Coughing goat

[KatandCrowley]

I have a 2 year old wether that I just bought a few months ago. He coughs occasionally maybe a few times a day. It is most noticeable before he goes to sleep at night, after he has eaten hay and some grain. My other goats do not cough at all. I'm pretty new to owning goats and I just want to know if I should get a vet out to see him. He gets current vaccinations in a couple more months but should I be concerned enough to have him looked at before then? Thanks

 

[Southern by choice]

It may be nothing it may be something.
Having a vet out to examine him is a good idea.

Could be dust in the hay and he is more sensitive, could be he eats too fast with the grain, could be allergy, could be lungworm, could be, could be, could be...

I would take a temperature first. Is there any discharge?
Having a vet listen to his lungs as well as just a check up is not going to hurt.

 

[OneFineAcre]

I would not have the vet out for an occasional cough as you have described if no temp
I would observe to see if it got worse then maybe

 

[Latestarter]

As for if it will hurt... that depends on if you consider the wallet side of the equation... For a simple issue, I'd consider taking the goat TO the vet vs a farm call.

Oh, and shame on me... Greetings from the front range in Colorado ! Glad you came aboard! Hope your goat cough turns into a non-issue. Hope you'll stick around and join in some of the discussions. Lots of great goat folk here who gladly help when needed. Share a pic or two when you've got a chance so we can all OOOoooo and AAAahhhh over you goats

 

[Southern by choice]

I do not consider "coughing several times a day" an occasional cough.
Considering he is a new goat and hasn't been vet checked and breeder did not mention this I would have him checked.
Heart defects can cause these issues and cause anemia as well.

LOL though- I am not one to like to play guessing games, think that goats "just cough", or wait to have a bigger issue. All new arrivals on our farm are vet checked during their 30-60 day quarantine and all testing is done as well. Lungworm alone can cause permanent damage. High parasite loads can also cause coughing. Coccidia in kids can cause coughing.

IMO if there is a cough there is a reason.

 

[OneFineAcre]

I have a vet out once per year for our health check on our entire herd
No way I would have a vet out for one goat coughing several time per day if it didn't have a temp
Been there and done that
If I'm going to have a vet out for one animal it's because I know the animal is sick and I can't adequately care for it myself
The last time we had a vet out for one goat she had a temp, and wasn't eating and was one of my best does

 

[Latestarter]

OFA... and what was the outcome?

 

[OneFineAcre]

Gave her an antibiotic that we didn't have not available OTC
Have her a steroid which we also can't get OTC
Did blood work
She recovered

 

[babsbag]

I had kids last year cough for months, literally. No fevers, just a nasty hacking cough that I would hear every time I was at the barn. And this was multiple kids, not one or two; and just the kids, none of my older does. After about 5 months of listening to this I did two shots of Noramycin 300 48 hours apart and the coughs went away. Finally there was peace in the barn.

All my goats are vaccinated each year for pneumonia and the kids should get some protection so either it wasn't that strain of pneumonia or the vaccine didn't pass any/enough resistance. But what ever it was it had to be a bacterial infection of some kind. Just glad it went away.

I will probably vaccinate kids this year for pneumonia as soon as they are old enough.

 

[Pearce Pastures]

I have a cougher. We determined that after a vet check to look her over a few times but when getting herself a mouth of cud, she coughs. No fever, no nasal discharge, clear lungs, no parasites---it is just her and it drives me nuts.

However, I am always fast to inspect a cough because pneumonia is not something to mess with. First, I get temps and do a few to see if there is any change over the day. I then observe---are they hunched up, eating and drinking, isolating themselves from the herd? How frequently are they coughing? If there is a possibility of respiratory illness based on temp or observation, I call the vet and he usually puts them on antibiotics.