Kidney Failure

[verkagj]

My 6-month old little buck had to be put down due to kidney failure. Vet said this is the first time she has seen it in a goat and couldn't find any references on the vet info sites. He started to look skinny a couple of weeks ago but I thought he was just growing taller. He was browsing all day and otherwise seemed OK. A week ago I wormed him since he still was losing weight. Took him to the vet today and she said his urine was just about pure water and his blood was full of toxins that the kidneys should be removing.
Anyone else ever experienced this?

 

[elevan]

I've never experienced it. It sounds like he's got into something toxic. You might want to do a check of your pasture plants.

 

[verkagj]

The vet posed that as a possibility but said that poison plants usually causes liver damage not kidney failure. Vet thinks it may have been congenital after I told her that he always drank a lot of water.
Does anyone have a list of poisonous plants? We live in Belize, Central America. He always was eating close to the girls and they seem fine.

 

[Livinwright Farm]

The vet posed that as a possibility but said that poison plants usually causes liver damage not kidney failure.

That was my thought too.

If you have any other bucks, my suggestion is: make sure they eat a decent amount of Dandelion leaves, Cranberry, and/or Corn silk... as these boost kidney function. I also suggest making sure they are getting AC(Ammonium Chloride) in their diet to ward off UC(Urinary Calculi).

Edited To Add: http://fiascofarm.com/goats/poisonousplants.htm is a decent list of edible and toxic

 

[elevan]

I like this list of toxic plants from Cornell University.

 

[verkagj]

Thanks for the list.
Our vet said that there are numerous poisonous plants here in Belize but goats don't usually eat much of them unless they are starving. Mine are in a 100x100 ft fenced area that is lush browse plus they get grain every day. I've pretty much ruled that out.
That leaves congenital which may be why be cried a lot or enterotoxaemia. He started losing weight right after the rains started. Stuff grows rapidly this time of year here. He did a lot more browsing that the girls do. Very seldom laid down during the day.
Hopefully he already did "the deed" . We got him at the end of April. He was born sometime in January. The girls both came into heat in the middle of May and middle of June but after that left him alone and didn't come back into heat. I wasn't sure he was tall enough to reach.

 

[elevan]

They'll find a way to reach

Hoping that he bred them for you.