Help with my new baby girl.

[CrimsonRose]

Hi!

I'm a new goat mama and could use some seasoned advice... I have wanted goats for several years now and have read everything I could get my hands on. We just purchased a new property and had a house built this summer. We used all our spare cash to finish it up and get moved in. so I was planning on building a small barn next spring and fencing it in and getting me some milk goats!

Anyway, last weekend we went to a swap meet (I wanted to buy some new rabbits) While we were there I couldn't help but look at all the beautiful goats (since I've been dying to get one forever) And I ran accross what appeared to be a healthy full blooded nubian. I talked to the guy who acted like a knowledgable and caring owner (unlike many who were there to make money off sickly animals) He said she was up to date on her shots. Said she was born in Febuary and told me it's best to wait until one year old to breed them.

I looked her over and everything appeared in good condition other than she was a tad thin... But he had several other goats there that were very meaty and he fed them all from one bin so I assumed since she was so meek that they must gobble the food down quicker than her. She wasn't starved they had hay but I think she just didn't get enough grain compaired to the others.

So I brought her home. He told me to give her anibiotics for a few days because they can pick stuff up in places like this (sounded reasonable) We got her home and she chowed down on all the wild blackberry bushes she could eat and got a tad bloated so we fed her some baking soda and rubbed her belly and she was fine by evening. Fed her some alfalfa pellets and she stayed in her little dog house and seemed happy and content. She cried for just a few mins when we went in but settled down quick.

Her eyes and face looked fine when we bought her I didn't pay super close attention because she has monster long eye lashes so short of prying open her eyes you can't really see them other than a faint hint of brown. But The next day she had a little green discharge from one of her eyes. I gave her a dose of penicillian and put some allergy eye drops in. I thought she had just caught a little cold in her eye especially since the day before she was fine.

After a few days the discharge started to dry up but I finally held her down and pryed open her eye to get a good look and It is white and milky looking ??? Please tell me this is just pinkeye and she is not blind...

If she is blind it isn't a huge issue we will still love her and give her a good home. But my biggest concern is she is soooo tiny!

This is my first experiance with young goats so I wasn't sure how fast they should grow... But she is only 35lbs! and she has gained 3 since we have had her less than a full week!

I didn't really notice until I read that some breaders bread their goats at 9 months she is 8 months now! Far from the 80lbs the books suggest... I really noticed how small she was when we went to pick up a friend for her a little pygmy doe that is so thick and tubby compaired to my little nubian girl... And even a little taller than her! The pygmy is 3 years old and a few months pregnant but she is a mini goat... So shouldn't my girl be larger than her by now?

Maybe the breeder was off on her age? Also do I need to do anything to her ears to prevent frostbite this winter??? Poor girl already got one caught on a thorn and scratched it some...

Here she is Vanilla (Nilly) with her little pygmy friend Northa.

 

[ksalvagno]

I would get her to a vet ASAP. It sounds like it could be an ulcerated eye. Whether there is trauma or some type of medical problem, that needs to be seen by a vet.

Congratulations on your new goats!

 

[cmjust0]

Probably worth a trip to the vet, but in the meantime it's probably not a bad idea to go ahead and grab a little tube of terramycin eye ointment from TSC.. It's made specifically for eyes...not cheap, but it does a good job.

I know some folks put triple antibiotic right in the eye, but if you read the package instructions on any of those you'll see that they all specifically state NOT to use in eyes...which is why I don't.

BTW...to me, she looks like a classic boer/nubian cross, right down to the big round spot on her back. We have one that's 50% boer/44% nubian, and she's not grown like our others have. Ours isn't thin-looking either...she eats well, she's doggone healthy overall, her coat's nice, etc...she's just "fun-size" for some reason.

 

[CrimsonRose]

99% of people around here do raise boer so she may be partial boer... the breeder said she was 100% nubian and her mom gives a gallon a day... the guy had 2 nubians and 2 alpines in his pen. But who knows in places like that, most do lie just to make a sale.

I just went out to check on her again today and her eye looked fine!!! So I went into her pen to get a closer look and when I pulled her eye open she rolled it back into her head and all I could see was the white milky looking bottom I let her go and she looked up at me and both eyes were brown... Boy do I feel like a loser... LOL So I'm pretty sure it is just a simple cold... I'll look for that eye onitment next time I'm in there though.

But does she seem small for 8 months??? What are some good ways I could bulk her up some... She is really thin back around her hips it's sunken in...

She has access to all the weeds she can eat. I can't seem to find any alfalfa hay yet so I've been giving her about 2 cups of pelets and I'm slowly intoducing her to purina noble goat chow... I gave her about a cup of that last night. I gave her some yogurt today to counter the antibiotics I've been giving her (couldn't find the probios at TSC)

The new pygmy we got is now pooing loose stools... they were fine yesterday! The guy I bought her from gave her a bucket of corn so she would be calm on the ride home (about 3 cups) Would that have caused it? Would a dose of yogurt help or baking soda...

sorry to be such a pest... guess I'm just a worried new momma...

 

[ksalvagno]

Yes, that bucket of corn would do it. I would definitely keep doing the yogurt if you can't find Probios. Also, I would get a fecal in to the vet and find out what parasites they have going on. It would be best if you could get samples from both girls since they came from different places. Make sure they check for coccidia.

Between the corn and a new home is probably the culprit but always good to check for parasites.

If you can't find alfalfa hay, then I would give her a good quality grass hay. They need that for their rumen. It will take a while to build her back up if she is thin. You don't want to overwhelm their system with too much good stuff. I'm not sure on amounts for Nubians so hopefully someone else can answer that question.

Good luck with your girls. I'm sure you will really enjoy them.

 

[cmjust0]

99% of people around here do raise boer so she may be partial boer... the breeder said she was 100% nubian and her mom gives a gallon a day...

If I had to hazard a guess at percentages myself, I'd say there's a 100% chance those are both lies from the breeder.

She's classicly colored and patterned for a boerxnubi, but I just noticed that she's got a mildly dished face... So, even if she just happened to be a pure Nubian that was colored like a boerxnubi (highly unlikely), she should still have a roman nose...which she doesn't..

For my money, I'd say she's largely made of boer and nubi in about equal parts, but there's either a little kiko or another dish-faced dairy breed hiding in there somewhere too.

Thing is, I like crosses, so I'm not trying to knock your goat.. I like crosses better than purebreds, actually. Plus, I've never heard anyone who's ever milked a boerxnubi say the milk was anything other than fantastic.

Also, her mama might have been known at times to give a gallon in a day -- not uncommon, really -- but you gotta consider the lactation curve. Milk production climbs after parturition, peaks, generally levels off for a while, then starts to work its way back down. That's just how it works, so to say unequivocally that a particular goat is a "gallon a day milker" is a bit dishonest to begin with.

Note to everyone...if ever you're looking at a goat and someone says she's a "gallon a day milker," be sure to ask which day..

the guy had 2 nubians and 2 alpines in his pen. But who knows in places like that, most do lie just to make a sale.

Sad, but true.

I just went out to check on her again today and her eye looked fine!!! So I went into her pen to get a closer look and when I pulled her eye open she rolled it back into her head and all I could see was the white milky looking bottom I let her go and she looked up at me and both eyes were brown... Boy do I feel like a loser... LOL So I'm pretty sure it is just a simple cold... I'll look for that eye onitment next time I'm in there though.

Hey, at least her eye's OK! That's all that matters, so take the little victories however you can get them and be happy...trust me. If you own goats long enough, you'll have plenty of time to worry and beat yourself up over actual illnesses.. :/

As for the ointment, what I bought came in a teeny tiny little white and yellow box and was like $12. If you don't need it, per se, it might be more economical to put that on your next online order from Jeffers or Valley or wherever..

TSC gouges..

But does she seem small for 8 months??? What are some good ways I could bulk her up some... She is really thin back around her hips it's sunken in...

Yeah, she's small if that's really her age.. If she's sunken, she may not have much of a rumen.. Lots of goats surviving primarily on grain can wind up without much of a rumen, so the key there would be to make sure she eventually begins to take in plenty of roughage.. I don't know if she got hay before, but...I'm just saying, that's a possibility.

Alfalfa would be your friend in that case, as it would provide enough protein to grow, but would also serve to develop the rumen.

Otherwise, I know people seem to have good luck out of MannaPro products like calf-manna.. It's spendy, though.

Ya know, I'd probably go ahead and put this one on a coccidia treatment plan just to be on the safe side, too, since you really don't know her history.. If you'd rather know for sure than to treat without knowing, have a vet run a fecal for parasites.

That's probably not a bad idea anyway.

She has access to all the weeds she can eat.

I can't seem to find any alfalfa hay yet so I've been giving her about 2 cups of pelets and I'm slowly intoducing her to purina noble goat chow... I gave her about a cup of that last night. I gave her some yogurt today to counter the antibiotics I've been giving her (couldn't find the probios at TSC)

Gotta love TSC.. :/

The new pygmy we got is now pooing loose stools... they were fine yesterday! The guy I bought her from gave her a bucket of corn so she would be calm on the ride home (about 3 cups) Would that have caused it? Would a dose of yogurt help or baking soda...

DEFINITELY could be the corn.. Pure corn is pretty much horrible for goats. Not only does it contain WAY too much phosphorus and not enough calcium, large amounts of it fed right out of the blue can also lead them into ruminal acidosis pretty quickly.

One sign of acidosis is scour...so, yeah, I'd say baking soda isn't a bad idea.. Is the scouring pygmy dropping its head or acting depressed at all? Still eating alright?

sorry to be such a pest... guess I'm just a worried new momma...

I'm glad you're here posting questions because, frankly, the fact that you're concerned and trying to learn and be proactive tells me that you did these goats a favor by getting them away from someone who seems to either be A) uneducated about goats, B) shady, or C) all of the above.

 

[Roll farms]

"Most" TSC's follow the same store set up....there should be Probios in 3 places....paste form in equine health and near the nursing supplies (bottles, nipples, etc.) and powder form near equine supplements (red cell, weight builders, etc.)....I work at a TSC, I never understand why they set them up the way they do but...ain't like they listen to me, right?

Yogurt will work in a pinch but I prefer to keep Probios on hand ALWAYS, just in case.

I'd say she may have a case of worms or cocci if she's stunted. Vaccinate her for CDT, repeat in 21 days, and treat her for coccidiosis. Better yet, have a fecal ran to find out what you're needing to treat for, exactly...not all wormers were created equal and for every cocci treatment you read about here there are 10 others.

If your vet KNOWS goats, trust him, if he's just guessing....Try reading up at Fiasco Farms.

Good luck....



OH...PS...I agree 100% that that girl is a "pure" Boer x Nubian x ?....Nice long ears, very pretty, but she's as purebred as *I* am....
(Scotch / Irish / German / Native American....etc...etc.)

That's not a bad thing, as our crossbred goats always out perform the purebreds.

 

[MrsCountryChick]

Yea TSC is expensive, but it's nice to have a local store to get it immediately when you need it.

http://www.tractorsupply.com/livest...amycin-reg-opthalmic-ointment-1-8-oz--2209032

http://www.jefferslivestock.com/ssc...id=P7B9R4QF27LJ8LEM01VPQMPT1AD5D2MD&pf_id=229

 

[CrimsonRose]

Hugs!

Thank you all for your help. I really appreciate it. I'll find a vet and get the fecals ran.

Our TSC is very small so there is a lot of stuff they don't carry... I asked one of the employees and they just gave me a blank face and told me to look by the goat feed since that's where it should be... I'll try looking by the horse stuff next time...

We do have a little old fashion feed store in town I'm going to try and stop in there... (I need to ask about getting some hay anyway) It's pretty small too but they are willing to order you anything if they don't have it in... They are more farmer friendly... Our TSC has more dogfood and cat toys than farm stuff!

I got my jeffers catalog in the mail today and I'm writing out my order as we speak.

The pygmy is doing well she is eating good and her stools aren't super soft it just looks more like dog poo than goat pellets... She is very alert other than that...

I gave the girls their first hoof trimming last night... I don't think I got it close enough but I didn't want to traumatize them and accidentally cut them... Both were pretty over grown.

Thanks again!