# EMERGENCY! Puncture wound in abdomen, tetanus and peritonitis?



## Ariel301 (Dec 8, 2010)

I found one of my doelings sitting down next to the water bucket in the pen this morning. I thought she was waiting for a fresh drink, so I filled the bucket up with clean water, and she wouldn't stand up. She could not use her legs. As of 1 am last night, she was eating hay and acting fine. 

I brought her up to the house and found a puncture wound on her abdomen between the rear legs. It looks to be a few days old, it is scabbed over. I can't tell how deep it is. There is a large swelling around it that seems painful when I touch it. She is pretty stiff, she can't easily open her mouth and her legs don't work right. She feels cold also. I had a neighbor who is a vet tech come over, no vet in town will treat goats. She is worried that the puncture went deep enough to enter the abdominal cavity and cause peritonitis. She gave the goat a tetanus shot and an epi shot. No feed store in town has tetanus anti-toxin and I can't get a vet to sell me any, they won't give out a medication without an examination, and they just don't do goats, plus it would cost me a couple hundred dollars for them to do an exam and say they didn't know anything. Already been there done that. Basically their advice was that it would be cheaper to shoot this one in the head and buy a new one. They're not used to dealing with purebred valuable animals, the average cost of a scrub goat here is $20. There are only two purebred breeders here...me, and my neighbor.

The goat had a slow heart beat (sped up after the epi to normal), pale gums and seems severely dehydrated. I've got her on IV fluids right now, I had  the stuff on hand for that. She also got a shot of oxytetracycline. She's laying in a warm basket covered with blankets because her temperature is low, she seems comfortable most of the time, but every now and then she will cry and paddle her legs. Can I give her anything for pain? I tried to drench her with fluids and some vitamin B and electrolytes. I can force her jaws open gently, and she can swallow but it is difficult and she cries afterwards like it is painful, so I gave up on that and went to injecting instead. She's very thirsty, I tried giving her a warm bottle of milk  and she wanted it, but she couldn't seem to suck it down. (She's weaned, but I find this is a great trick for getting fluids into a sick goat that was a bottle baby. They never seem to lose a love for that bottle, even my 10 year old doe loves a bottle.)

Does anyone have any advice on anything else I can do? She's an 8 month old LaMancha. She's fighting hard, but she is definitely very, very sick.


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## SDGsoap&dairy (Dec 8, 2010)

I can't help, but


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## helmstead (Dec 8, 2010)

Unfortunately this sounds terminal without vet intervention...so sorry!  This late in the game (suspecting peritonitis) it would take Rx strength antibiotics, surgical flushing...that is only if vital structures weren't damaged by the original injury.  

I would try to get my hands on some Banamine for the pain she's got to be in...


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## Ariel301 (Dec 8, 2010)

I've got Banamine, I'll give her that. I just wasn't sure if it was safe or not. I don't know about peritonitis, the wound doesn't look that deep to me...plus she's got a low temperature, wouldn't she have a fever with that kind of infection? 

I'm going to call vets again and beg for some antitoxin. She can't seem to control her eyes, they seem paralyzed. Is that typical with tetanus?


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## cmjust0 (Dec 8, 2010)

Was she current on C/D-T?  If so, she may be stiff from being cold and dehydrated, but I'd still try really, really hard to track down some tetanus antitoxin.  Wouldn't hurt to give it, if at all possible.

For now, though, rip that scab off...scrub that wound...drain what you can out of it...flush it with iodine....since she's down, I'd consider packing it to keep it clean.  She's gonna probably yell and scream as you do all this, but that's why "sympathetic" and "compassionate" are two entirely different words.  

It sucks, I know.  :/

Keep her on antibiotics.  Keep her warm.  Keep her on fluids until her upper eyelids don't stay tented when you pinch them.  I'd avoid giving much for pain until she's hydrated, as pain meds tend to be hard on innards.....can't halp if their blood's running a little thick to begin with.

The idea that the wound went all the way through is possible, of course, but I've gutted enough deer to know that even the thin muscle wall around the belly is still pretty tough..  Plus, if it's really *between* her rear legs, it would have to have gone through several inches of muscle and made its way past the pelvic bone before it reached the gut.  

If so, nothing you can really do except systemic antibiotics, which you're already doing.  If not, super -- still do the systemic antibiotics.  Sooo...assume it didn't if only because assuming otherwise is fruitless.

Good luck..  FWIW, I've had to pry baby goats' mouths open when they chill really bad.


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## helmstead (Dec 8, 2010)

Yes, their eyes will tremor or become fixed, they will react oddly to being tapped on the chin...and loose the ability to chew/swallow...

I guess she wasn't current on her booster?  Well, even if she was, it's not 100%

Yep, antitoxin would be a good idea.  You'll need more Epi, too, in case she reacts to it.  Usually they react to the 2nd+ injection of it...you should always have Epi on hand when using antitoxins.


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## jodief100 (Dec 8, 2010)

Get some antitoxin on order ASAP!   I can't think of anything else.  Just keep it clean, keep nutrients in her and *hope*.  

Wish I could do more.  

Where are you at? Maybe someone close by has some antitoxin......


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## greenfamilyfarms (Dec 8, 2010)

TSC carries the Antitoxin. Give them a call. If they don't have it, try posting an urgent ad on Craigslist to see if anybody has any they can spare.


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## helmstead (Dec 8, 2010)

What TICKS me off is the antitoxin IS NOT a controlled substance!!  I can't for my life figure out why they wouldn't sell it OTC...

Vets sometimes...ARGH.

Sorry!  

I hope you're able to find some antitoxin...get several vials of it.


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## rebelINny (Dec 8, 2010)

I sure hope you can save her! Here's hoping she pulls through!


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## ksalvagno (Dec 8, 2010)

In case you didn't know, banamine should be administered at 1cc per 100 lbs. I would get some in her just to relieve the pain. While banamine can be hard on the stomach, I really don't think one shot will hurt.


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## Ariel301 (Dec 8, 2010)

I just got off the phone with the only large animal vet in town. He HAS the antitoxin, but says it doesn't work on goats, it's only for horses. Told me to just keep pumping her full of fluids and antibiotics, that is what he said he would do if I brought her in. We don't have a Tractor Supply within a hundred miles, just a few locally owned stores that mostly cater to the horse crowd. They didn't even know the difference in toxoid and antitoxin, they kept trying to sell me a tetanus +3 way shot for a horse. 

She's the only goat in the herd not current on her CDT. It figures. I got her during the summer from my neighbor, not vaccinated yet, and decided to wait and vaccinate her with the rest when they are due in January, so they all are on the same schedule. I will NEVER do that again, from now on any newcomer will get one right away. It's just my luck that the one unvaccinated goat would find the one sharp bit of loose wire in the whole pen. I found what she probably got hurt on, and fixed it to prevent it hurting anyone else. 

I've got her comfortable wrapped in blankets in the bath tub, since it is quiet, warm, and dark in there. I gave her some banamine for the pain. She's getting more fluids once an hour, the poor thing is a pincushion from all the shots. I'm guessing she's going to be in need of some vitamin B since she's not able to eat. And to top it all off, I found lice on her when I was shaving the area around the wound. Which tells me that all my goats are probably infected with that. It seems to have been a real problem around here this year, never saw it before this spring, and every goat I know has been sick with it since, as well as poultry. 

I'm going to order a bottle of antitoxin to keep on hand. I was planning on putting in my order for vaccinations and restocking my medical kit tomorrow, I was making my shopping list yesterday evening. I always make a big order right before kidding season starts. I even saw the antitoxin in the catalog and considered it for a minute! Why, oh why did I not order a week ago when it would have been here now!


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## Ariel301 (Dec 8, 2010)

I'm thinking now that she isn't acting a whole lot like it's peritonitis. The muscles around her belly are stiff, but if I squeeze her belly, she doesn't cry like it hurts. (tested this before the banamine so her pain response would be normal) She also has no fever. There's a couple of holes in her skin like the wire went in, and then came out through another, and then she backed up to get off of it.

I just looked again to get an idea of exactly where the wound is, it's hard to remember stuff like that in a panic. Looking again, it's not so much between the legs as right in front of/slightly under the stifle joint, more to the side than the bottom of the goat's belly. Which, I know from gutting enough goats, doesn't have a very thick layer of protection between the abdominal muscle and the intestines. I tried getting some photos, but my camera battery is dead. I'm charging it and then I'll get a picture of the wound and swelling. The swelling is not hot to the touch like I'd expect with an infected wound...odd. I cleaned it up and there was some pus draining from it. It puzzles me that she had a wound that sore and never limped or complained or did anything to make me think she wasn't fine, she's normally a huge drama queen about anything, she screams like she's dying if the feeder is running low. I was sitting in the pen petting her for half an hour yesterday and had nothing to make me think she was sick. She's so fuzzy with winter hair that I never would have seen the wound if I had not rolled her onto her back and saw dried blood.


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## Ariel301 (Dec 8, 2010)

helmstead said:
			
		

> What TICKS me off is the antitoxin IS NOT a controlled substance!!  I can't for my life figure out why they wouldn't sell it OTC...
> 
> Vets sometimes...ARGH.
> 
> ...


Our vets are like that with everything. They won't even sell you a tube of ivermectin without an exam. They're worried about lawsuits...now you have to sign a consent to treat form for your animal, same as if you go to the hospital yourself, so they can treat without worrying as much over you sueing them. 

We lost our horse last year because they would not send me home with IV fluids for her while she was colicking. They wanted to hospitalize her for it, at the rate of $300+ per day. She died of dehydration while I sat and watched, because the stupid vet wouldn't sell me a bag of SALINE. I was on hold with the vet's office while she died, while they thought about what they might do for me...they left me on hold for an hour during an emergency. I later ordered IV sets and fluids online, over the counter just in case I needed them again. I am glad that I have a good deal of veterinary training, with the way vets are here. My neighbor has a stockpile of meds  that vets won't give out, but unfortunately no antitoxin.


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## Roll farms (Dec 8, 2010)

FWIW, when I nursed a goat through tetanus once, I used Pen G....it was 'the' recommended antibiotic for treatment.  I just googled 'tetanus treatment' and everything I came up w/ also recommened Pen G.

It's probably not going to help now since you started w/ oxytet (they react against eachother).
Mainly telling you for future reference. 

The goat I treated for it had been vaccinated, according to the guy I bought her from.  I had taken him at his word.  
Later I found out he used the antitoxin to 'vaccinate'...

Now, EVERY goat I buy gets a CDT vaccine before they get unloaded, regardless of what the seller tells us.  It was awful nursing her through it.

Good luck w/ her.


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## Ariel301 (Dec 8, 2010)

She died a few minutes ago.

It seemed like she was having trouble breathing, she coughed a few times and was mouth-breathing. I went to the kitchen to take some pain meds for myself and a friend of mine who is an EMT had arrived to have a look. We went in and she was gone.


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## Our7Wonders (Dec 8, 2010)

I'm so very sorry.


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## chandasue (Dec 8, 2010)

I'm so sorry...


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## Ariel301 (Dec 8, 2010)

Thanks for the help that was offered, everyone. 

She was the twin sister of the buckling in my avatar, and my husband's pet. She loved sitting in his lap. 

Time to go put another hole in the ground. We've got way too big a graveyard for the little time that we've been raising goats.


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## cmjust0 (Dec 8, 2010)

Really, really sorry to hear she's gone.


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## helmstead (Dec 8, 2010)

So very sorry!  At least you found her, and were able to give her love, care and warm blankies til the end.

FYI - the antitoxin is of equine origin (ie it's harvested from horse blood) however it works on all species.


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## warthog (Dec 8, 2010)

I am so sorry for your loss


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## mully (Dec 8, 2010)

Sorry you lost her !!  God Bless!!


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## ksalvagno (Dec 8, 2010)

I"m so sorry you lost her.


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## Ariel301 (Dec 8, 2010)

Thanks. I do feel good knowing that I was able to make her end as comfortable as I could. She had a pretty good size dose of the pain med so I don't think she was hurting much. It made her feel good enough to drink some Pedialyte and milk. Watching her suffer for a few hours, I can't imagine what it would be like to go through that for days, if not weeks. Maybe it was a mercy that she went quick. 

I've added tetanus antitoxin to my shopping list, and from now on, no goat will go even a minute past when their CDT is due.


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## Emmetts Dairy (Dec 8, 2010)

Im so sorry you lost her...hugs     This is always the hardest part...thankfully you were there for her...


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## SDGsoap&dairy (Dec 9, 2010)




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## aggieterpkatie (Dec 9, 2010)

I'm sorry you lost her. 



And I hate when vets act like that!


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## lilhill (Dec 9, 2010)

So very sorry your baby didn't make it.  When I first got into raising goats, we didn't really have any "goat" vets either.  I was fortunate to locate a Vet that is about 45 minutes from here that was more than willing to work with me in taking care of my animals.  He and I had lots of talks about goat maintenance and care, and he is now the Vet I can't live without.  Anytime I need prescription meds, he gives me what I need and usually with refills so I'd have it on hand.  Not too many Vets will be so accommodating, but if you can find one that will work with you and your goats, it is totally worth it.


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## rebelINny (Dec 9, 2010)

So sorry you lost her. It is always hard when you lose one  We have had our share this year as well. Keep your chin up.


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## Ariel301 (Dec 9, 2010)

Thank you for all the sympathy. I guess if I had to lose one, better a young open doe that I was going to have to feed another year and a half before I'd be able to milk her than one of my big heavily pregnant senior does. Still sad though, she was a real sweetheart, she was my husband's lap dog pretty much. I put in an order today for CDT shots for the next round of kids, tetanus antitoxin, and a bunch of other meds to add to my stockpile. So long, Hanukkah money.... So much for spending my gift on something fun like art supplies. Seems it always goes to the animals instead. :/

Moral of the story: Don't ever skip those CDT vaccinations!


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## cmjust0 (Dec 9, 2010)

Ariel301 said:
			
		

> Moral of the story: Don't ever skip those CDT vaccinations!


I applaud your sacrifice -- really I do.  Definitely get the antitoxin.

But...are you really sure it was tetanus?  I know this is all still very tender, and I know what it's like to be at a point after a loss when you just want to forget about it and move on instead of spending a bunch of time analyzing...and if that's the case, ignore me...but my understanding of how tetanus works it that it usually ends in asphixiation due to paralysis of the diaphram.

You mentioned before that she would cry out and paddle occasionally...from that state to death in such a short period of time doesn't *seem* consistent with my understanding of how tetanus progresses..

Could it have simply been septicaemia or something along those lines?

Again, I don't know that it matters at this point...and if it doesn't, by all means just tell me to shut my yapper.  I will -- promise.

And, again, I'm *really, really* sorry.  I just see that you're kinda beating up on yourself a little for skipping a C/D-T and thinking..._but was that *really* it?_


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