Kids not doing well..open to suggestions

[SillyChicken]

Hi guys, My doe had 4 kids this year. She got her CD/t shot 2 mo before kidding (she was 3 weeks later than we thought, ligs were gone for 3 wks!). She had not rejected any of them and I've been watching to make sure they are active and feeding.

Last night while doing chores I saw the does udder was FULL...... and the smallest was standing off, hunched up and shaking. (it's super cold right now, in the 30s last night) I immediately pulled the kid out and brought her up to warm in the house. Went back out and milked almost a quart from the mom. Decided to pull the second smallest as well. I mixed goat and whole cow milk and fed the two from the bottle which they took eagerly, though the smallest isn't drinking a lot. They are still very hunched up and listless today.

I did forget one thing and will take care of this tonight, I feel horrible that I forgot about their boSe shots. They will get boSe and CD/T tonight as well since mom was later than we anticipated. Mom will also get boSe and vit B shots. I had them scheduled to be de-horned (by the vet), but I will push this out another week.

Do you think a vit B shot would help the kids as well?

They are 2 wks old right now. Poops seem good, forming berries, no scours... but I wonder if they could be exposed to coccidia since they were allowed out with mom in pasture.

Or do you think it's lack of enough milk?

Thanks for any input.

 

[babsbag]

Goats can be so confusing...

The hunching up after they eat is normal, but only after they eat, the other time you are right to be concerned. I wouldn't think cocci at 2 weeks, especially if they still have goat berries. Take their temperature, that will tell you a lot; they could have pneumonia with no outward signs. If your climate is such that you have warm days and cold nights newborns don't handle that well and it is prime for pneumonia. If they are running a fever I would give them some Oxcytetracycline unless you can some stronger stuff from your vet.

The BoSe is a good idea, a little early for CDT IMO. I usually do them at 3 weeks if the dam was vaccinated. Whenever I have little ones that are listless I get prepared for battle with Enterotoxemia even if I never need it. Look for the CDT antitoxin and have it on hand, if you need it down the road you have no time to look for it. Also PenG if you can get it and some Pepto Bismol. The dam was vaccinated so that is a big advantage to the kids but it still happens and if it does there is not time to gather the meds.

Hoping it is just that they weren't getting enough milk. What kind of goats?

 

[jodief100]

Cocci is unlikely at their age. They might have a touch on pneumonia, but I really think not enough milk is the issue here. They have difficulty regulating their body temperature without enough calories. Give them a Vit B shot to stimulate their appetite. Make sure they getting enough to eat and transition them to something other than mommas milk as quickly as you can, so she has enough for the other two. If they have a fever, give them something for pneumonia, LA-200 or Nuflor if you can get it.

Four is a lot for one momma to handle, even a milk goat.

 

[madcow]

I'm thinking that the shaking was because they had no fuel in them, i.e., milk, and this causes them to hunch up to try and stay warm. They most likely were chilled. The fact that they took to a bottle eagerly after being fed by the mother for 2 weeks tells me that they weren't getting enough. Four babies are quite a few for a momma to produce milk for and she might have been kicking the smallest ones off after the others have fed and she doesn't let the littlest ones feed as much as they need to. You might just have to supplement their diet for a while to ensure they are getting enough to grow properly. It takes a lot of energy for those little ones to stay warm and I'm sure momma can't keep all 4 full enough to keep warm. It sounds like they are good otherwise, just hungry!