Vet is stumped

[LoneOakGoats]

We purchased a bred pygmy goat 3 weeks ago from an individual that has raised goats for several years. She came down with what I thought was pinkeye and we gave her LA 200 and sprayed her eyes 3 times daily with pinkeye spray I purchased from the feed store. We continued this for a week and there was no improvement at all. My husband carried her to the vet today and the vet has no idea with is wrong with her, but he does not think it's pinkeye. He gave her an anitbiotic injection. He said since she's bred, he'd advise letting her have the baby and then have her put down. He also advised us it would be ok to place her back in with the rest of the herd. I can hardly believe my ears!!! This is the first time we've used him. Unfortunately, there are not many vets in our area that see goats. I'm at a total loss. First, I can't bare keeping her just to have a baby, then put her down. Second, if he doesn't know what she has, how do you know it's safe for her to be around the rest of the herd? I hate the thought of losing a goat, but if she's in pain I don't want her to suffer either. Any advice would be so greately appreciated.

 

[babsbag]

What are her problems other than the eye problem? Pink eye can take weeks to clear up and the LA 200 won't be the right antibiotic if it is pink eye caused by mycoplasma. When is she due? And if you post where you live maybe another member can help you find a goat vet.

I would read these two threads

http://www.backyardherds.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=26081

http://www.backyardherds.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=26129

 

[Straw Hat Kikos]

Please let us know all the details about the eye and what it looks like etc. I've dealt with several eye issues before and should be able to help if I have more info.

 

[ThornyRidgeII]

Can you get a good photo of the eye? Any other symptoms at all?

 

[LoneOakGoats]

I can't figure out how to post any pics of her eyes. I'll do my best to describe them. They started out extremely cloudy. You could not see her pupils at all. Even with LA 200 and Vetericyn spray she has gotten worse. We also tried the raw honey & water that was suggested. In one eye, a bloody "film" started at the top of her eye and continued until her entire eye was covered and no longer cloudy, but now looks like a blood & water filled sac. The other eye has started the same thing. A bloody film starting at the top of her eye, but has approx. 1/2 of her eye still being cloudy. She has no vision at all in either eye. There is a yellow discharge coming from both eyes that I clean several times per day. She spends most her day laying in a wooden shelter that is inside a 20' x20' pen. She was eating but within the last 4-5 days, has shown little interest in food. The guy we got her from said she is 2 1/2 years old, and he had no idea when she was bred. If she never regains her eyesight, that's ok with me, I just don't want her to be in pain. I live north of Dallas, Texas Thanks again for any help.

 

[babsbag]

If the LA 200 didn't work then you need to change antibiotics, there is more than one kind of pinkeye; and that sounds like what she has. You can also get your vet to send in a culture of the discharge to a lab for testing. If she were her and the LA 200 didn't work I would switch to Tylan 200 as that is the only antibiotic that will work for pinkeye caused by mycoplasma.

Her eyes will clear up but it could be 6 weeks or more.

You also need an antibiotic ointment for her eyes, something like Terramycin. Vetericyn isn't going to do the job for this one.

 

[xa.logan]

Have you been putting drops of LA200 in the eye or just injections? Eye Infections have a way of walking themselves off from the rest of the body an usually have to be treated specifically. Also, conjunctivitis is contagious. It is NOT advised to put it with the rest of the herd. In fact, be sure that you're wearing gloves when treating her. Did the vet do a stain to see if the cornea is torn or abraded?

 

[LoneOakGoats]

The vet did nothing but look at her eyes and suggest that we could put her down. I couldn't believe it. We were giving the LA 200 injections. Can we get the Tylan 200 and Terramycin at Tractor Supply? Also, how many injections should we give her of the Tylan 200? I do wear gloves each time I clean her eyes them come in & wash up also. There is simply no way I would put her in with the rest of the herd. This vet was actually recommended to my by someone else that has goats. Needless to say, I'm searching for a new vet for my goats. Thank you all for any advice

 

[babsbag]

You can get the Tylan 200 at TSC, but maybe not the Terramycin, it can be hard to find but Jeffers does carry it. There is another Rx one that is called Triple Ophthalmic Ointment that you might be able to get the vet to give you. The dose for the Tylan that I would use is 1cc for 25lbs sub-q for 5 days, I have also read that you can put that in their eyes as well.

Some say that pinkeye just has to run its coarse, others say that it has to be treated with antibiotics. Considering that it is usually caused by mycoplasma or chlamydia I think that you have to treat them. Chlamydia can also cause abortions so let's hope it isn't that. If you treated her with the LA200 then hopefully it will get rid of Chlamydia and she won't abort. There is also some risk of using the LA200 (oxytetracycline) on a pregnant doe as it can interfere with bone formation in the fetus. But I would take that risk if I was treating Chlamydia as the fetus is at risk anyway.

I certainly wouldn't put her down without a fight.

Good luck with her. You may have to lead her to water and feed and tempt her to eat with all kind of tasty treats.

 

[Straw Hat Kikos]

Ok only read the comment after mine. Stop the oxytetracycline now. That helps for a certain kind of Pinkeye, the abortion causing one. Not going to do a ton to help you otherwise.

What you need is Penicillin. Now they won't work with each other because the oxytetracycline will cancel out the penicillin.

Penicillin is a great eye antibiotic. I have had a goat with a very similar issue to where i thought he was going to die. Listen, the LA200 is very acidic and it will burn the eye, cause the eyes to sting and won't help much. Pen-G will not hurt the eyes and will turn this around if it's not to late but you must stop with the LA200 for the Pen-G to work. I gave two Pen-G injections in the leg a day at the dose of 1cc per 15 pounds as well as a few cc's of it into the eye once a day. Do this for ten days and you may or may not see inprovment. My buck looked like he improved very little but that's all I could do but shortly after it really started working and his eye was cleared up. It has some scaring on it, he can see, and his eye color in that eye has changed. His eye was so bad that it was nearly out of it's socket it and i thought he may die.

To make it short. You must dump the LA200. Not going to help and it will hurt him. You have to go to Pen-g but they can't be in her system at the same time because they won't work.