What's wrong with my 6 month old buckling?

[Fullhousefarm]

Chiming in late here in Florida.

UF large animal hospital is great with goats and actually not that $$ for most stuff since it's a teaching clinic. I'd see if they can do a fecal even if you do your own since you are new to it. We also don't use safeguard in FL. I'd confirm with a fecal first- but the breeder I know in Gainesville- who has mostly dirt lot- uses something stronger too.

Dr Sonday is just south of Gainesville but may travel that far. She is excellent with goats as well- I know several great breeders who use her. If she doesn't go that far she might know someone who does.

A possible idea too- last summer we had a doeling who just wouldn't put on weight. She struggled with worms and coccidian more than the others but was always treated promptly. We ended up taking the advice of another breeder and put her and a non-pushy (and not fat!) buddy her age in a 12x12 pen with high protein hay 24/7, more grain with access all night, and of coarse shelter, shade and water. It really worked. She was able to eat more and not run all of the energy off. It also put her with no pasture/grass so it helped her not be exposed to as many parasites. We'd of coarse let her out to run around here and there and play- just much more limited. She's totally caught up and didn't have any issues this summer at all. Something to think about if he just won't put on weight.

 

[JoyfulGoats]

I didn’t read all the comments, but your goat now looks perfectly fine. In the before picture he was way too thin. Please don’t keep giving dewormers or medications without a fecal test, otherwise you can create parasite resistance. All goats have parasites, you just don’t want more than a normal amount. It’s normal that his stomach varies in size. Goats have a rumen to digest their food, and it increases in size with gases because it ferments. This is normal and good. A small stomach means that the goat is not digesting it’s food well. Of course, you don’t want your goat to be bloated, but if they are, they won’t act the same. They will be uncomfortable. If you see your goat ruminating (they are chewing the food they regurgitated), they aren’t bloated. Since your goat is this way since a long time, he isn’t bloated (or he would be dead by now), and just has a healthy rumen.

These are my goats. They are Nigerian Dwarfs and the golden and white ones are the same age as yours. They aren’t bloated, they just have healthy rumens. In the morning, their stomach is pretty flat, and gets bigger as they est their hay.

 

[Southern by choice]

but your goat now looks perfectly fine

No, he does not- this is why the attachments were added. Although I agree he may be finally just developing a rumin , he is still way too thin... the attachments were given to help the new goat owner understand... if you take a look around the tail head you will see it is completely hollow still, the hip bones are still protruding as well... no muscling or fat
Now look at your own- your goats have adequate fleshing around the hip bones, tail head, rear legs, and neck- this lil guy does not.
This is the problem with not looking at the whole goat and understanding BCS. (Body Condition Score)

Please don’t keep giving dewormers or medications without a fecal test, otherwise you can create parasite resistance.

Absolutely! Analysis first!

BTW your goats look great!

 

[JoyfulGoats]

No, he does not- this is why the attachments were added. Although I agree he may be finally just developing a rumin , he is still way too thin... the attachments were given to help the new goat owner understand... if you take a look around the tail head you will see it is completely hollow still, the hip bones are still protruding as well... no muscling or fat
Now look at your own- your goats have adequate fleshing around the hip bones, tail head, rear legs, and neck- this lil guy does not.
This is the problem with not looking at the whole goat and understanding BCS. (Body Condition Score)


Absolutely! Analysis first!

BTW your goats look great!

Yes, sorry. I was in a hurry to reply, that I was focusing just on the rumen aspect. I meant that the fact that his rumen is larger than is normal. I agree, her buckling is still quite thin. He is getting better though!

Thank you about my goats

 

[AlaynaMayGoatLady]

I live between Bronson and Williston, about 30 minutes from Gainesville, so at least I have some local knowledge, though I'm not nearly as experienced as quite a few others on this forum. Our vet is Dr. Teri Harty, but she lives 2 hours away and usually helps me diagnose stuff over the phone. She could probably give recommendations for a good goat vet around here.
Anyway... I agree so far with everything said: body condition, developing rumen, need for fecal, adequate worming, and so forth. I try to avoid using chemical wormers on my goats, but do need to worm 1-3 times per year. Because of the worms' ability to build resistance, I think it is better to slightly overdose than underdose them when it is necessary to use wormer. I do not intentionally overdose, but if I need to round the dosage to the nearest weight increment, I round up. Cydectin pour-on, given orally, has worked okay (@ 1cc per 100lbs, I think). I usually use Ivermectin paste, though. SafeGuard has not worked well at all for my goats down here, even when I did way over the recommended dosage for several days in a row. (Works great on my puppies though - go figure.)

Does he have access to kelp? Kelp contains a lot of really important minerals in a safe, easily assimilated form. A fellow goat-keeper a few miles away from us is a dealer for New Country Organics, and if you wanted some kelp, I could probably get in touch with her before she places her next order and get you a bag. Kelp will definitely not hurt your goats, and may help them a lot. It is safe for the sheep too.
I feed all our stock animals (cows, horses, goats) New Country Organics kelp based goat minerals and it has made a world of difference. As long as it is available, I do not plan to ever switch to anything else. The animals were on it for about a year before they really began to improve, and they still have a ways to go, but it is worth it. You would have to top dress their feed because of the sheep, but even sheep need some copper (despite the usual consensus against it). Don't have time to go into it now, but some friends in Lake City (Shepherd's Hill Farm) have lots of sheep and feed them some copper. Their farm is amazing to visit; well worth the drive!

Apple cider vinegar (preferably raw, unfiltered, with the mother) is really good for goats and may help him.

Feeding alfalfa or alfalfa mix may also be good to put weight on him. We get our alfalfa from Larsen Farms (at junction of 27 alt and 326.) It is good quality and price, but would be a bit of a drive for you, depending which side of Gainesville you are on. I know some folks don't like feeding bucks alfalfa... All I can say is that mine have not had issues, but then, I haven't usually kept bucks for very long, so you would need to get a more experienced opinion on that. I think feeding the kelp helps because it is high in iodine.

I hope this helps!

 

[Southern by choice]

Cydectin pour-on, given orally, has worked okay

There are many products used on goats that are considered extra label- recommended by veterinarians that are permissible however there are some products or uses that are not... the following info can be found at the link provided in the text below.

ADDITIONAL NOTE ON CYDECTIN: For a short period, it was recommended to administer Cydectin (moxidectin) by injection. However, new information suggests that the oral route is preferred. If the cattle injectable is used, FARAD recommends a 120-130 day meat withdrawal time. NOTE that the cattle pour-on formulation should NOT be administered to goats orally – this is not permissible under extra-label use law. ALWAYS use the sheep oral drench. Check http://www.acsrpc.org/ website for more information on drug choice and drug resistance.

 

[dejavoodoo114]

There are many products used on goats that are considered extra label- recommended by veterinarians that are permissible however there are some products or uses that are not... the following info can be found at the link provided in the text below.

ADDITIONAL NOTE ON CYDECTIN: For a short period, it was recommended to administer Cydectin (moxidectin) by injection. However, new information suggests that the oral route is preferred. If the cattle injectable is used, FARAD recommends a 120-130 day meat withdrawal time. NOTE that the cattle pour-on formulation should NOT be administered to goats orally – this is not permissible under extra-label use law. ALWAYS use the sheep oral drench. Check http://www.acsrpc.org/ website for more information on drug choice and drug resistance.

Oops... Any particular reason?

 

[AlaynaMayGoatLady]

ADDITIONAL NOTE ON CYDECTIN: For a short period, it was recommended to administer Cydectin (moxidectin) by injection. However, new information suggests that the oral route is preferred. If the cattle injectable is used, FARAD recommends a 120-130 day meat withdrawal time. NOTE that the cattle pour-on formulation should NOT be administered to goats orally – this is not permissible under extra-label use law. ALWAYS use the sheep oral drench. Check http://www.acsrpc.org/ website for more information on drug choice and drug resistance.

OOPS... Thank you for telling me. Last I heard, everyone was still fine with using it. I believe mine is the cattle pour-on version. I got it from a neighbor (along with a few other things) when I bought his herd of 10 goats a couple years ago. I sold the goats, a few at a time, but still have the supplies. He was worming them with it every month. No Famacha chart comparisons or anything... I'm not sure who told him to do that, but I think that is what he took away from having a specialist from University of FL come out to his property.