Goat with course hair

[BlueMoonFarms]

I had posted this on another thread for a mineral deficiency question, thought it might be appropriate here too.

If her coat is in really bad shape, has she been treated for worms, lice, mites? Worms can cause nutritional deficiencies if they have a large enough load and lice/mites can cause itchy skin and rubbing to relieve the itch will wear off the coat. This time of year is lice season for us in chickens and goats. Fungal infections can cause hair loss and rough skin.

Once those are ruled out, you can add brewers yeast (it adds amino acids and B vitamins), Boss for protein, magnesium and minerals, or calf manna for added nutritional support. Regular Vitamin E capsules can be popped and poured over her food or you can add wheat (wheat has a decent amount of vitamin E naturally I believe, and E is one of the healing vitamins). Zinc is another vitamin that can help with skin/hair issues, but a quality loose mineral should cover you there.

She has a free choice mineral, and a mineral lick, so i don't think its nutrition, that and everyone else looks and feel fantastic, including the buck, but then again it wouldnt hurt to give her some more.
We did a fecal float, and treated her for some round worm eggs a month ago so im not entirely sure its worms. Either way the Ivermec will take care of what ever is wrong? In theory anyway.
Nutmegs face has been really itchy lately, and shes been rubbing along the fence, is it possible she has some really tiny bugs that I just cant see? Can mites get that small?

 

[Southern by choice]

Yes, they are usually the sucking kind.
Mange mites cannot be seen by the eye.
Like Ragdoll said... I would go with the injectable esp if you can't see them.

 

[BlueMoonFarms]

The mites may be biting may be sucking. They require different treatments. Injectibles will not treat biting only sucking.
I would like to add mineral blocks are terrible, usually very high in salt. Not much mineral is really getting to them. Loose minerals are better utilized. Adding sea kelp to the loose minerals helps with all kinds of issues and is also better utilized.

Internal parasites can also cause skin/coat issue. Run a fecal and see what you find.

Ugh wonderful...
Well, at least she seems to be enjoying it :/
I'll do the injectable and run a fecal in a second again to see if the last de-wormer just, didnt work or something.

 

[BlueMoonFarms]

Yes, they are usually the sucking kind.
Mange mites cannot be seen by the eye.
Like Ragdoll said... I would go with the injectable esp if you can't see them.

What about my pregnant doe due next week? Should I wait, or can she get it now?

 

[BlueMoonFarms]

Alright, I did the fecal float and found two eggs, and what looked like a lung worm. I seriously hope not, but then again my husband made a comment that he thought he heard a goat cough.
Everyone has been given a shot, I searched online and found the weight chart, as well as info on how to do pregnant goats.
I did not do the lambs as everyone's stool came back clean. And yes...I sat there and waited for everyone to poop and labled it so I knew whos was whos...
Thank goodness for the fecal float and microscope my mom has

 

[BlueMoonFarms]

I de-wormed every single goat including the kid since I heard him cough. No clue where this lung worm came from *I suspect the neighbor's goat next door* but hopefully I eradicated it.
Now I did not do the sheep because there eyelids look nice and pink and the breeders made a comment on breeding for parasite resistance. There fecal's were all clear when I first brought them home, but I have not run a recent fecal from the sheep.
Should I de-worm them anyway just to be safe and get everyone done at once to prevent the worms from coming back? Or should I run the individual fecal's and just de-worm anyone who appears to need it?