Goat hairloss thinning/very thick fuzzy undercoat

[heidi smith]

I have a 6 month old fainting mix doe. She is healthy in every way except I have noticed over the last few weeks that her hair seems thin and she has a very thick coat of white fuzzy soft undercoat. She has several spots that show thru and there seems to be no outer coat. I am attaching pictures. She is energetic and healthy other than this. I have 6 ot

her goats who are normal and show no signs of issues with their coat. I have checked her for lice and she is clear. The first image you can see the thinning on her neck. The other pictures are close ups. There is no dandruff or scaly skin. Thanks Heidi

(Edited: Moved to more appropriate section by staff)

 

[Latestarter]

Greetings and welcome to BYH! Sorry that you're having a (potential) issue with one of your goats. Could it be that she's just doing a seasonal shed? Most of the time when there are coat issues and it's not mites or lice, the "go-to" culprit is a mineral deficiency. Some on the forums recently have experienced a new cause; that being Cocci! It's great that you shared some pics, that generally helps a lot!. We have some really good goat folks (and just great all around folks too!) here, and I'll tag a few that may be able to give you some input. Hope it's nothing serious and that she clears up quickly!

@Goat Whisperer @babsbag @OneFineAcre @frustratedearthmother @Southern by choice and there are so many others...

There's a wealth of info and experience shared in the various threads also. Please browse around and make yourself at home! Glad you decided to join us!

 

[babsbag]

Do you see her rubbing on things? She could have mites that you can't see. Or it could be a mineral deficiency, zinc is usually the "coat" mineral, as is copper. Do you have a loose mineral out for them?

Welcome to BYH from California.

 

[heidi smith]

I do have a mineral block but I don't think they are eating it. I'm picking up loose mineral tonight and I'm going to worm tonight also. Do I need to dust for mites? She is the only one showing symptoms but I sure don't want it to spread to my other goats.

 

[heidi smith]

Greetings and welcome to BYH! Sorry that you're having a (potential) issue with one of your goats. Could it be that she's just doing a seasonal shed? Most of the time when there are coat issues and it's not mites or lice, the "go-to" culprit is a mineral deficiency. Some on the forums recently have experienced a new cause; that being Cocci! It's great that you shared some pics, that generally helps a lot!. We have some really good goat folks (and just great all around folks too!) here, and I'll tag a few that may be able to give you some input. Hope it's nothing serious and that she clears up quickly!

@Goat Whisperer @babsbag @OneFineAcre @frustratedearthmother @Southern by choice and there are so many others...

There's a wealth of info and experience shared in the various threads also. Please browse around and make yourself at home! Glad you decided to join us!

 

[heidi smith]

Thanks so much. I am thinking minerals. I tried a block this last time and i don't think they are using it. I am getting some loose mineral tonight and worming (its time) I hope that's all it is she is my bottle baby. lol

 

[Southern by choice]

Looks like she is just shedding out. Kind of off season but that "fuzz" is common in fainters. Kind of feels super soft like cashmere?

Several of our Kiko does develop a thick lush coat and then change of season causes a shed out. That white soft fluff underneath sheds out leaving the course outer coat yet the outer coat does shed too. They get real slick shiny coats AFTER this fluff shed. Now that we are going into fall their coats will start to develop that thick undercoat.

How old is the doe? Seems wrong time of year but looks just like that cashmere like fluff. On our Kiko bucks it comes off in "sheets".

 

[MaggieSims]

From my experience, switching from block minerals to loose minerals isn't an overnight miracle. Don't be worried if you don't notice improvement right away. But as many will tell you, the loose minerals are a better choice.

And call around to vets, you may find one who does fecal testing cheap enough to treat before worming. In my case, fecals were required, as my does coat was gone, but it showed she was overwhelmed with coccidia. Which i wouldn't have thought to treat for prior to the fecal test.

 

[babsbag]

I thought about shedding but I thought it is the wrong time of year plus she is only a baby so that didn't fit what I see in my Alpines either; the kids don't usually loose their baby coat until next summer.

The blocks are hard for them to eat sometimes and not really good for their teeth. Mine love the Sweetlix Magnum Milk minerals but not overly fond of the Purina ones.

Usually when treating for mites you use inject Ivermectin. But you usually see evidence of mites in places that don't have thick hair covering, like legs, hooves, nose, ears, etc. Their skin is often crusty and irritated looking. If her skin looks good, as you said it did, it probably isn't mites but check her over as they will cause them to scratch.

I would try to find a vet to get a fecal done.

 

[Southern by choice]

I thought about shedding but I thought it is the wrong time of year plus she is only a baby so that didn't fit what I see in my Alpines either; the kids don't usually loose their baby coat until next summer.

The blocks are hard for them to eat sometimes and not really good for their teeth. Mine love the Sweetlix Magnum Milk minerals but not overly fond of the Purina ones.

Usually when treating for mites you use inject Ivermectin. But you usually see evidence of mites in places that don't have thick hair covering, like legs, hooves, nose, ears, etc. Their skin is often crusty and irritated looking. If her skin looks good, as you said it did, it probably isn't mites but check her over as they will cause them to scratch.

I would try to find a vet to get a fecal done.

Fainters and myotonic goats have different coats. That soft silky spun fluff underneath feels like cashmere. I will see if I can get a pic of one of ours.

Depending on the goat and age she could just be shedding off baby fur. Yes, wrong time of year in one way but also depends on when she was born.
Right now all my dogs are losing their summer coats and shedding up a storm to bring in winter coats.

@babs look at the sheen on the rest of her... I'm not thinking mineral issues... or like you said no evidence of mite issues.