Three Skinny Goat Kids - Updated

[journeysend]

Ok, I'm bottle feeding 3 goat kids: 1 Nubian buck born in 2/17, 1 Nigerian Dwarf Doe born 2/19 and 1 Ober buck born in March. I have pretty much stopped giving the doe a bottle (sometimes she steals a sip from the other two) and the bucks are getting two 16 oz bottles per day. I am using whole cow's milk. They are currently eating Noble Goat (grower?) feed, have free access to a mineral block and lots of fresh pasture/hay.

So here is my problem: they are super skinny... I have been supplementing them with Probios powder in their bottles. I have wormed with Ivermectin 1.87% horse paste at triple the dosage. I have 3 adult does and 1 other doe kid that is nursing, all of which are doing spendidly well and are very plump. I have had a slight problem with scours in the ND doeling, but she got out and was eating all kinds of stuff that may have caused it. She is doing fine now. The 2 buck kids and the rest of the goats have very nicely formed droppings. They all have healthy appetites and act normal. I am only having this problem in my bottle fed kids so I am wondering if perhaps I am doing something wrong? If anyone has any advice I would greatly appreciate it.

I guess what I am really trying to figure out is do they possibly have a disease or illness? Or is this a nutritional problem?

 

[KellyHM]

What kind of hay are they getting? I find that my young kids really need peanut or alfalfa hay to grow the way I want them to.

 

[Emmetts Dairy]

I would get a fecal done and see if they are carrying coccidia. That will cause them to not gain for certain and extremly common for the young kids. Its sooo worth it to get it done...and it will take a few days of cleaning and Albon to rid it.

Good luck...I hope you fiqure it out!

 

[Roll farms]

My full sized kids get 3 - 20 oz bottles a day until 2 mos old, then 2 - 20 oz bottles a day until 2.5 mos, then 1 - 20 oz up til 3 mos when I wean.

If 2 - 16 oz bottles a day is what they got all along, that's about half what I would have been feeding...I've found that amount really puts a nice layer of fat on them to help them not lose any condition during the transition from bottles to feed.

I feed them Noble Goat pretty much free choice, too, until they're fully weaned.

They shouldn't need probiotic powder daily. I only give it after deworming, cocci treatment, diet changes, etc.

I would have a fecal ran. At their age, and because this is 'cocci season'...They could very well all 3 have it and not show signs.

Cocci can kill. When it doesn't kill, it can stunt their growth for life.
This thread is a recent one about cocci / treatment...

http://www.backyardherds.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=10616&p=1

 

[SDGsoap&dairy]

I would have a fecal done right away. What is the weight on your ND doe kid? For comparison, I have two kids that are the same age (ours were born 2/15) and they're around 30 lbs. Both were bottle raised. Like KellyHM said, it's important to provide calcium rich feed, like alfalfa or peanut, free choice while the kids are growing.

 

[20kidsonhill]

x3 x4 x5 coccidiosis testing and treatment.

 

[journeysend]

Ok, I'm feeding Coastal Bermuda which is what is available at my local feed store. I guess when I think about it, they started losing weight when I cut their bottles back... As for the coccidiosis, the vets around here close at 12 on Saturdays, but I will be sure to call them first thing Monday morning and see about getting a fecal done. I had been feeding them three bottles a day, and started cutting them back around the end of last month.

I wouldn't have cut them back except I was following the advice of the 'breeder' I got the Nubian and ND doe from. She weans hers off the bottle completely by the time they are 8 weeks old.

Oh and n.smithurmond her weight is actually better than the boys, which I guess would make sense if it is because I cut them back. She is a ND mix, most likely with Boer so is slightly bigger than the average ND kid. I would think she probably weighs around 30 lbs or more.

So what would be the best hay to feed them? I think Tractor Supply sells alfalfa hay and I could get it from there. This is my first go-around with dairy goats and I never had any problems with my Boers.

 

[SDGsoap&dairy]

I feed bermuda free choice and supplement with alfalfa. Kids get alfalfa free choice.

 

[helmstead]

I wouldn't have cut them back except I was following the advice of the 'breeder' I got the Nubian and ND doe from. She weans hers off the bottle completely by the time they are 8 weeks old.

There's your issue, along with cocci probably. I never even consider weaning a ND before 8 weeks (usually start weaning around 10 wks, and they are on the bottle at least 12-16 weeks if they're smaller). I always feed my large breeds and Mini Nubians at least 12 weeks, around 60+ oz a day.

 

[Ariel301]

I would get them on a cocci treatment/prevention plan ASAP. I see the same thing in my kids, they are nice and plump and growing fast until weaning time/the onset of warm weather, then they slow down, get thin through the ribs, but have huge round hay bellies. In my case, it's a combination of cocci, copper deficiency, and a strain of lice I managed to bring in that is resistant to just about any treatment. I would look into all three of those, especially the cocci.

Weaning at 8 weeks is fine, but with these not doing so well, I think I would keep them on milk a little longer until you get whatever it is treated, because milk is so easy to digest and nutritious, it should help them out.