I noticed one of my goats was acting a little lethargic. When I went to feed tonight o noticed blood on his face and when I looked closer I noticed what looked like an abscess on the base of his horn! I caught him and cleaned the area as best I could. I covered it in antibiotic ointment and wrapped it as best I could but don’t know what to do!
Help! Broken goat horn and abscess
- Thread starter Shanon
- Start date
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- Tags
- broken horn goat goat diseases
Alaskan
Herd Master
does he have only one horn?
Funky looking bubble... I think it isn't an abscess but maybe when he smacked his horn it created a big blood blister almost.
Looks like it wants to pop open and spurt some more.
Is he worth calling a vet?
Best thing to do might be to whack off the horn and cauterize it well to keep it from bleeding. But.... since he has already lost so much blood... maybe you need to wait until his blood builds back up first, and hope he doesn't whack it again in the meantime.
What color are his gums? How pale? Do you have any iron for him?
Funky looking bubble... I think it isn't an abscess but maybe when he smacked his horn it created a big blood blister almost.
Looks like it wants to pop open and spurt some more.
Is he worth calling a vet?
Best thing to do might be to whack off the horn and cauterize it well to keep it from bleeding. But.... since he has already lost so much blood... maybe you need to wait until his blood builds back up first, and hope he doesn't whack it again in the meantime.
What color are his gums? How pale? Do you have any iron for him?
- Thread starter
- #3
Alaskan
Herd Master
definitely check his gum color.
I am sure it COULD heal... if he doesn't act like a goat and whack it on something.
I am just worried he wouldn't stay sensible for long enough.
I am sure it COULD heal... if he doesn't act like a goat and whack it on something.
I am just worried he wouldn't stay sensible for long enough.
Alaskan
Herd Master
And just FYI, removing a full grown horn... wowsers man.... is that a lot of blood.
But I am worried he will bang it again when you aren't around and bleed more when no one is there to stop it.
But I am worried he will bang it again when you aren't around and bleed more when no one is there to stop it.
Southern by choice
Herd Master
My guess is a crack of some sort and bacteria go in there. This IMO requires a vet call. More than likely he will need an anti biotic. At that time you can see if removal is necessary. It is not a casual issue.
Removing a full horn on a goat- especially a buck- can be dangerous and IMO should not be done without a vet and anesthesia.
We have had this done on a doe which is an easier process but be warned, removing the horn will leave the whole sinus cavity open, you must wrap the head and treat for 3-6 weeks until covered over. Not a one man job just to change dressings.
I can't find the pictures of when we were at the vets doing the procedure but this is well into the healing stage, the wide open holes are starting to cover... this is the dressing as well.
A bucks base of the horn is 2-3x a does. Please do not attempt to remove yourself.
This is a young doe <1 yr and she just had a small scur that broke off... she had to be rushed to the vet emergency as we could not get the bleeding stopped even with 3 people holding her. She was sedated the second she went through the door and it took a LONG time to remove, stop the bleeding and fix. She lost so much blood she nearly died.
Removing a full horn on a goat- especially a buck- can be dangerous and IMO should not be done without a vet and anesthesia.
We have had this done on a doe which is an easier process but be warned, removing the horn will leave the whole sinus cavity open, you must wrap the head and treat for 3-6 weeks until covered over. Not a one man job just to change dressings.
I can't find the pictures of when we were at the vets doing the procedure but this is well into the healing stage, the wide open holes are starting to cover... this is the dressing as well.
A bucks base of the horn is 2-3x a does. Please do not attempt to remove yourself.
This is a young doe <1 yr and she just had a small scur that broke off... she had to be rushed to the vet emergency as we could not get the bleeding stopped even with 3 people holding her. She was sedated the second she went through the door and it took a LONG time to remove, stop the bleeding and fix. She lost so much blood she nearly died.
- Thread starter
- #7
Wow! Definitely doesn't look like something to be taken lightly. Thanks for sharing your experience. I emailed my vet today with some pics and they agree they don't think it's an abscess. They think its either blood or swollen tissue. Vets going to be coming out to determine if it can be saved or if it has to be removed. I'm really hoping it can be saved without having to be removed.
- Thread starter
- #8
That's what I'm worried about too - him banging it up and bleeding more. I decided to have the vet come this week to see if it can be saved.
- Thread starter
- #9
New
Wow! Definitely doesn't look like something to be taken lightly. Thanks for sharing your experience. I emailed my vet today with some pics and they agree they don't think it's an abscess. They think its either blood or swollen tissue. Vets going to be coming out to determine if it can be saved or if it has to be removed. I'm really hoping it can be saved without having to be removed.
Southern by choice
Herd Master
I hope it can be saved too.
Hope you let us know what the vet says. Info is always so helpful to all of us when something is odd and not the norm kind of stuff.
