# Ammonium Chloride and Copper Sulfate



## bobb (Sep 20, 2010)

Hi Guys,

I have a male Boer goat who's been operated on for calculi stones. I don't remember the name of the operation....but it's the one where they relocate is winky under his butt. He's been operate on a second time due to stricturing, but seems ok for now. I've been drenching him with Ammonium Chloride since the first operation and urine tests have shown no stones. I give him 1 Tablespoon Ammonium Chloride per 40ml of water with the drencher every third day. After the operation I was drenching him every day for a few weeks, then switched to every other day, then after getting the last negative urine test for stones I went to every third day. God that stuff tastes aweful and I feel so bad for making him drink it!!!

Awhile ago I noticed the brown fur on his neck starting to "fade", for lack of a better word. I didn't know what to make of it.....nor did my vet. Now I see he's losing the hair on the back of his hind legs. I did an internet search and it seems those symptons indicate a copper deficiency. I read about the copper rods, but besides it sounding horrible there's no way I'm going to get him to swallow that capsule. He doesn't even like marshmallows. So I went the easy route and got some Copper Sulfate (root killer) at the hardware store. I mixed it in his water at 1 Tablespoon per gallon. Seems the blue crystals don't dissolve well in water.....but I keep stirring it up whenever I'm out there. 

Which leads me to the question you never thought I'd get to. Is there any interactions between Ammonium Chloride and Copper Sulfate I need to worry about???? I couldn't find anything on the web that talks to that question. Any advice would surely be appreciated. 

Thanks,
bob


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## cdtrum (Aug 25, 2008)

I don't know if the two together are bad......but I personally would never use copper sulfate, one of the moderators here loss one of her beloved does using it.......you have to be extremly careful with the dosing. I copper bolus mine and it isn't that hard.......some have started putting the rods into food, you can do a search on putting the rods in marshmellows or other treats. Copper Bolusing is very safe as the copper is absorbed slowly, where the copper sulfate goes into the goats system fast and that can cause copper poisioning.


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## milkmaid (Sep 15, 2010)

Don't know about any reactions. I agree, you have to be very careful with the copper sulfate. Some people do use it, with good results. I use it, but once one of my goats was getting stomachaches from it (that was 2 pinches in the feed daily for a miniature goat), so I reduced the dose. I now give it with dolomite, which makes it safer.
The only goat death from copper sulfate I have ever heard of was when someone gave a miniature goat a level teaspoon straight. Learning from their mistake, I don't give anywhere near that much, and it's always mixed with their feed so it's absorbed more slowly. DISCLAIMER: Because I've only had goats for a year and a half, and only used copper sulfate for a year or so, I don't feel qualified to recommend it to anyone.
Are the ends of his hairs hooked? If so, he's copper deficient. If not, he's not. That has been my experience anyway.
The safest thing to do, if you don't want to worry about copper poisoning, is to give him loose minerals and/or a feed with copper added. Sweetlix Meat Maker is a good loose mineral. :thumb: 
Just my :2cents: !


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