Kid with diarrhea

[s.z.ichigo]

One of my three week old triplets has come down with diarrhea. I noticed yesterday that he wasn't bouncing around as much as the others, and was standing a little funny, with his feet very close together like he was perching on something small, and he had a little mess under his tail, which he's been holding tucked in when he's not pooping. His poo is ranging from toothpase to elmers glue in consistency. (sorry for that visual).
We have a good microscope so I found instructions online to do your own fecal sample to check for worm eggs. I followed these instructions and I saw absolutely nothing. I then did another with a new sample, following these instructions, which seemed a lot more detailed, and saw a whole mess of stuff in there. Bits and pieces and things that looked like plant fibers, but not a single thing that looked anything like an egg. I read that even the healthiest goats have SOME kind of egg presence, so I'm not sure whether I can assume he's worm-free, or if I should assume I did something wrong.
I tried to give him a dose of dewormer, but they're really not eating out of our hands, so I could only get him to eat about half, and it's not the type that deals with coccidiosis, which is primarily what I did the sample to look for.

Any advice on what I should do? I was thinking of buying the coccidiosis dewormer and giving him that, just in case that's what it is and I'm just not seeing it. He isn't dehydrated or underfed. And should I do anything for the other kids or their moms so whatever it is doesn't pass on to them? Thanks!

 

[kstaven]

Try straight gelatin to control the runs. Kids can dehydrate quickly if it goes unchecked.

 

[s.z.ichigo]

Try straight gelatin to control the runs. Kids can dehydrate quickly if it goes unchecked.

Thanks. I've been checking his mouth periodically, and it feels nice and wet. His skin and fur look good, too. What amount of gelatin would you give to a three weeks old ND, and how do you prepare/present it? They aren't bottle fed at all.

 

[elevan]

Coccidia requires a 5-10 minute longer float time than internal worms. You may have done the float too short?

I agree with the gelatin approach but you should definitely double check to make sure you are not missing something that needs treated.

Give electrolytes too (gatorade is good in a pinch).

 

[s.z.ichigo]

Coccidia requires a 5-10 minute longer float time than internal worms. You may have done the float too short?

I agree with the gelatin approach but you should definitely double check to make sure you are not missing something that needs treated.

Give electrolytes too (gatorade is good in a pinch).

Would have been nice for the websites to have mentioned the extra time! I'll try again tomorrow. Nothing says fun like having a kid in your lap, waiting for it to poo on your leg

We have something called Bounce Back that we have for chick water, so I'll give him some of that in addition to the gelatin, assuming I can get it into him. He's only starting to nibble at food and drink water. I assume I'm going to have to put a syringe in his mouth. I had to do that with my buck when he was 2 months old, and I remember it being a messy process.

 

[elevan]

A syringe or a turkey baster works well too.

 

[s.z.ichigo]

Good morning. I did another test last night, using a much longer float time. Still nothing, so I guess I won't be giving him the meds. I did get a full dose of electrolytes into him, with the help of my daughter. I held him in my lap, tipped his head back, and she just put the tip of the syringe between his lips and slowly let it into his mouth. He liked that MUCH better than trying to put the thing in his mouth!

 

[woodsie]

I used this after it was suggested on a thread I had going for a sick kid I had....it did work like a charm to keep diareaha in check until I could get the antibiotics to treat for cocci. I just put 10 cc in a syringe (28lb kid) and down the hatch, took about 8 hours to get the poops to start clumping again. I had best results giving it 3 times a day....if I stopped the diareaha came back...that's when I knew I needed the antibiotics - that and everyone was screaming for me to get the meds.

Here was the thread. http://www.backyardherds.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=25444&p=3

1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp clove
2 tsp ginger
2 tsp slippery elm (health food stores or Hoeggers Goat Supply)
1 tsp garlic ( I use liquid)
2 cups of water

Bring to slow simmer on low heat while stirring.
I then place in jar and cover and allow to cool for about 20 minutes.
I have been using it for
the past few years with awesome results.
Give 6-12 cc's orally several times a day.
I have also mixed it with scour halt with very good results

Since I already had some of this mixed up I then added:
cayenne and thyme. I used a teaspoon of each because my babies are in the 50-70 pound range, well, most of them, Figured it wouldn't hurt the little babies.

 

[s.z.ichigo]

Finding slippery elm might be difficult. We live in rural NH, and there isn't a health food store withing reasonable driving distance. I'll definitely keep the recipe on hand, though. For now his poo seems to be improving, and hopefully it will continue to. It looks more like doggie poo now, with definite pellet shapes forming it. I did give him some gelatin.

Here is what most of the fecal sample looked like last night. I wish I knew how to identify the stuff in there. Is it weird that I found it really interesting?



This is the only thing that kinda looked like an egg to me, but not quite as it didn't have a real defined center (nucleus?) that pictures online had.

 

[rebelINny]

If I remember right from doing my own fecals, the first pic you posted is bubbles.....I am pretty sure that's what I saw in my book about what the things look like when doing a fecal.