|
First Aid
by Kay Orlando, DVM
Once you have more than a
few goats, it becomes evident that it is physically and
financially impossible to take them to your veterinarian for
every minor injury. It is important to have a first aid kit and
to be able to evaluate injury or illness. Ask yourself, “Can I
treat this, or should I have the goat examined by a
veterinarian? Is it an emergency, or can it wait until office
hours?”
Some First Aid Equipment
Cuts and Abrasions
A common injury of this type is trimming hooves too short and
cutting into the quick. The bleeding often stops by itself
without treatment. Occasionally, the foot needs to be bandaged
with a pressure wrap of gauze and Vet Rap®. Most cuts do not
get infected, but you may give a preventative penicillin
injection if the cut is deep. Make sure the goat is current on
tetanus vaccine. Expect the goat to limp for a day or two.
Cuts occur even in the
safest pasture. If a cut is completely through the skin and the
edges are separated, sutures are needed. These wounds can be
bandaged until you can get the goat to your veterinarian. Apply
some antibiotic ointment, a telfa pad, and wrap with gauze and
Vet Rap®. If the injury oozes blood, apply pressure to stop the
bleeding. An injury that spurts blood needs immediate
veterinary attention, as an artery may have been severed.
Unless a wound is
bleeding heavily, you can wait until regular office hours for
veterinary attention. Make sure the wound is kept clean and the
tetanus booster is up to date. A penicillin injection should be
given if the cut penetrates through the skin.
Eye Injuries
Any eye abnormality should receive prompt attention. Minor
injuries can progress quickly into serious eye damage. Weed
awns, hay and straw commonly become lodged under an eyelid. If
not promptly removed, corneal lacerations and possible eye loss
can occur. Early signs of a foreign body in the eye are
squinting and excessive tears followed by closure of the eye
and pus accumulation. Flush the eye with sterile eye wash, then
pull out the lid to locate the foreign body. Antibiotic
ointment should be used in the eye for several days after
removing the foreign body. The cornea is extremely sensitive,
and any injury causes a great deal of pain, squinting and
tears. A veterinarian should examine the eye if a corneal
lesion is suspected. Never use eye ointment containing
cortisone if there is a possibility of corneal injury.
Lameness
A sudden limp is usually due to an injury. Examine the limb for
pain, swelling and punctures. If you suspect a puncture, treat
with penicillin and re-evaluate the injury in 12 hours. If you
suspect a strain of pulled muscle, give aspirin at the rate of
5 gr/ 60 lb, rest the goat and re-evaluate in 24 hours. You can
usually wait 1 or 2 days to see if the limp improves after
examination and treatment. Once again, make sure the tetanus
booster is up-to-date if a puncture is suspected.
Complete inability to use
a leg is more serious. When this occurs suddenly with a good
deal of pain, a fracture should be suspected. Keep the goat as
quiet as possible until a veterinarian can examine it. Some
type of leg support may be necessary if the goat needs to be
transported to a clinic.
Diarrhea
Diarrhea can range from a dog-like stool to watery and
explosive. Most breeders will have occasion to deal with
diarrhea from a number of causes.
Goats probably have
pellets, instead of cow pats, due to muscular contractions as
ingesta moves through the large intestine. Through
regurgitation and cud chewing, goats have a very fine particle
size of ingesta, and this may also be a factor. Moisture is
absorbed through the intestinal walls as ingesta travels
through it. Normal goat pellets are between 0.5 to 1.5 cm in
diameter. I consider anything other than hard goat pellets to
be diarrhea, with the exception of neonates.
A healthy digestive tract
is very important. Fecal consistency is an easily observable
indication of digestive tract health and some problems
elsewhere.
Adults: Pasty, watery or
dog-like feces are abnormal and may indicate: parasitism,
Johne’s disease, overeating, displaced abomasum,
enterotoxemia, or a diet that contains too much concentrate
and not enough roughage. Blood in the stool is uncommon but can
occur in enterotoxemia and coccidiosis. Whole grain is not
usually seen in the feces unless the goat is on a very high
concentrate level. Feces containing mucus indicate constipation
or a prolonged time in the large intestine due to disease
condition elsewhere in the body.
Older goats usually get
diarrhea from overeating a high carbohydrate source, like
grain. They have rumen acidosis and a bacterial imbalance in
the gut. Give 2 to 3 ounces of Milk of Magnesia, take away all
grain and feed palatable hay. If the goat is off feed and
running a temperature, penicillin can be given. Such cases
should turn around in 12 hours. A goat that is down and
depressed should be seen by your veterinarian.
Kids: Coccidia is an
uncommon cause of diarrhea in kids less than one week old;
umbilical and bacterial gut infections are more usual. Bacteria
can enter the umbilicus at birth to multiply and cause problems
in the liver. Long-term, aggressive antibiotic therapy is
necessary to correct the problem.
Escherichia coli is the
usual culprit in intestinal bacterial infections in kids. This
organism enters the body by mouth. Antibiotics are needed.
Overeating also causes kids to scour.
Diarrhea in kids over two
weeks old is usually due to either coccidia or overeating. The
young kid is treated as a simple-stomached animal, as its rumen
is not highly developed. It is important to find and treat the
cause as soon as possible. Monitor kids closely.
Oral sulfa (Albon®) can
be used for coccidiosis and bacterial bowel infections. This is
a good product to start with, especially if the cause of the
diarrhea is unknown. Re-evaluate the kid often, and get
professional help early if it is not responding.
While microscopic
examination of the feces is important to diagnose and monitor
intestinal parasitism, daily gross examination of feces can be
a valuable aid in determining the general health of the goat.
Excerpts from:
Kinne, Maxine, ed.
Pygmy Goats: Best of Memo
3
(1988-1996)
National Pygmy Goat Association: pp 107
This document is for
informational purposes only and is in no way intended to be a
substitute for medical consultation with a qualified veterinary
professional. The information provided through this document is
not meant to be used in the diagnosis or treatment of a health
problem or disease, nor should it be construed as such.
|
