Constant Bloat In Doeling...WHY??

[pridegoethb4thefall]

I have a 5 month old Nigerian Dwarf doeling who is constantly bloated. No matter what I feed her (which is the same kind and amount of feed I give my other doelings), she is hugely bloated almost every other day.

I have to give her baking soda every night to get her belly down. But it still looks a bit tight in the mornings, and it gets worse as the day goes on. I expect it to get bigger due to eating, but she is much bigger than all the other doelings by evening. It sounds hollow when I thump it, and its on both sides.

Is it possible she just has a naturally bigger rumen than my other goats? (they are younger, but not much younger, and arent related to her).

I really dont know what her issue is. Oh, and she's not preggers- no boys around here, not even a wether.

Any advice or past experiences with such an issue would be GREAT! I could use the advice, Ive not run into this before and dont know what to do, if anything.

She has NO other symptoms, and is eating fine and playing fine. She seems a tiny bit less enthusiastic than she used to be, but its been over 100 degrees lately, so none of the goats have been running or jumping alot lately.

(I keep fresh running water in their pen, shade is abundant, food is fresh, high quality, and always there, as are loose minerals. vaccinations and wormings are on schedule as well)

Advice??

 

[SDGsoap&dairy]

You should post pictures. The rumen generally looks less full first thing in the morning because they haven't filled up on breakfast yet, so I'd be skeptical about the baking soda having anything to do with it. Not discounting it all together, but I'd wonder. I think before anyone could really answer your question they'd have to see what you're judging as hugely bloated. Bloat is not normal, but a full and healthy rumen is not only normal it's desirable. If it is bloat then it's time to go over her diet with a fine tooth comb.

 

[20kidsonhill]

a worm load can cause bloats.
So when you say you worm on a regular basis, What are you worming with and how often?

 

[Lynn]

I have a Nigerian Dwarf who is exactly the same... vet told me everything was fine.. just feed her some yogurt with active yeast cultures to help her rumen. It has helped some, but she is still bigger than the other doe I have...