Misfitmorgan's Journal - That Summer Dust

[misfitmorgan]

Those are the kinds of coats I meant, the people made ones. They are currently wearing the natural coats they started over a year ago. Can't see putting a people coat on the boys full time for a year to keep the fiber clean.

It's just a sheet so very light and dries quickly etc. Its common practice esp with alpaca because their prime fleece along the back/barrel gets destroyed without one. They should be cool enough it wouldnt bother then at all either. Everyone does what their comfortable with though and if the fiber is just for your own uses you might not need the prime fleece in top shape. Our suffolk sheep dont wear coats and im not sure i would coat them..the prime fleece isnt to important to me.

 

[misfitmorgan]

Last week we lost Ella. It was very sad for me i loved her a lot. I'm not sure what she died from she had grown her full coat back in and put on some weight. Last night DH came in and told me he found Black May dead. She started to show the same signs that Ella had with hair and weight loss about 2 months ago when she kidded. So i treated everyone for cocci again and thought that would fix the problem...apparently not.

Tests came back negative for CAE, CL, and Johnes. I am going to take new fecal tests into the vet and see if they have any info for me.

I'm wondering if it is a mineral problem. i sat down last night and thought about the herd as a whole..something i havnt really done before. We are having a fertility issue of some sort.

Ella did not have a kid for over 2 years i thought it was her poorly state.
Cassopia has not kidded in over 2 years.
Lucy and Missy both seem fine and kid year round without any issue.
Black May had no problem getting bred as soon as we got her pretty much, she had twin boys not to long ago.
White May came with her son and we thought she was prego but no kid.
Phoebe has a set of kids once a year.
The other girls are not old enough to breed yet.

Everyone seems lack-luster and a bit bloated all the time. The only ones who seem to be proper weight or even a bit fat are moon, ruger, lucy, and missy. Everyone else seems to lack a good fat covering and nothing i feed them seems to help i have tried alfalfa pellets, alfalfa hay, timothy hay, BOSS, sweet goat grain, shell corn, squash and pumpkins, beet pulp. I've tried giving them probiotics, yogurt, nutri-drench, bose gel, trace mineral block, 3 kinds of loose minerals, and vitamin B. Nothing seems to help for more then a short period of time.

They never lost the fishtail look even after the copper bolus, thin dull coats(the only two that had lost their coats were ella and black may), fertility issue, pale eyelids, under weight, a lot of hunched standing from about half the herd.

The 3 doe kids and the new buck we got at the end of april have not grown at all they still look 3-4 months old(how old they were when we got them) and are now approx 9-10months old.

Whenever we get new does they are fat and happy and then 4-6months later they are skinny and just not really healthy looking. They are not coming in with CAE, CL, Johnes because they are tested before hand and our herd has tested negative twice now...so i dont think it could be those.

We are missing something and i dont know what

I want to try giving them Cobalt but DH says the copper didnt help so it isnt cobalt because they have cobalt in their loose minerals (0.02ppm). I told him a deficiency is not getting enough and 0.02ppm didnt seam like enough, he said no it builds up and is fine. He told me the barn is just sick I dont agree there were no animals in the barn for 8+ years before our livestock.

 

[NH homesteader]

So sorry. That is just awful. I have no suggestions, just sorry it's been rough for you and the critters. Is it just the goats having issues?

 

[CntryBoy777]

Sure do hate to hear that!!....and Hope ya can narrow down the Cause....I have no knowledge or experience that can help ya....have thought about soil, water, or plants that may be a contributor to it...doesn't sound good though....keep us Posted with what ya Find....again, I sure am sorry for your Loss!!

 

[Hens and Roos]

so sorry to hear

 

[Goat Whisperer]

So sorry

I think @Ferguson K had a severe cobalt deficiency.

Have you looked at getting a mineral analysis done? Did you take them in for a necropsy? Is your water high in anything... we have high iron and that can bind minerals.

Are you keeping good hay out 24/7?

 

[samssimonsays]

SO sorry for your losses.

 

[TAH]

 

[Baymule]

What about free choice kelp meal? It is touted as having all the sea minerals in it.

 

[Ferguson K]

I lost goats, too,before we figured it out. you should have a mineral test done.

These are before and after pictures, 10 days apart. Not even her true before. She almost died, lots of your same symptoms.

After bolus