New goat problem

[LeeBoy]

Hello, I am new to BYH and a new goat owner. I picked up a mama goat and her female baby Saturday. The mama went straight to the corner of the pen and has been there for 2 days. My kids and I get her up in the morning and evening to make her move around but as soon as she can get back to the corner she goes there and lays down. I did notice that when shes up, the baby will try to nurse but she kicks her off pretty quick. Baby is 5 weeks old. Not sure if she is weining her or not. Baby is grazing and drinking water from water trough and will let us play with her but the mama just lays in the corner and watches us.. I can get close enough to her and pet her and talk to her. She will let me pet her head and back of neck some. Every time we get her up she will pee and poop so shes not dehydrated but I never see her drink water. I guess my question is, is this normal for older goat in a new pasture? Should I be worried or just let her be? They have a barn to get in but they have not found it yet due to her obsession with the corner. It rained on them this morning and they got up and walked the back fence line but went back to the corner. Dont know what to do Thanks.

 

[BlessedWithGoats]

Hello! Welcome to BYH!
I'm going to tag some people that might be able to help you out, among others. @Sweetened @Goat Whisperer @animalmom @Pearce Pastures @Ridgetop @babsbag

 

[goatgurl]

first welcome to BYH's. glad to have you here. lots of nice people willing to help. your doe is hiding in plain site. right now she is pretty much afraid of everything. give her a few days to acclimate to your place. my guess is that she is eating and drinking when you aren't watching. is the barn open so she can go in? has she been into it yet? are you feeding her grain? if so take her into the barn to eat so she gets use to it. you could lock her in the barn for a few days to get use to it. i am amazed that she stayed out in the rain. my goats are convinced they will melt if rain drops hit them. and goats normally only let the kids nurse for a little while and then pull away. if the kid is eating and drinking her mama may very well be weaning her. give her a few days to get use to you.

 

[Pearce Pastures]

I would be a bit concerned in that she is having to be made to stand.

First, take her temp.
Second, put your hands all over her--check her udder, look for cuts, sores, bumps, working from hoof to mouth, look everywhere.
Third, get a vet on the phone and make an appointment to have her looked at.


Where did you get her? Can you call the previous owners?
Do her hooves need trimmed? Is her poop pelleted or clumpy/liquid?

 

[frustratedearthmother]

I agree that your doe may well be hiding in plain sight. Goats do NOT like change! BUT I am also concerned that she needs to be forced to stand up. She has a baby and that baby should be her first priority - not hiding. I'd take her temp and definitely check her membranes for signs of anemia. Has she been wormed recently? Can you get a fecal to the vet?

Hope she comes around quickly!

 

[Goat Whisperer]

I agree with the others..... Check her down all over. Goats don't like change but this seems a bit extreme IMO. Having to stand her up and the fact that she stood on the rain would have me very concerned.

Because you are a new goat owner and not very experienced I would recommend you have a vet come out to evaluate both of them. It may be nothing but I find this a bit odd. Not cutting you down, but if you are new to goats you may not know what to look for. Having a vet come out to give an eval will also build your relationship with your vet...... Always nice to have when you own goats!

Like others have said, get a fecal run on BOTH of them. With all the stress it can cause a parasite bloom. Be sure to have a cocci count done on the kid as well. Having a McMasters EPG count is best.

Congrats on your new goaties & welcome to BYH from NC!

 

[goatgurl]

well guys, somewhere along the way i missed the fact that she was having to be made to get up. kinda changes my advice a lot, for sure have her checked out by a vet. that's just not normal for a goat.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

and I missed the fact that she won't go into the barn and stood out in the rain... totally NOT normal for a goat to stay out in the rain.

I'd get her evaluated by a vet ASAP!

 

[Sweetened]

I would be concerned. I brought home a buckling over the weekend who throws himself into fences to be away from me but will stand screaming outside. This, to me, is normal stress, i figure he was a range goat.

I would be concerned by the not getting up without being forced, is there a possibility of injury during transport? Is she chewing cud at all when you find her? Do you have a game/wildlife camera you can set out to record her for a bit?

 

[LeeBoy]

First of all thank you to everyone for yalls advice! Baby G seems to be doing great. She runs and bucks and plays with us. She is grazing and drinking water from a bowl. Only thing about her is she scratches a lot. I can't find any fleas or bugs on her. Nit sure why she's so itchy. As for Mama G she is still in her corner. My oldest daughter worked with her today for a while and got her to eat some alphalfa hay out of her hand and made her get away from that corner. She walked around and ate some rolled oats and goat pellets out of a pan. We take Baby G to the barn to get her used to it. She will hang around in it fir a minute or so then goes back to find Mama G. As for mama she has not been in the barn yet. The barn is closed on the North, East and West sides and fully open on the South side. I have a feed trough and a wire hay rack in there along with a crate they can climb on. I did see Mama G chewing her cood yesterday. Her poop is pellets and she is still peeing. Do yall think it would be a good idea to move them into the barn for a few days? Barn is 12x12. She seems to want to eat the oats and hay but I don't want to keep feeding her in the corner. I'm moving the water farther away from the corner every day. As far as being physically injured I can not see anything wrong with her. I got her from a friend that lives only 2 miles down the road. I transported them seperately in two dog crates. As far as I can tell she has not changed body shape or dropped any weight. In other words to me she looks healthy. I will research on how to take her temp and call a vet in the morning to check her out. Again, thank you all!