dry skin....help

[mdoerge]

I have been fighting dry skin issues with my doe since winter. The same happened last year, but cleared up by this time. I have been bathing her about once a week with AloeDine 600 Iodine Shampoo with Aloe Vera, which has improved her coat immensely. She is still dandruffy but greatly improved on her body. Her skin is no longer scaly and her coat is shiny. The problem is her face. She is very dry and flaky around her eyes and muzzle and has lost hair in these areas. The skin on her muzzle is so dry it feels hard. I can't use the shampoo on her face because it says to avoid eyes and mucous membranes.
She kidded the end of April with triplets. I weaned them this week.
She has been copper bolused, BOSE'd, dewormed, gets BOSS daily. When she'll eat it, I give her Manna Pro Goat Supplement.

She has had an issue with coccidia - she was treated 5/14 with corid for 5 days and again 6/14 with SMZ-TMP. When the fecal was done in May she had strongyles and was given Panacur by the vet. The fecal on 6/15 showed tapeworm. She has had two doses of Safeguard since then. She was dewormed in March before kidding with ivermectin.

I can't think of anything else to add. Sorry for the long post.
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[ksalvagno]

How about zinc? Black animals usually have a problem with zinc. You can try putting a topical zinc on her if you can keep it out of her eyes. The diaper ointment for babies has zinc in it. The other thing is put some corn oil on her feed. Another thing you can try is MTG but you do have to be careful not to get it into her eyes. Also you could try Nustock cream -http://www.nustock.com/ It has done wonders on alpaca skin with all kinds of different problems.

 

[mdoerge]

Hi Karen - I forgot to add that she has been getting half a zinc tablet daily for the last year. Cindy told me about MTG but I was concerned about using it on her face. I tried to put some aloe gel on her muzzle and she of course licked it. The gel has preservatives in it, so I'm not sure how great it would be for her to ingest it. I actually just bought an aloe vera plant so that I can use the natural gel. I don't know how it will work on a goat - but I like it for humans! The Nustock sounds promising - what if she licks it though? How much corn oil would I put on her food? Thanks for the ideas.

 

[cmjust0]

With hair loss around the muzzle and eyes despite the obvious good work that's being done in the mineral and fat/oil-intake department, I think I'd probably start suspecting external parasites at this point. The fact that the same thing happened last winter and cleared up by early summer would also seem to indicate external parasites...lice, specifically. Lice like cool weather; they like when goats hang around in the barn a lot, and they don't do well with sunshine and lots of warmth..

I dunno how 'green' or anti-meds you are, but I'd probably just go on and hit this one with an injection of Ivomec if it were me.. If that seems too radical, you might look into a pour-on product called 'CyLence.' If CyLence is too radical...well, then I dunno.

I like CyLence, personally.

My wife asked me the other day: "So, what was it you gave the goats for flies and stuff?"

Me: "CyLence...it's pour-on pyrethrin stuff. Why?"

Her: "Oh. Well, I found a tick on Starla's udder the other day."

Me: "Hmm...I'm not sure it works on ticks, but I would have thought so."

Her: "No, it did. The tick was attached, but it was dead and shriveled up."

Me: "Oh, I see.. Uhhh...cool!"




My goats need it again...gotta treat about once a month or so. I haven't ever heard NOT to put it on kids, so I'm gonna guinea pig it on a wether-to-be and see if he keels over or anything. I don't suspect he will, but ya just never know.

It really does keep down a bit on flies too, though, which is good.

 

[ksalvagno]

I haven't used the corn oil so I'm not sure. I have just heard that it works well. Maybe just start with a little. I wouldn't soak the feed in it.

I have used the NuStock on alpacas and really like how it works. I would think if you rub it in good, it shouldn't be a problem. I used it on a female that had terrible mites and it actually helped clear it up. We did also use Ivomec and scrubbed her skin with Betadine but the Ivomec wasn't totally working and you can only scrub them a couple times. This girl was in the worst shape I had ever seen in an alpaca (a rescue) and I was amazed at how much the NuStock helped her skin.

I have used MTG on faces of alpacas but you do have to put it on very carefully. It does also help with fungus and some other things. Everyone I have used it on has grown back their fiber and their skin was no longer tough leather.

 

[cmjust0]

I'd never heard of Nu-Stock before, but I'm doing some reading...seems like pretty good stuff, and simple....73% Sulfur, 25% mineral oil, 2% pine oil.

Doesn't get much more 'no frills' than that.

Saw on their website's dealer list that I can actually get it local, too..

Might have to pick up a jar, just for guinea piggin'.

 

[mdoerge]

Well, I'm trying the MTG. She didn't object too much! Her poor face is so crusty. I also gave her another bath with the medicated shampoo - the rest of her coat looks good. Hopefully this will do the trick. If I don't see improvement, then I will try the ivermectin injection. I did deworm her with Ivomec in October and March.

 

[ksalvagno]

You would want to Ivomec her 10 days apart to get mites. Also, she might have the mites that aren't affected by Ivomec. Then you need Frontline spray and spray affected areas.

 

[mully]

Seborrhea would be my guess if she is not responding to creams or treatment... people get it and so do animals. You can make them more comfortable with washing but there is no cure but seborrhea can be controlled. Had a dog with a case of this and after a year of trying just about everything i had to put her down. Best of luck !!

 

[mdoerge]

Update - I emailed the breeder that I purchased my doe from and asked if her dam ever had skin issues. She said yes - dry scaly skin around eyes and dandruff. She felt it was mineral related -most likely copper and zinc. I thought that was interesting - could be genetic? I called the vet and she recommended Red Cell. Has anyone used it for this purpose? I have been using the MTG and it seems to be helping.