found them on one of our babies last night but thought they were black. I looked at pictures of goat lice on line but they were brown or reddish. Apparently my eyes are showing my age because when I used my camera to zoom in on them tonight.....yeh. ugh.
> 
> Heading to the store for Iver tomorrow and will be bathing all three in the house. Should I do the adults outside too? The adults and babies are together during the day.



If they are housed together then all should be treated.  I strongly recommend you get some diatomaceous Earth and put that down in their living quarters. 
It is best to clean out all bedding hay etc and replace. Use the DE.  

Please please remember to mix according to directions. Some years ago on another forum a lady put up a post how this stuff nearly killed her sheep and she had to go and rinse the sheep... sheep got very sick. Yeah, she poured it on and didn't mix it. Understandable mistake because they make a lot of pour on products for sheep. Always read directions.


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## Mrs1885 (Aug 9, 2018)

I didnt realize you had to mix DE!!! Im so glad you posted!

Definitely will change bedding. Once they go out in the morning we take out the tarp with bedding, dump in the burn pile, hose off the tarp and bleach it, then rinse it off ten minutes later and leave in it the sun all day. We rotate two of them and they have fresh hay, water and pineshavings each nigbt when they come in.

Babies and adults arent housed together, but are together during the day and will come up to the backyard and nap together, so Im thinking everyone gets bathed!

Oh, did you mean mix the shampoo to bathe them? Not the DE? That would make way more sense. Duh! Clearly I have not had enough coffee this morning!


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## Mrs1885 (Aug 9, 2018)

Southern by choice said:


> If they are housed together then all should be treated.  I strongly recommend you get some diatomaceous Earth and put that down in their living quarters.
> It is best to clean out all bedding hay etc and replace. Use the DE.
> 
> Please please remember to mix according to directions. Some years ago on another forum a lady put up a post how this stuff nearly killed her sheep and she had to go and rinse the sheep... sheep got very sick. Yeah, she poured it on and didn't mix it. Understandable mistake because they make a lot of pour on products for sheep. Always read directions.


Ok so to clarify Im mixing a gallon of warm water with dish soap and the amount of the liquid specified for a gallon of water? Or bathe first with dish liquid then mix the medicine and pour over like dip? Sorry. Brain isnt grasping it tonight.


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## Southern by choice (Aug 9, 2018)

Southern by choice said:


> Take some dawn dishsoap and mix with warm water, about 16 oz add to that you made up gallon of "dip"
> wet goat
> with wash cloth (wear gloves) wash goat from head to toe with mixture.
> rinse all soap
> ...


Basically take warm water add dish soap... then add in from the gallon you mixed up of dip to the dishsoap water.... bathe... rinse and pour remaining dip over goat.

On adult goats we will use a sprayer sometimes (you know the garden pump up sprayers people spray round  up with) never use a sprayer that was used for anything else though... it is good because you can get nooks and crannies... but of course our goats are clipped. When they are hairy it doesn't work as well.

I like this method the best (bathing) but our goats like warm water baths so there is that. LOL

There is a product called cylence that you can draw up in a syringe and go from top of head down the spine.  We use this on our bucks because they live in the deep woods and ticks are unbelievable here. I mean unbelievable!  That is always an option too.

Always wear gloves when using any of these products.  Milk withdrawal is one milking.


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## Mrs1885 (Aug 9, 2018)

Southern by choice said:


> Basically take warm water add dish soap... then add in from the gallon you mixed up of dip to the dishsoap water.... bathe... rinse and pour remaining dip over goat.
> 
> On adult goats we will use a sprayer sometimes (you know the garden pump up sprayers people spray round  up with) never use a sprayer that was used for anything else though... it is good because you can get nooks and crannies... but of course our goats are clipped. When they are hairy it doesn't work as well.
> 
> ...


Thank you SO much, SBC. Tons of errands this weekend, but this tops the list.

Side note, one of the babies refused to leave the big goat pen tonight to come inside. Lil Denny is growing up I guess.  Princess took some coaxing but Schmoo is all about inside!


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## Mrs1885 (Aug 18, 2018)

Just wanted to update. We treated all seven goats and it worked great. By the next morning there wasn't a sign of the buggers. Six of the goats did great. Our bratty doe was a freaking nightmare. Took both of us to chase her down, everything hubby had to hold her while I doused her and she screamed like she was being skinned alive. That goat just ain't right. Lol


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## Donna R. Raybon (Aug 18, 2018)

I have used the mineral oil based supervised pretending that is for cattle.  Labeled for other species, too, and for fly, lice, mites.  Used it on lambs, calves, kids as young as 48 hours old and never had any problem.  Sold in gallon jug, more than you need, check with vet or neighbor with cattle to see if you can get what you need.  

If it were me I would used Adam's flea tick shampoo, lather kid up well, set timer for 5 minutes and rinse.  And, then, as suggested, dose orally with ivomec.  

You need to treat for coccidia, too.  If a pet, neutering will be needed as these little guys start to drink and rut much younger than standard sized goat.

Washing bedding in hot water and drying in dryer should take care of lice, eggs on bedding.


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## Brandie Bell (Apr 25, 2022)

I’m in the exact same situation- she was dosed topically with cylence a week ago, is it ok to do this dip method with the Permethrin now???


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